Tokyo-based digital media outlet Wired.jp reported on Wednesday that eight successful entrepreneurs from Japan have joined forces and launched a new startup-focused investment fund called Tokyo Founders Fund. The founding members represent an impressive lineup of the Japanese startup community: Yusuke Asakura (former CEO of Mixi, visiting scholar at Stanford University) Nobuhiro Ariyasu (Coach United CEO) Kiyo Kobayashi (Chanoma CEO) Yusuke Sato (Freakout COO) Yo Shibata (former Spotlight CEO) Kensuke Furukawa (Nanapi CEO) Ayataro Nakagawa (Peroli CEO) Taichi Murakami (Livesense CEO) Inspired by San Francisco-based Founders Fund started in 2005 by the Paypal founders, Kobayashi decided that Japan also needed a similar startup investment founders fund while building a network with local investors and entrepreneurs in the San Francisco Bay Area where he is based. According to Kobayshi’s recent post on Facebook, the fund will offer a small amount of investment to pre-seed and seed stage startups around the world. Details of the fund’s activities have not been decided, but the eight-person team will discuss this in a closed Facebook group while looking to give their invested entrepreneurs functions as a knowledge sharing platform around launching businesses and a hub for connecting them with each others. Edited by Kurt Hanson