The Story of Toshiba: Empowering Tokyo's Smart City Vision Since 2019
Toshiba partnered with Plug and Play Japan to demonstrate its dedication to innovative ideas and leverage its cyber-physical systems. With a 140-year history in energy solutions, infrastructure, and digital advancements — it is fully committed to shaping a brighter future.
- Smart CitiesVertical
- 2019Year they joined the platform
- 220+Startups accelerated
- 50+Dealflows
- TokyoJapan
Digital solutions for a better future
Toshiba has been providing technologies to support society for more than 140 years since its establishment in various fields, such as energy, infrastructure, electronic devices, and digital solutions. With their philosophy of being “Committed to People, Committed to the Future,” Toshiba joined Plug and Play Japan's innovation platform in 2019 to create new values by combining its abundant product lines and technologies in various business fields with the digital technologies and business ideas from startups.
"Plug and Play understands our needs and then provides us with information on domestic and international trends, market moves, and suggestions for new collaborations."
Kenji Saito, CPS Business Strategy Office, Cyber-Physical Systems x Design Div.
“Plug and Play lets us stretch our possibilities. They aren’t concerned with our existing circumstances, and by repeating this [innovation] process, we can expand our ideas and work on new projects without being conservative, and I feel this is valuable.”
Hiroyuki Aizawa, CPS Business Strategy Office, Cyber-Physical Systems x Design Div.
A new approach to open innovation
Toshiba operates under a holding company system, with each business unit driving its digital transformation and data management strategies in energy, infrastructure, and electronic devices.
The CPSx Design Department was formed to foster new business creation and digital transformation across the entire group. CPS refers to a Cyber-Physical System that integrates cyber and physical technologies to generate innovative value.
With a rich history of supplying energy and infrastructure, Toshiba has made a significant impact in the manufacturing industry. They seek to create a data accumulation and analysis cycle that unlocks new value for customers based on product usage insights.
“We are working on open innovation activities based on the idea that we should not only stick to our technology but also work together with startups that have the technology to speed up the process of change.”— Hiroyuki Aizawa, CPS Business Strategy Office, Cyber-Physical Systems x Design Div.
How Toshiba works with startups
Toshiba embraces two open innovation initiatives. The first is a collaboration with Plug and Play Japan, wherein they explore startups that align with their goals through Plug and Play's global channels.
The second initiative is the "Toshiba OPEN INNOVATION PROGRAM" (TOIP), a publicly solicited business matching project held annually. The TOIP project encompasses a ten-month journey from planning to execution. At the culmination of Demo Day, startups are given the opportunity to deliver presentations in front of approximately 50 esteemed guests, including the president and other senior executives from group companies and corporates.
A successful collaboration with startup, NearMe, through Plug and Play Japan and TOIP's programs
One of the companies within the Toshiba Group has been diligently developing a revolutionary project aimed at creating a state-of-the-art railway ticket gate equipped with advanced QR code reading capabilities. In their quest for an innovative partner to connect with their data platform, they encountered NearMe, an impressive mobility startup introduced by Plug and Play Japan. Together, they embarked on a collaborative demonstration experiment to craft a seamless digital round-trip ticket service for Tokyo Metro, enhancing the travel experience for passengers.
“We tend to fall back on safe but conventional ideas if we rely solely on internal opinions. Plug and Play is there to help us digest our goals and have discussions with startups out of our reach, which I feel is one of the great advantages.” — Kenji Saito, CPS Business Strategy Office, Cyber-Physical Systems x Design Div.
Timeline
- 2019 — Toshiba joins Plug and Play Japan’s IoT Program and starts TOIP
- 2020 — The Plug and Play Japan IoT program is merged with their Smart Cities program
- 2022 — Startup collaboration with NearMe starts through Plug and Play Japan’s program
- 2023 — PoC is conducted with NearMe
- 2023 — Another startup collaboration starts through Plug and Play Japan's program
- 2023 — Toshiba wins Corporate Innovation Award and Startup-Friendly Award at Japan Summit Winter/Spring 2023
Building the Cities of the Future
Technology can help define, improve, and accelerate the lives, work, and interactions of all of us in urban areas. Now is the time to become a driver of urban planning and innovation.