• Plug and Play Japan
  • New Materials & Packaging

Plug and Play Japan Announces New Materials Accelerator Program Launching Spring 2021

TOKYO, JAPAN, February 10, 2021 -- Plug and Play Japan KK. (Japan office: Shibuya-ku, Tokyo, Managing Partner: Phillip Vincent, Hereinafter "Plug and Play Japan"), is pleased to announce the launch of their eighth accelerator program, New Materials. This accelerator will launch in spring 2021 and is Japan’s 8th accelerator program and the 2nd accelerator program for Plug and Play Kyoto.

Plug and Play Japan is excited to welcome Asahi Kasei Corporation, Sekisui Chemical Co. Ltd., Shimadzu Corporation, Kyocera Corporation, Dentsu Inc., and Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group Inc., as founding partners for this new program.

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About the New Materials Program

The importance of materials is increasing, and their definitions are becoming more widespread. New materials are being created every day and at Plug and Play Japan, we will build a stronger awareness of sustainability and provide programs that will accelerate innovation in the materials field.

The goal for this New Materials program will be to nurture an ecosystem that connects corporations with startups influencing the future of materials. Some focus areas of the program will be:

  • Bioplastics
  • Alternative Plastic Solutions
  • Battery/Semiconductor Materials
  • Metamaterial
  • Materials Informatics
  • Lab Automation
  • CCUS: Carbon dioxide Capture, Utilization and Storage

The global market for functional chemicals is said to be approximately 50 trillion yen (* 1), and Japanese chemical companies have a high share of electronic materials used in materials such as lithium-ion batteries and liquid crystal displays. Several new material startups have become unicorns over the past few years. There are great expectations for innovation in the materials industry and Plug and Play Japan is aiming to build a startup ecosystem for the connected industry that will lead to Society 5.0 (* 2).

Please refer to the Plug and Play website for details.

https://www.plugandplaytechcenter.com/new-materials/

About Plug and Play Japan

Plug and Play Japan works with corporate partners to support startups in Japan and overseas by providing a 3-month accelerator program that focuses on themes from different industries.

Through the program, startups can leverage the resources of multiple corporate partners and work with a large number of Japanese corporations. Japanese startups aiming for global expansion may have the opportunity to pitch in our Silicon Valley office and gain access to the global market. Startups aiming for local market entry will gain related support and resources as well. Corporate partners will be provided with opportunities such as individual interviews, networking, and dealflow sessions with startups.

Plug and Play Japan’s Summer/Fall 2020 Batch, which was held from July 2020 to October 2020, supported 161 startups together with 40 major corporate partners. Currently, our Winter/Spring 2021 Batch program is focusing on six different verticals including IoT, Fintech, Insurtech, Mobility, Brand & Retail, Health, and SmartCities. It started in December 2020 and will run through March 2021 in Tokyo, Kyoto, and Osaka.

Please visit the website to apply to the next batch program.

http://japan.plugandplaytechcenter.com/batch/

About Plug and Play

Headquartered in Silicon Valley, Plug and Play is a global innovation platform with accelerator programs, corporate innovation services and an in-house VC to make technological advancement progress faster than ever before. Since inception in 2006, our programs have expanded worldwide to include a presence in over 30 locations globally giving startups the necessary resources to succeed in Silicon Valley and beyond. With over 30,000 startups and 500 official corporate partners, we have created the ultimate startup ecosystem in many industries. Companies in our community have raised over $9 billion in funding, with successful portfolio exits including Danger, Dropbox, Lending Club, PayPal, Rappi, and most recently Honey. For more information, visit https://www.plugandplaytechcenter.com/.

Company Overview

Name: Plug and Play Japan KK

Address: Shibuya Dogenzaka Center Place 3F, 1-16-3 Dogenzaka, Shibuya-ku, Tokyo 150-0043, Japan

Managing Partner: Phillip Vincent

URL: http://japan.plugandplaytechcenter.com/

Date of Establishment: July 14th, 2017

Press Contact: Chiyo Kamino

TEL : +81-50-5363-9267 / Mail : press-japan@pnptc.com

*1 Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry. (January 2018) The Roles and Expectations for Material Industry

https://www.meti.go.jp/policy/mono_info_service/mono/chemistry/downloadfiles/180112materials-innovation.pdf

*2 Cabinet Office, Government of Japan

https://www8.cao.go.jp/cstp/society5_0/