Japan’s startup news from the first month of 2020, as reported online in primarily English-language media. Japan’s startup news from January 2020 includes items ranging from central bank digital currency news to ‘virtual celebrities’.
Technology news from Japan can also be read online in monthly startup news collections and quarterly news round-ups.
- An intro to Japan’s Linklusion, introducing Myanmar’s rural retailers to technology to better manage orders and inventory
- ICYMI: Japan-produced virtual music star Hatsune Miku to perform at Coachella music festival
- Japan: Preparations for 2020 Olympics fuel race to monetize autonomous vehicles
- Japan: Mitsubishi Motors signs with Israel’s Otonomo car data marketplace in attempt to catch up with US and Euro rivals in providing in-vehicle connected services
- Japan’s SBI Holdings and GMO Internet service provider reportedly prepping to mine Bitcoin at world’s largest crypto mine in Texas
- Japan: Toyota announces plan to create 70-hectare testing ground, powered by hydrogen fuel cells, to test autonomous driving and other smart city tech
- Japan: A look at Panasonic’s new VR glasses, unveiled at CES 2020
- An overview of Japan’s innovation ecosystem, characterised by gov’t support initiatives, growing participation by corporates, and an influx of foreign tech firms
- Japan: ‘VTubers’ on the rise in Japan, as brands look to virtual celebrities as low-risk, high-reward marketing tools
- Japan’s Shiseido opens Beauty Innovation Hub in Shanghai, to facilitate close collaboration with China’s startup ecosystem
- Japan: “…open banking would put Japan in the company of the UK and Australia, which are freeing up data access to spur competition and create innovative financial solutions”
- Japan: Lawmakers are working on proposal for Japan to issue its own digital currency, potentially a joint initiative between government and private companies
- Japan: Minma’s Curama online marketplace raises $36M with local services focus
- TransferGo account-to-account remittance firm partners Currencycloud global payments platform for cross-border payments in 14 new markets over Q1 2020
