Disrupting Japan

Japan is lagging behind in AI, but that might not be the case for long.

Today we sit down with Jad Tarifi, current founder of Integral AI and previously, founder of Google’s first Generative AI team, and we talk about some of Japan's potential advantages in AI, the most likely path to AGI, and how small AI startups can compete against the over-funded AI giants.

It's a great conversation, and I think you'll enjoy it.

While the rest of the world is copying Silicon Valley, Tokyo is looking at Paris.

Today we sit down with Mark Bivens and Matt Romaine, the co-founders of Shizen Capital to talk about Japan's new startup policies, the changing role of M&A, the main force behind the changing attitudes about startups in Japan.

It's a great conversation, and I think you'll enjoy it.

Today, we are going to talk about AI, but not in the way you expect.

Today, I’m going to give creatives a solid three-point plan to beat AI in the marketplace. I’m going to explain how musicians, podcasters, authors and other artists can survive and even thrive amidst the unstoppable flood of AI generated slop we will all be forced to wade though for the foreseeable future,  And to maybe do some good in the process.

It’s taken me over a year to write the script for this episode, and like so many of my solo episodes, I originally planned on it being very different from how it turned out. But sometimes the scripts takes on a life of its own, and I have to follow it to what always ends up being a far more interesting place.

The Japanese government is taking a very hands-on approach to funding startups.

Yuka Hata, Senior Managing Director of the Japan Investment Corporation (JIC) explains the kinds of startups and funds they invest in, and why.

We also talk about the two  biggest challenges new Japanese VCs face, and what it’s really like for women in VC in Japan

It's a great conversation, and I think you'll enjoy it.

We live in a global financial system, but the fintech innovation is surprisingly local.

Makoto Shibata, the head of FinoLab, has been leading financial innovation Japan for over 20 years, long before the term fintech existed. We talk about the evolution of Japan's fintech landscape, and which fintech sectors are facing consolidation and which are facing growth.

And we also explore Japan's rapid transition from a cash-based society to a cashless one and the startup opportunities that opens up.

It's a great conversation, and I think you'll enjoy it.

Disrupting Japan is 10 years old today!

This is a simple thank you rather than a full episode.

Thanks for listening!

 

Transcript

Welcome to Disrupting Japan, Straight Talk from Japan's most innovative founders and VCs.

I'm Tim Romero and thanks for joining me.

This is a very short and very special episode. It's not an episode really, more of a personal message.

You see, ten years ago today. I released the very first episode of Disrupting Japan.

And I just wanted to say thank you.

I really mean that. Independent podcasting is an incredibly personal medium and it depends on there being a real connection between the host, and the guests, and the listeners.  Commercial talk shows spend a fortune creating the illusion of that connection.

And being in the center of that in real life is an honor and it’s amazing.

It’s become a cliche when the host thanks their audience and reminds them that the show would not be possible without them, but it’s different at Disrupting Japan. You really do create a big part of the show’s value.  Let me explain.

It’s not about download numbers or affiliate link-clicks. I don’t sell anything and my guests aren’t selling anything on Disrupting Japan, so those metrics don’t matter much to me. However, my guests often comment on the surprisingly high quality of inbound contracts they receive  after appearing on the show. These connections have resulted in a lot of new hires, and a handful of investments have been made as well.

That community, the engagement and overall quality of the listeners is a big part of the show’s value. In fact, over the years, four Japanese startup founders have told me that listening to our guests’ tell their stories on Disrupting Japan gave them the confidence to start their own startup, and that’s pretty awesome.

So, thank you!

Ten years ago I never imagined how big Disrupting Japan would become. Honestly, it kind of freaks me out sometimes. But here we are. Ten years and well over 200 episodes later, and we have over 9,000 listers in more than 150 countries around the world — including one listener from Vatican City.

Now, I have no way of knowing for sure exactly who that listener is.  I mean, it could be anybody. But I like to think of it as a testament to the influential nature of Disrupting Japan’s listeners.

Building Disrupting Japan is an honor and a joy. I love putting the show together, and despite having a fairly demanding day job, I always make sure Disrupting Japan is released on schedule and is a quality show that woth the time you put into listening to it.

The show takes up a lot of weekends and evenings. I’ve done pre-interview research while in the hospital for a minor surgery. I’ve done post production editing in so many different airport lounges, and twice I’ve made a little pillow-fort in my hotel room so I would have decent acoustics to record the intro and outtro.

So, whether you are a new lister or have been a part of Disrupting Japan ever since episode 1 was released 10 years ago, thank you for taking this journey with me. Startup innovation is really starting to flourish in Japan, and we have exciting times ahead.

And most of all, thanks for listening and thank you for letting people interested in Japanese startups and VCs know about the show.

I'm Tim Romero and thanks for listening to Disrupting Japan.

SaaS startup valuations and growth rates have dropped sharply in most of the world, but not in Japan.

SaaS startups are growing fast in Japan, and that trend is set to accelerate even more over the next five years.

Today Shinji Asada of One Capital explains Japan's still-untapped SaaS potential, his unique SMB and product-focused investment thesis, and the big changes that are happening in Japan's startup ecosystem.

It's a great conversation, and I think you'll enjoy it.

If you have ever wondered what it really takes to start and grow a startup as a foreigner in Japan. Well, I have a treat for you today.

Earlier this year, at the Japan FinTech Festival, I had the privilege of sitting down with four fantastic foreign FinTech founders and talking about what you need to succeed in Japan.

There are some great insights here from Jeff Wentworth of Curvegrid, Paul Chapman of Moneytree, Sam Pemberton-Ahmed of SmartPay, and Samantha Ghiotti of Habitto.

It's a great conversation, and I think you'll enjoy it.

Japan has far fewer unicorns than one might expect - or than venture capitalists desire.

That fact, however, hides a fascinating story.

Today James Riney, founding partner of Coral Capital explains the danger of unicorn counting.

We dive deep into which startup sectors Japan is likely to lead in globally in the coming decade, how to identify unique startup value in Japan.

We also talk about how Japan has become more like Silicon Valley in the past ten years and why they are about to become very different.

It's a great conversation, and I think you'll enjoy it.

Japan thinks about robotics and AI differently that the West.

In addition to the functional, productive role that robots play, a lot of thought is also given to our interactions and the relationship we build with them.

Today we sit down with Shunsuke Aoki, founder of Yukai Engineering and one of the most innovative and creative thinkers on the emotional connection between humans and machines.

We talk about the future of robot companionship, how AI will change the definition of culture, and why future of Japanese robotics will have a lot more participation by foreigners.

It's a great conversation, and I think you'll enjoy it.