Japanese Startups Showcased Innovative Technologies That Empower Consumers to Solve Societal Challenges at CES 2019

TOKYO–(BUSINESS WIRE)–CES 2019, recently held in Las Vegas, Nevada from January 8-11,
represented the first time the Government of Japan showcased its
innovative startups and their groundbreaking solutions to a global
technology audience of more than 188,000 people. This featured Japan’s
recent change in business innovation environment; more startups began to
emerge, seeking to compete in the global marketplace.

The innovative technologies on display at Eureka Park were part of Japan
Innovation Showcase, organized by the Japan External Trade Organization
(JETRO). The solutions, which leveraged cutting-edge artificial
intelligence (AI), Internet of Things (IoT) and robotics technologies,
showed consumers how to solve societal challenges and make their lives
easier.

22 Japanese startups made the exhibition and covered solutions in
robotics, wearable technologies, smart home, and wellness and fitness
industries. Four Japanese startups won coveted CES Innovation Awards.

• Best Innovation award winner: WHILL Inc.’s WHILL Autonomous Drive.
  This fully autonomous driving technology, combined with
  Mobility-as-a-Service (MaaS) and a personal electric vehicle (EV),
  enables people with mobility impairments to experience movement in a
  new way so they can explore the world with greater independence,
  safety and style.
• Smart Home award winner: mui Lab Inc.’s mui. This piece of wall
  art, made of sleek wood and other natural materials, is an IoT device
  that displays temperature, voicemail messages and text from a home’s
  Google assistant. Mui’s goal is to use calming design to bring a sense
  of nature, peace and harmony to today’s digital living.
• Fitness, Sports and Biotech award winner: Triple W’s DFree.
  This wearable is the industry’s first device using ultrasound
  technology to improve the quality of life for people suffering from
  incontinence. The device helps seniors and people with disabilities
  predict when they need to use the restroom. By continuously monitoring
  the consumer’s bladder, it notifies the person or caregiver when the
  bladder is almost full so the consumer has fewer accidents, enabling
  that individual to live with more autonomy and dignity.
• Home Appliance award winner: LOAD&ROAD’s teplo. teplo is an
  IoT-enabled teapot designed for tea enthusiasts to enjoy the perfect
  cup of tea. Using a mobile app to control brewing, tea drinkers can
  adjust preparation based on the tea used, the environmental conditions
  and the user’s preferences.

The exhibition was part of the J-Startup Program, a pioneering
government initiative launched in June 2018 by the Ministry of Economy,
Trade and Industry of Japan (METI), designed to create optimal
environmental conditions to foster 20 unicorns by 2023. Around 100
J-Startup companies were recommended by the Japanese business community
as the ones with the potential to achieve unicorn status and receive
support from successful entrepreneurs and investors to succeed globally
and bring new value to future societies around the world.

The Government of Japan has focused on strengthening innovation
ecosystems to incorporate external dynamism beyond its borders and
developed a more effective regulatory environment through the
business-friendly Abenomics policy initiative. It has also hosted a
business roundtable in Paris to discuss collaborative opportunities
for businesses outside Japan, taking advantage of the country’s evolving
startup ecosystem and changing corporate innovation environment.

For more information about J-Startup program, please see: https://www.j-startup.go.jp/en/.

Contacts

Keiko Yamamoto
Counsellor, Office of Global Communications, Prime
Minister’s Office
keiko.yamamoto.r7x@kantei.go.jp
+81-3-3581-0101

J-Startup Office (Startup and New Business Promotion Office), Tokyo
Ministry
of Economy, Trade and Industry, Japan
METI_J-Startup@meti.go.jp

JETRO
Will F. Ferguson
Project Coordinator for Innovation and
Technology
Will_Ferguson@jetro.go.jp
+415-392-1333;
extension 221