The Integrated Innovation Strategy Promotion Council decided on the basic policy for the Global Startup Campus (GSC) Initiative. To build hubs for a world-class innovation ecosystem, a corporation will be established to operate the flagship hub to be set up in Meguro, Tokyo. A consortium will also be established to facilitate collaboration between relevant ministries and agencies, independent administrative agencies, universities, base cities, and the private sector. Although the schedule for establishing the corporation is currently unclear, public calls for prior research are scheduled to begin from the next fiscal year, and public calls for fellowships for personnel exchange will be made this year.
The flagship hub will be accessible to ambitious and capable youngsters, startups, universities, research institutions, and companies from all over Japan. The results and advanced management methods of the flagship hub will be developed and expanded for use throughout Japan through startup ecosystem hub cities.
In addition to incubation and acceleration by experts in commercialization and intellectual property, top-class overseas VCs and startup support organizations will be invited to support global business expansion. The initiative will also include advice from investors and people with experience in overseas business development. Alongside this, the initiative will also promote research and development in the field of deep tech, having a large social impact.
Various research models at the world's highest level will be adopted. Emphasis will be placed on the participation of young researchers from Japan and abroad who are entrepreneurial, motivated, and capable, while incorporating market feedback from the early stages of research.
Research that contributes to issues relating to economic security will also be within the initiative's scope. Steps will be taken to secure sufficient research funding (including hiring post-doctoral fellows and research support staff and supporting doctoral students), start-up costs, gap funds, salaries, etc. Furthermore, each university will be allowed to occupy a place within the flagship hub.
The government will provide the immediate operating expenses, but the operating corporation will be encouraged to obtain a variety of funds for it to quickly become self-funded. For example, the government will provide the land to the operating corporation in kind, but the buildings will be constructed through PFI (private finance initiative). For prior research until the hub is established, a fund of 63.6 billion yen created at the Japan Science and Technology Agengy (JST) will be used.
This article has been translated by JST with permission from The Science News Ltd. (https://sci-news.co.jp/). Unauthorized reproduction of the article and photographs is prohibited.