Looking at the number of international travelers to Japan by country/region in December 2024, South Korea had the highest number of foreign visitors, followed by China, Taiwan, and Hong Kong. Many Hongkongers enjoy visiting Japan for its natural scenery, heritage, pop culture, fashion, and cuisine. I’m one of them. However, my trip to Japan last week was different. Being aware of my implicit biases and assumptions, I paused to reflect and saw things from a new perspective.
Is Japan uncertainty-sensitive, pro-volatility, or somewhere in between?
Kudanminami: World Economic Forum Japan – Climate and Nature Leadership in the Intelligent Age 2025
I joined the UpLink – World Economic Forum delegation team to participate in a two-day conference hosted at Kudan-Kaikan Terrace in Kudanminami, Chiyoda City, Tokyo. The event focused on exploring circular economy solutions, fostering a nature-positive economy, and improving business resilience. Topics included the role of foreign direct investment in decarbonizing the region, advanced manufacturing, energy transition, and innovation in achieving a sustainable future.
An interactive and collaborative event. As shared in her key insights of the conference by Sadaf Hosseini , the participants resonated that 𝐌𝐢𝐧𝐝𝐬𝐞𝐭 𝐬𝐡𝐢𝐟𝐭𝐬 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐜𝐮𝐥𝐭𝐮𝐫𝐚𝐥 𝐭𝐫𝐚𝐧𝐬𝐟𝐨𝐫𝐦𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧 𝐚𝐫𝐞 𝐜𝐫𝐢𝐭𝐢𝐜𝐚𝐥.
“How do we move people from passive observers to active contributors to a better future? “
The conference was eye-opening for me. With limited business experience in the Japanese market, I absorbed a wealth of information over the two days. While I didn’t grasp everything, I had the opportunity to meet and engage with inspiring people from various sectors. I gained valuable insights into Japanese market dynamics, challenges, and opportunities. It is fascinating to learn how Japan applies technologies to combat the challenge of an aging society.
The meeting venue was next to Nippon Budokan, Kita-no-maru Park, and the Imperial Palace — a beautiful area for mindful walking.
Ebisu: Gravio
During my visit to Japan, I also met with my technology partners Gravio (an Asteria Corporation company) and Axis Communications . They shared their recent Smart Cities
projects involving hospitals and elderly care service centers. With its rapidly aging population, Japan is driving the adoption of IoT, AI, and IA (Intelligence Augmentation) to automate workflows, improve services, and grow the economy. These projects offer valuable lessons for me to develop climate and societal resilience solutions.
Gravio office is in Ebisu. It takes about 9 minutes to walk from the Ebisu Station to the Shibuya Bridge.
Shibuya: Shibuya Startup Support
Innovation platforms are invaluable for startups to engage with stakeholders. UpLink connects nature-positive startups with governments, enterprises, academia, NGOs, venture capitalists, and peers to accelerate pilots, partnerships, and investment discussions. Shibuya Startup Support (SSS) helps startup founders apply for working visas, provides coworking spaces, and connects them to local business opportunities. I visited the coworking space, located at Shibuya Bridge, operated by SSS last Thursday. Saeko Seno and Minori Fujisawa shared with me that the program is led by the Shibuya City Office to support overseas startups in establishing their businesses in Japan. I explained to them the Robotics Cats‘ climate resilience solutions. They introduced some nature-positive startups and health-tech, AI, and automation initiatives in Shibuya and Shibetsu, Hokkaido.
I wonder if this courtesy visit might spark an unexpected business journey.
It is another 18-minute walk from the Shibuya Bridge to the Shibuya Crossing.
Japan: 2020 vs 2025
Five years ago was my last trip to Japan. Since then, I’ve founded my startup Robotics Cats, witnessed a global pandemic, and experienced countless losses and gains along the way. During this visit, I revisited some of the places where I spent most of my time in 2020. I found myself caring about how they were doing.
お元気ですか？
Japan, great to see you again.
Please email info@roboticscats.com if you’re interested to explore business opportunity with us in Japan.
