Japan represents a globally unique opportunity for ambitious technology companies. With strong demand for high-quality, innovative solutions and a business culture rooted in trust and long-term relationships, the Japanese market rewards companies willing to invest time, presence and cultural understanding.
The objective of the programme is to provide the selected startups with valuable opportunities to connect and engage with existing and potential customers, investors, corporates, and fellow founders across the energytech, medtech and robotics space. This was facilitated by connections made by Team Techscaler on the 2025 iteration of the Japan programme (leading to contacts at CIC, Venture Café Tokyo, and Shibuya Startup Support) as well as by providing cohort members with tickets to the SusHi Tech Conference 2026.
Pre-Departure Activity
1-1 self-scheduled sessions:
Cohort Group Sessions:
Founder-led structure, supplemented with a small number of additional activities:
The workflow also incorporated an opportunity for members to update their information at the point of application, to ensure our CRM held the most up-to-date details possible.
The Techscaler Japan programme was promoted through direct invitation, organic content and paid advertising. An application invitation was emailed to all suitable Techscaler members, and the programme was promoted through organic and paid content across Techscaler's channels. Founder case studies were subsequently published to document outcomes for participating companies.
Assessment and Review
Applicants who matched all essential criteria were reviewed by the CodeBase team. They were assessed based on a combination of their application answers and wider information held by Techscaler in their curation/mentorship notes, as well as members highlighted by Entrepreneurs in Residence and Regional Community Managers as particularly suitable.
*Danu Robotics was accepted onto the cohort but was unfortunately unable to attend due to unavoidable personal circumstancesThe workflow also incorporated an opportunity for members to update their information at the point of application, to ensure our CRM held the most up-to-date details possible.
Based on attendee feedback collected 2-weeks post-programme:
Elements that made for productive and valuable on-location activity
Participant feedback highlighted that on-location activities were most valuable when they were sector relevant, facilitated networking, and provided high-value introductions. The “Doing Business in Japan” talk from Dr. Stephen Baker ranked as the most positively mentioned Techscaler-organised activity, along with a British Embassy Dinner (opportunity facilitated by local partners). Participants also emphasised the value of opportunities being timed in a way that allowed for follow-up while still in-market. Furthermore, the cohort mentioned on multiple occasions how much they benefited from accessing the CIC workspace, that it provided high-quality networking opportunities, and that they wished they had known more about the space ahead of time. A number of SDI-engaged companies highlighted the direct support provided by local SDI advisor Mercedes McCambridge as invaluable, both in terms of translation support and access to networks.Finally, the participant-led structure of the programme was highly valued, with feedback demonstrating that this cohort made good use of filling their time while in market, while also being strategic when allocating their time, occasionally opting out of pre-planned opportunities to pursue ones more aligned with their business objectives. This aligns with feedback from previous cohorts, which consistently shows that growth and scaling-stage businesses benefit the most from participant-led programming.
How we can improve future on-location activity
It is encouraging that each cohort member focused on different areas for improvement, suggesting that there weren’t any major shortcomings. Constructive feedback largely centered on the need for additional pre-departure support, especially in terms of investment guidance.With increasing in-market preparedness in mind, since Japan 2 we have already increased the amount of mentorship each participant receives pre- and post-programme, which has helped increase both their confidence in-market as well as their access to local networks and resources. While there were requests for moving between destinations in Japan, previous iterations taught us that multi-city agendas reduced focus and increased stress for participants. Maintaining a centralised base for the cohort offers the best operational balance, leaving participants free to explore secondary markets like Kyoto or Osaka as needed.Finally, two cohort members noted that opportunities specifically aligned with their industry would have been of more value, as the SusHiTech Conference was a more generalist conference. While not all Techscaler International cohorts are industry specific, it would be advantageous to align trips that do have an industry focus, with events for that sector.
"This programme has opened my eyes to the opportunity for us in Japan. The itinerary struck the right balance between support and freedom to go out and explore the market. We made the most of the opportunity and are grateful to Techscaler for providing the impetus to really get to understand such an exciting ecosystem."
Myles Bax, Aurora Avionics