Science/Technology を軸に、資本・人材・英知を還流させ、世界・人類の課題を解決するための新産業を創造する

We create new industries to solve global issues of humankind, by bringing capital,
talent and knowledge, around science and technology

Investment Strategy
Innovative Science& TechnologyS ourcing science and technology withreal-world impact from academia suchas the University of Tokyo, as well asother research institutions, corporates,and governmentsB uilding science and technology acrossmultiple organizations

Strong TeamsF ocusing on skilled management
teams that excel in productdevelopment and operations
managementB uilding great teams that candrive a business based on scienceand technology

Global Markets andIssues of Humankind
S upporting entrepreneurs witha vision to expand to the global
marketsJ oining the challenge to solve
issues of humankind

Track Records (Selected)

July 2011
Listed on TSE Mothers*

September 2011
Acquired by mixi, Inc

February 2013
Acquired by Google Inc

June 2013 Listed on TSE Mothers
December 2015 Listed on
TSE 1st section**

May 2015
Acquired by Baidu Japan Inc.

September 2017
Acquired by
O LUXE HOLDINGS LIMITED

December 2018
Listed on TSE Mothers*

February 2019
MBO

December 2019
Listed on TSE Mothers*

August 2020
Listed on TSE Mothers*

December 2020
Listed on Nasdaq

December 2020
Acquired by
Cox Automotive Inc

December 2021
Listed on TSE Mothers*

December 2021
Listed on TSE Mothers*

December 2021
Listed on TSE Mothers*

December 2021
Listed on TSE Mothers*

May 2022 Acquired by
Eurofins Scientific SE

June 2022
Listed on TSE Growth

December 2022
Listed on TSE Growth

February 2023 Acquired byModerna, Inc.

June 2023
Listed on TSE Growth* Listed on TSE Growth Market due to market reclassification** Listed on TSE Prime Market due to market reclassification

1Company Overview
Since 2004, UTEC has established 5 funds amounting to a size approx. 84.7 billion yen.

Founded April 1, 2004
GP	The University of Tokyo Edge Capital Partners Co., Ltd

UTEC 5 Limited Partnership
Established..................................................... May 7, 2021
General Partner............................................UTEC Partners LLP
Fund size.......................................................... About 30.4 billion yen
Number of Investments............................ 38 companies

UTEC 4 Limited Partnership
Established..................................................... January 17, 2018
General Partner............................................UTEC Partners LLP
Fund size.......................................................... About 24.3 billion yen
Number of Investments............................ 36 companies

UTEC 3 Limited Partnership
Established..................................................... October 15, 2013
General Partner............................................UTEC 3 Partners LLP
Fund size.......................................................... About 14.6 billion yen
Number of Investments............................ 31 companies

UTEC 2 Limited Partnership
Established..................................................... July 31, 2009
General Partners..........................................UTEC, UTEC Venture Partners, Inc.
Fund size.......................................................... About 7.1 billion yen
Number of Investments............................ 13 companies

UTEC 1 Exit Limited Partnership
Established..................................................... July 1, 2004
General Partner............................................UTEC
Fund size.......................................................... About 8.3 billion yen
Number of Investments............................ 34 companies

2 UTECComprehensive Support from Seed/Early Stages
UTEC invests in seed/early stage startups and provides hands-on support

deals / %Ratio of Initial Investment Stage *1 *2
UTEC 1UTEC 2UTEC 3

UTEC 4UTEC 5
3%

3%
6%
32 %

24 %

6%
31%

34

13

deals

31

deals

69 %

38 %

52 %

deals

34

45%
53%

38%

deals

Seed

Early

36

47%

53%

deals

Expansion

Late*1 Investment stage based on definition provided in the 2024 National Venture Capital Association Yearbook.
*2 As of March 2024. Deals invested in parallel through multiple funds are accounted for in each fund (excludes FoF investments)

Strong Commitment
As lead investor, UTEC supports portfolio companies on financing and management issues.
* We send board members to portfolio companies to actively add value and support management.

deals / %Ratio of Lead Position *1 *2
UTEC 1UTEC 2UTEC 3

UTEC 4

8%

34

56%

deals

44 %

13

deals

92%

31

deals

100%

UTEC 5
6%

6%

34

36

deals

deals

94%

94%

Lead

Others

*1 Percentage of transactions in which a fund has taken a lead position in financing.
*2 As of March 2024. Deals invested in parallel through multiple funds are accounted for in each fund (excludes FoF investments)

3

Global Expansion
Collaboration with universities and research institutions /Global expansion of portfolio companies

Operation Base

BUDHA

Blume UTEC Deep tecH Accelerator

Centre for Cellular And Molecular Platforms

IIT Madras in India

Amadeus UTEC Global Market
Expansion of Novel Technologies

SINGAPORE

4 UTECNetwork

Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center

Stanford University

The Tokyo
University of
Science

Keio University

Osaka University

Kyoto University

Institute of Physical andChemical Research

Hokkaido
University

National Institute of Advanced Industrial
Science and Technology

Princeton University

5

Startup Support Program
Investment Flow
IPO / M&A
STEP 09

Turning research
into startup andrunning the business

Late stage

STEP 08

Mid-stage

STEP 07

Early stage

STEP 06
STEP 05GAP

UTEC
Support

STEP 04

University
Research

STEP 01

Team building

Business plan

STEP 03
STEP 02

Decision to create a start up

Find the necessary
resources for the startup.
Team building

Competitive advantage,business plan, cap table

Proof of Concept

Research

Setting up a corporate entity

Target market selection,
Testing products
Ideation/Business model

Creative/ Innovative R&D

University Sponsorship
Since 2017, UTEC has sponsored 26 projects at the University of Tokyo, strengthening its support for researchers and students.
Based on the outcomes of our venture capital business, we are expanding our support to UTokyo, other universities, and research institutions.

UTokyo Foundation - UTEC UTokyo Future Society
Initiative

Graduate School of Science

Administration Bureau- Division of University Corporate Relations

Agricultural Emergence Fund (Support for young researchers)

UTEC-UTokyo FSI Research Grant Program

GAP Fund Program
Enhancement of patent application procedures, etc.

- Research Promotion Department

Support for The University of Tokyo Excellent Young Researcher- Education and Student Support Department
Sports Promotion Fund / Sports Department Equipment FundUTEC-UTokyo Scholarship
UTokyo Alumni Giving Campaign 2021

Medical School Hospital

Academic Research Grant: Translational Research Initiative (TR Organization)

Graduate Schools of Law and Politics

Utilization of cutting-edge science and technology in the field of law and politics andinterdisciplinary research

Graduate School of Medicine
Programs for Leaders in Life Innovation

Graduate School of Engineering

Leadership Development Program for Ph.D.
Self-Managing Healthy Society COI base: Donations related to Medical Technologies
Evaluation Laboratory
Human Resources Development Fund in Deep Learning
Development of human resources and strengthening the research base of Global Leader
Program for Social Design and Management (GSDM)
Endowed Chair for Blockchain Innovation
Endowed Chair for Entrepreneurship Education Design

Young Scientist Future Fund

Graduate School of Agriculture and Life Sciences
Graduate School of Economics
Grant for Center for Advanced Research in Finance
Grant for Research for Market Design

Graduate School of Pharmaceutical Sciences
Support for pharmaceutical research

Graduate School of Frontier Sciences

Frontier Area Research Grant (Shigeyuki Kawano, Professor Emeritus, Utokyo) GSFS
Foundation

Graduate School of Information Science andTechnology

Infrastructure Development Project for Information Science and Technology Research
Next Generation Artificial Intelligence Research Center

Institute of Medical Science
Young Researcher Development Project

Institute of Industrial Science / Research Center for
Advanced Science and Technology
Komaba Research Campus,
UTEC Young Researchers' Challenge Support Program

Nagoya University
Academic Research and Industrial
Academia Government Collaboration

Chiba University
Graduate School of Engineering

Kyoto University
Office of Society Academia Collaboration
for Innovatioin

Osaka University
Co-Creation Bureau

Endowed Chair for Aerial Intelligent Vehicles

Entrepreneurship program "Tongali Project"

Support for research on challenging new materials by young researchers

International Physics Olympiad 2023 Tokyo
Japan
Sapphire Supporter

6 UTEC

Grants for Industry-Academia-Government Collaboration Activities
Support for promotion of basic research by young researchers

Portfolio Companies

Life Science & Healthcare. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . p8-13
GORYO Chemical, Inc.
EditForce, Inc.
TAGCyx Biotechnologies
Tricog Health Pte. Ltd.
Elixirgen Therapeutics, Inc.
ImmunoScape Pte. Ltd.
Bugworks Research, Inc.
bitBiome, Inc.
Metcela Inc.

Celaid Therapeutics Inc.
United Immunity, Co., Ltd.
PURMX Therapeutics Co., Ltd.
Elixir Pharma Inc.
Cellusion Inc.
RegCell Co., Ltd.
Sola Biosciences, Inc.
Violet Thetapeutics, Inc.
Red Arrow Therapeutics, Inc.

IT. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . p14-24
WASSHA Inc.
Money Design Co., Ltd
Retrieva, Inc.
Startbahn, Inc.
Tier IV, Inc.
obniz Inc.
SWAT Mobility Pte. Ltd.
estie, inc.
Adacotech Inc.
ROMS, Inc.
VividQ Limited
OPALai Pte. Ltd.
TXP Medical Co., Ltd.
Capex, Inc.
HashPort Inc.
DATAFLUCT, Inc.

Kuzen Inc.
Sinumy Corporation
Obviously AI, Inc.
Studio Unbuilt Inc.
Alumnote Inc.
ALGO ARTIS Corporation
forest inc.
Medcom, Inc.
booost technologies,Inc.
ONIGO K.K.
ARCH,Inc.
XMile Inc.
Eureka Robotics Pte. Ltd.
Cordia Directions, Inc.（Peach Cars）
Quanmatic Inc.
issin Holdings Inc.

Physical Science & Engineering. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . p26-30
Algal Bio Co., Ltd.
BionicM Inc.
Nelumbo, Inc.
SUN METALON Inc.
Kepler Corp.
RICOS Co., Ltd.
Charco Neurotech Ltd.

EnteraSense Limited
Gaianixx Inc.
Liminal Insights Inc.
Ubifly Technologies Pvt. Ltd (ePlane)
Oxford Quantum Circuits Limited
TriOrb Inc.

Fund. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . p32-33
Deep30 Limited Partnership
BLUME VENTURES-FUND III/Blume Ventures GIFT TRUST IV
Amadeus V Technology Fund LP

Alumni. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . p34-39
Team. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . p40-46
Board Members. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . p47
7

UTEC Portfolio Companies

Life Science & Healthcare

GORYO Chemical, Inc.
Development of fluorescent probes for quick diagnosis
during cancer surgery
Q1

Goryo Chemical, Inc. was established in 2010 in Sapporo, Hokkaido todevelop fluorescent probes not only for research reagents but also for
medical use.

Q2

Goryo Chemical has platform technologies of fluorescent dyes fordiagnostics, which were initially developed by Urano Laboratory of the
University of Tokyo. Furthermore, Goryo Chemical has the capability ofsynthesizing these dyes efficiently.

Q3

UTEC connected Goryo Chemical with the University of Tokyo and hasoffered hands-on support including business planning, financing andrecruiting.

Detection of cancer
cells using gGlu-HMRG
fluorescence

Human ESD (Endoscopic Submucosal Dissection) cancer
samples at each reaction state with EP-HMRG (before spraying
EP-HMRG (left), after 5 min (middle) and after 10 min (right))

EditForce Inc.
Contributing to drug discovery, agricultural seeddevelopment and material production throughDNA / RNA manipulation technologies.
Q1

E ditForce was founded based on the PPR genome editing technique invented by Takahiro Nakamura,
Associate Professor at Kyushu University in 2015. EditForce aims to revolutionize the genome editing
industry, which has been dominated by prior technologies such as ZFN, TALEN, and CRISPR.

Q2P PR technology has the ability to recognize both DNA and RNA. It is the world's first genome editing toolthat can edit both DNA and RNA. EditForce can leverage their strengths in areas such as RNA therapeutics
based on their RNA editing technology, which is difficult for competing technologies to achieve.

Q3

 TEC has introduced management executives and external partners to EditForceU
and supports business planning as well as supporting potential IPO and M&A
processes.

DNA/RNA modification by PPR

TAGCyx Biotechnologies
Oligonucleotide based drug discovery platform to revolutionize expensive
healthcare economy by discovering low cost, highly effective and safe medicines.
Q1

With the vision to commercialize “Artificial base-pairing technology” and its application
in a wide range of Life Science fields, TAGCyx was co-founded by Dr. Hirao Ichiro, former
Leader of the RIKEN Synthetic Molecular Biology Team, and others in 2007. From 2016,
TAGCyx targets drug discovery and development as their main focus.

Q2

Nucleic acid drugs can be created with unprecedented efficacy using the Xenoligo™
platform which possesses high affinity and selectivity for target substances.

Xenoligo

UTEC has supported TAGCyx for management structuring, fundraising, businessalliances, etc.

Generation of Xenoligo molecules by SELEX

Q3

8 UTECQuestions

Q1

Q2

Q3

OriginStrength

UTEC’s value add

Tricog Health Pte. Ltd.
Tricog offers an AI-driven virtual cardiologist at health centers,with a vision to achieve accessible, affordable healthcare for all.
Q1

Tricog was founded in 2014 by Dr. Charit Bhograj, an interventional cardiologist with over
15 years of experience. Dr. Charit started Tricog with Dr. Zainul Charbiwala, an electricalengineer with experience in IBM and a PhD from UCLA.

Q2

T ricog is one of the world’s largest healthcare AI companies with over 16 million patientsin India, SE Asia and Africa. Tricog offers a complete cardiology platform with products for
AI-driven ECG, Remote Cardiac Ultrasound and Heart Failure. Tricog has multi-faceted
partnerships with major Healthcare & Pharmaceutical companies.

Q3

In addition to management and financial support, UTEC is actively helping Tricog byintroducing Japanese medical equipment manufacturers for business expansion. UTEC also
helped facilitate strategic investment from Omron Healthcare and Sony into Tricog.

AI algorithms and doctors
working hand in hand
Tricog communicator that caninterface with multiple devices

Tricog Global
Footprint

Elixirgen Therapeutics, Inc.
Revolutionary cure for rare diseases using ZSCAN4 cell therapy
Q1

Elixirgen was founded in 2018 by Dr. Minoru Ko, currently a professor at Keio University and formerlya Section Chief at the NIH. Dr Ko aimed to apply his discoveries in stem cell biology to cure diseases.

Q2

Elixirgen’s technology is based on the discovery that the ZSCAN4 gene increases the genome stabilityof the stem cell and elongates telomeres. The company developed the technology to introduce
ZSCAN4 into cells such as hematopoietic stem cells in the form of RNA therapeutic agent that does
not disrupt the genome, rendering the procedure safer. They have completed the Pre-IND with the
U.S. FDA and now aim for early clinical trials for telomere disease, including congenital dyskeratosis.

Q3

Example of telomere extension by ZSCAN4UTEC has provided funding for clinical trials, networking opportunities for companies, investors andhuman resources, and support for potential IPO processes.

ImmunoScape Pte. Ltd.
Enabling immunotherapy throughhigh-dimensional immune profiling
Q1

ImmunoScape was founded in December 2016 with the technology licensed
from Dr Evan Newell’s laboratory at the Singapore Immunology Network in
A*STAR.

Q2

I mmunoScape employs cutting-edge technologies and mass cytometry tomeasure alterations of immune cells and in particular, antigen specific T cells
specificity for biomarker and target identification, offering valuable insights
on efficacy & safety of immunotherapies in R&D and clinical phase.

Q3

UTEC supports ImmunoScape in academic collaborations (especially with the
University of Tokyo), business development and team-building strategy.

Immunological insights provided by ImmunoScape

Map of immune response landscape

9

UTEC Portfolio Companies

Life Science & Healthcare

Bugworks Research, Inc.
Novel Class of Antibiotics to combat Antimicrobial Resistance (AMR)
and novel Immuno-oncology therapies to fight cancer
Q1

Bugworks was started in 2014 by industry veterans Dr. Anand Anankumar, Dr.
Proprietary ELUDE™ platform of Bugworks
Santanu Datta and Dr. V Balasubramanian to tackle the issue of global Anti-Microbial
Resistance(AMR). In July 2017, Bugworks became the first Asian company to win the prestigious CARB-X grant. The Bugworks
Research lab in Bangalore, India has a team of several scientists and PhDs with a combined experience over 200 years in drug
discovery. Bugworks has an extended team in US, Japan, UK, and Australia.

Q2

GYROX – Dual Targeting first & best-in-class broad spectrum antibacterial agents. The lead GYROX compound BWC0977 isundergoing Phase 1 trials in Australia.
Novel immuno-oncology small molecule compounds with DARE (Dual acting Adenosine Receptor antagonist Efficacy).

Q3

UTEC provided Bugworks collaborative opportunities with Japan by introducing Japanese pharmaceutical companies, as well as Japanese
academics such as Prof. Satoshi Murakami at Tokyo Institute of Technology, who clarified the crystal structure of multidrug release transporter
AcrB as the company's Scientific Advisor. UTEC also supports Bugworks by offering financial advisory and fundraising support.

bitBiome, Inc.
To innovate the biomanufacturing industry using
microbial “Dark Matter” genes

Workflow of single-cell genomics

Q1

In cooperation with UTEC, bitBiome was founded in 2018 with the aim to create new industries using next-generation whole genome microbiome
analysis that is based on the single-cell genomics technology developed by CSO Dr. Masahito Hosokawa, an associate professor of Waseda University.

Q2b itBiome has pioneered the world's first single-cell genomics technology tailored to microorganisms, enabling the accumulation of microbial
genome data that was previously challenging to analyze. Compared to conventional methods, their technology offers superior data accuracy
and information volume. Additionally, bitBiome possess state-of-the-art informatics and robotics facilities, allowing for highly efficientexperimental setups. They specialize in collaborative research and contract analysis services in the fields of biomanufacturing, including
enzyme discovery and engineering, as well as microbial genome analysis. These services, along with their in-house development projects, areexclusively offered with a primary focus on the pharmaceutical, chemical, and food industries.

Q3

U TEC has provided bitBiome with support from its startup phase in business development, IP strategy, assembling management talents, etc.

Metcela Inc.
Revolutionizing the Way We Treat Heart Failure
Q1 ith the aim of commercializing the results of Dr. Takahiro Iwamiya'sWdoctoral research on cardiac fibroblasts at Tokyo Women's Medical
University, Metcela was cofounded in 2016 after two years of preparatory
work by Dr. Iwamiya and Kenichi Nogami, who had experience at a foreign
investment bank and a start-up.

• Autologous and tissue-specific cell therapy: high efficacy and low-cost
manufacturing• Unique positioning by combining the cells with a proprietary mapping andcatheter delivery technology which enables safe and accurate cell injections
to the heart• Proven mechanism of action of the therapy as a platform-enabling	
technology, in addition to proven efficacy in multiple animal models

Human VCAM-1-positive
Cardiac Fibroblasts

Cardiomyocytes
and VCFs forms atight network when
co-cultured together

Q2

Q3

10 U T E C

Financial strategy and hiring talents

4 clear pillars
distinguishing
Metcela fromthe rest

Questions

Q1

Q2

Q3

OriginStrength

UTEC’s value add

Celaid Therapeutics Inc.
Regenerative medicine start-up aiming to develop next-generation cell therapy
products using human hematopoietic stem cell expansion technology
Q1

P rof. Satoshi Yamasaki from Tsukuba University and Hiromitsu Nakauchi from the University of Tokyo's Institute of Medical
Science (also a Professor at Stanford University) successfully developed a technology using PVA, a component of liquid glue,
for the large-scale in vitro expansion of mouse hematopoietic stem cells. They aim to apply this technology in cell therapy forclinical use in humans.

Q2

I n vitro expansion of human HSC has been difficult until now. The conventional cell growth media, containing biologicalsubstances such as albumin and cytokine, carry problems such as low reproducibility, difficulty in quality control, and highcost of raw materials. Our technology enabled in vitro expansion of human HSC in an albumin/cytokine-free medium, whichallows easy quality control and cost reduction. In addition, since HSC can be expanded regardless of the source (bonemarrow, umbilical cord blood, peripheral blood), application to various diseases can be expected.

Q3

U nderstanding the innovation of technology, providing financial support from the seed phase to facilitate commercialization.
Assistance in formulating business strategies and development plans, finding and introducing talent, and supporting legal
and intellectual property matters.

Succeeded in largescale expansion ofmouse HSC in vitro

Succeeded in largescale expansion ofhuman HSC in vitro

Large-scale ex vivo expansion of human HSC can be
expected for clinical applications to various diseases

United Immunity, Co., Ltd.
Uniting the Power of Nanotechnology and
Immunity for the Fight to Cancer
Q1D r. Naozumi Harada, a pioneering scientist who has conducted 25 years of drug discovery research in the cancer
immunology field at Mitsubishi Chemical and Mie University, founded United Immunity in November 2017 aiming
to commercialize cancer immunotherapy drugs, utilizing the nanogel engineering research results of Prof. Kazunari
Akiyoshi from Kyoto University.

Q2

U sing a unique nanocapsule technology that creates 100-nanometer particles from sugars and lipids, capable ofencapsulating small molecules, nucleic acids, and proteins, it is possible to deliver pharmaceutical ingredientsselectively and efficiently to immune cells within the body. This technology enables the development of treatmentsfor various diseases, including cancer.

Q3

H ands-on support including advice on R&D plans, structuring corporate governance, and recruitment ofmanagement talents

Overview of T-ignite

TAMs targeting (intravenous injection)

PURMX Therapeutics Co., Ltd.
Development of natural MicroRNA drugs to help patients withintractable diseases
Q1

P rof. Hidetoshi Tahara of Hiroshima University has discovered the anti-tumor effect of microRNAs
related to aging and has developed its own functional screening system for this kind of RNAs. He
started a start-up company because he had reached the stage of clinical development of potent
microRNAs.

Q2

O ur MicroRNA medicines have the potential to overcome drug resistance, which is a challengewith existing anti-tumor drugs that target a single gene, because they target multiple genes
relating to cancer growth.

Q3

U TEC recognized the innovativeness of this technology from the early stages at Hiroshima
University and has provided hands-on support for its commercialization, especially in its IP
formulation and recruitment of management talent for drug development.

Anti-tumor therapy using senescence-associated microRNA

11

UTEC Portfolio Companies

Life Science & Healthcare

Elixir Pharma Inc.
Realizing "active healthy longevity society" by creating medicines
to solve the walking function deterioration due to aging
Q1

Elixir Pharma was founded to develop therapeutic agents for muscle atrophy and ruptureby leveraging the muscle regeneration function of a portion of “osteopontin” (known as
substrate protein) discovered at Osaka University in 2020.

Q2

Functional peptide technology to activate skeletal muscle hygiene cells and its applicability
to various diseases involving muscle loss, damage, fibrosis, etc.

Q3

Financial support to materialize the GLP toxicity study and HR support for hiring executives
and other personnel to accelerate business development

SV peptide suppresses the growth of fibrotic scar tissue

SV peptide facilitates muscle regeneration

Cellusion Inc.
Cellular technology breakthroughfor clear vision of the future.
Q1

Three professors in Keio university, Dr. Hatou, Dr. Tsubota and Dr. Shimura,founded Cellusion in 2015 to commercialize corneal regenerative medicine
therapies to solve the unmet medical needs faced in clinical settings.

Q2• Proprietary manufacturing method from iPSC to corneal endothelial substitutecells in direct differentiation induction manner.
•R obust manufacturing process, stable product quality and economically-viable
CoGs by utilizing allogenic iPSC as raw material.
• Off-the-shelf cell therapy platform enabled by proprietary cryopreservation.

Q3

Financing strategy and talent recruitment

iPS derived corneal
endthelial substitute
cells

Cornealendothelial cells
regenerative
therapy

RegCell Co., Ltd.
Overcoming Unmet Needs with Innovative
Immunotherapy Using Regulatory T Cells

12 U T E C

Q1Three professors in Keio university, Dr. Susumu Hatou, Dr. Kazuo Tsubota and Dr. Shimmura
Shigeto, founded Cellusion in 2015 to commercialize corneal regenerative medicine
therapies to solve the unmet medical needs faced in clinical settings.

Q2• Our patent-protected Treg platform has generated epigenetically-reprogrammed
stable and functional Treg (S/F-Epigen-Treg) which has competitive advantages
compared to other Tregs in terms of stability, functionality, scalability, safety, andpathogenic antigen-specificity• S /F-Epigen-Treg cells express a high-level of Treg function-inducing molecules andachieve Treg-specific chromatin remodelling which enables functional stability

Q3

UTEC provides comprehensive hands-on support ranging from team building, businessdevelopment, finance, and global expansion

Concept of S/F-Epigen-Treg therapy

Treg specific DNA hypomethylation

Questions

Q1

Q2

Q3

OriginStrength

UTEC’s value add

Sola Biosciences, Inc.
Gene therapy for neurodegenerative disease
Q1

S OLA Biosciences was founded in 2016 by Dr. Keizo Koya, CEO and Dr. Akinori Hishiya, CSO. Dr.
Koya is a serial entrepreneur having experience in founding Strategia (which was acquired by JSI
InnoMed). Dr. Hishiya has experience as a researcher at Eli Lilly, the National Center for Geriatrics
and Gerontology, Georgia Medical College, Boston Biomedical Research Institute, and Strategia, Inc.

Q2

S OLA owns the JUMP70 platform, a gene therapy that uses AAV to express JUMP70, afusion protein capable of bringing disease-causing proteins into close proximity with the
HSP70 protein, so that HSP could refold or induce degradation of the mis-folded aggregate
protein which is a cause of neurodegenerative diseases. The lead pipeline, SOL-257, isbeing developed for ALS, a disease caused by the aggregation of TDP-43 protein.

Q3

Introduction of scientific advisers in the US or in AAV field, support capital raising,business development, and IP strategy, etc.

JUMP70 to engage aggregated protein and HSP70

The domain of JUMP70

Violet Therapeutics, Inc.
First-in-class platforms to identify, map and mine the cellular connectome
at scale to elucidate novel drug targets
Q1

Drug discovery startup leveraging a first-in-class platforms, RABID-seq, to identify, map
and mine the cellular connectome at scale, which was invented by Professor Francis
Quintana at Brigham and Women’s Hospital and Harvard Medical School

Q2

Intercellular interactions play a crucial role in the formation of diseases, but theirmolecular mechanisms have not been fully elucidated. Violet's RABID-seq technology
enables comprehensive analysis of crosstalk between cells that are physiologicallyinteracting, without depending on physical proximity. RABID-seq is expected tolead to the discovery of new drug target candidates, particularly in the field of
neuroinflammation.

Q3

Support for searching collaborative research partners to benefit pipeline development

scRNA-seq data lacks connectivity information

RABID-seq identifies targets in the context of in vivo
connectome (Clark, Gutiérrez-Vázquez, Wheeler et al., 2021)

Red Arrow Therapeutics Inc.

INTERMICIN reduces
off target toxicities withmaximal potency

Make Undruggable Treatment Reality by
Unlocking Full Potential of Nanomedicine
Q1

Takuya Miyazaki, Ph.D (CEO) together with Horacio Cabral, Ph.D (Co-founder)
launched Red Arrow in 2021 at the University of Tokyo, Japan, who are bothexperts in polymer-based drug delivery systems.

Q2

Our program, INTERMICIN, pH-sensitive polymeric micelles loading IL-12
release fully active IL-12 upon sensing intertumoral pH, thus increases infiltration
and activity of effector immune cells within tumor microenvironment. Moreover,
INTERMICIN also overcome the systemic toxicity of IL-12. In the current preclinical data, INTERMICIN exhibits strong anti-tumor efficacy in various tumor
models both as monotherapy and in combination with immune checkpoint
inhibitors.

Q3

Ongoing support for team formation, business planning, and financing

INTERMICIN (IL-12/m) Demonstrates Reduced Toxicities
as compared to Native IL-12

INTERMICIN (IL-12/m)
Synergizes with
Checkpoint Blockades
in Difficult-To-Treat Cold
Tumors13

UTEC Portfolio Companies

IT

WASSHA Inc.
Delivering electrical power to people in off-grid areas.
Q1

CEO Satoshi Akita selected Africa as the starting region for the business based on
the potential of the electrification market, its social significance, and regulatory
considerations. Digital Grid Solutions (the company's former name) was
co-founded in April 2013 by Akita and Dr. Rikiya Abe, a professor at the Universityof Tokyo (at the time). The company was renamed to WASSHA in December 2017.

Q2

WASSHA collected a detailed landscape of data on consumer coverage andconsumption trends of millions of people in Africa by partnering with kiosks inrural areas. The management is based in Tanzania, in close operational proximity
to the local communities (Tanzania, Uganda, Mozambique, etc.), and leverages
collaborations with Japanese corporations to deliver value.

Q3

Power to the peopleAs a lead investor since the company's inception, UTEC has provided a variety
of support in finance, business planning, executive recruitment, organizationbuilding, legal risk handling, and IPO preparation.

Kiosk image in Tanzania

Money Design Co., Ltd
Democratize financial services with the power of technology
and create new relationships between people and money
Q1

Holding all assets in Japanese Yen is no longer an optimal asset management strategy,
given the increasingly volatile JPY against a macroeconomic backdrop of USD-JPY exchange
rate fluctuations and inflation. Theo's asset management engine, which was developed incollaboration with Prof. Yasuyuki Kato of Kyoto University, can be used to provide tailor-madeglobal diversification investment algorithms to retail investors. These algorithms are on parwith those used by high-end asset managers.

Q2

A strong, well-rounded core team comprising members from the academia, investment
management, financial industry and internet service industry.

Q3

UTEC provides support to Money Design such as strengthening creditworthiness of the company's
investment management policies, and advising on governance development and IPOs.

THEO service homepage

Highly customized private asset
management plans for everyone

Retrieva, Inc.
Retrieva provides business automation solutions by leveraging
state-of-the-art natural language processing technology.

14 U T E C

Q1

The founders realized the potential applications of NLP, machine learning and deep learning in several
enterprise use-cases. Formerly, the team was part of Preferred Infrastructure and then spun-out tobecome an independent company. Mr. Kazuya Kawahara, who was a manager in the Manufacturing
Division of Preferred Infrastructure, and Mr. Jiro Nishitoba, an alumnus of The University of Tokyo
Graduate School of Information Science and Technology founded the company in 2016.

Q2

Retrieva team has deep expertise in the fields of NLP, Machine Learning and Deep Learning. The
team is also well-equipped in using the aforementioned technologies to solve the problems ofenterprise customers and making the service user-friendly.

Q3

 TEC offers support in strategy development, governance, recruitment of top-notch talent,Ufinance, customer introductions, pioneering partners, etc.

Answer Finder

VoC Analyzer

Questions

Q1

Q2

Q3

OriginStrength

UTEC’s value add

Startbahn, Inc.

“Art Blockchain Network (ABN),”developed byStartbahn, designed to be an infrastructure forart industry utilizing blockchain technology

The realization of a society where art is democratized
and familiarized as property and culture.
Q1

Q2

Q3

T aihei Shii, a contemporary artist and a graduate of the University of Tokyo's Graduate School ofInterdisciplinary Information Studies was concerned about the lack of technological infrastructure in theart industry, despite the dynamism of technological innovation and social change in other fields. This
became his motivation to found Startbahn with the aim of bridging the gap between technology and art.
S tartbahn has acquired relevant patents in Japan and the US. While the Blockchain x Art field isblue-ocean from a competition standpoint, Startbahn has been recognized as a leading company in
Art x Blockchain initiative as well as art-related NFT marketplaces in Japan and is well-positioned topropose innovative changes. Startbahn has technical expertise in blockchain application design anddevelopment based on its continuous effort to develop and improve ABN.
B eginning in the seed stage and continuing as a lead investor after Series A, UTEC has advised thecompany in fundraising, recruitment, capital and business alliances, and governance development.

Web service “B-OWND”, developed jointly
by Tanseisha and Startbahn, on which
Japanese traditional craft works are soldwith ABN blockchain certificatesWeb service “startbahn.org”,
managed by Startbahn, on
which artists and galleries
sell their artworks and issue
blockchain certificates online

Tier IV, Inc.
Providing fully autonomous self-driving platforms and services.
Q1

Tier IV was founded in December 2015 by Dr. Shinpei Kato, currently an associate professor at
the Graduate School of Information Science and Technology at The University of Tokyo. Tier IV isdeveloping a fully-autonomous self-driving platform based on theiropen source software “Autoware” which Dr. Kato created while he was at
Nagoya University.

Q2

Tier IV provides fully autonomous self-driving platforms and services basedon “AutoWare”, an open-source software based on Linux and ROS. Tier IV’s
platform strategy involves offering optimized configuration of softwareand hardware necessary for each ODD (Operational Design Domain) as aReference Design. In December 2017, Tier IV became the first company todeploy a Level 4 self-driving vehicle on Japan’s public roads.

Q3

UTEC assists TierIV in building its management team, building capital andbusiness alliances, etc.

Logiee_PV1

Milee_PV2

Minivan_PV3

obniz Inc.
Make Everything Online
Q1

Conventionally, IoT using microcontroller boards have faced various hurdles, such as
the need to build a development environment, special development languages, andknowledge of hardware as well as software. obniz Inc. was incorporated to realize aworld where anyone can freely create IoT electronics in 2014.

Q2

Proprietary, firmware-less technology integrates firmware and program on cloud,which enables to add and upgrade IoT hardware and programs immediately without
rewriting the firmware.

Q3

UTEC provides advice on finance and sales strategy, support for recruitment,
introduction of corporate customers, support for legal affairs, etc.

Multiple edges devices can be controlled andcooperated by a single program

obniz, realizing remote monitoring/management atconstruction sites

15

UTEC Portfolio Companies

IT

SWAT Mobility Pte. Ltd.
Empowering the world to move more with less using on-demand
dynamic routing technology for high-capacity vehicles.
Q1

SWAT was founded in 2015 in Singapore with the vision of moving smart nations with on-demand highcapacity vehicle pooling services that can reduce traffic congestions, improving travelling conveniencefor commuters, and optimizing resources for transportation systems.

Q2

Most vehicle-pooling players in the industry only offer either fixed-route shuttle services or dynamically-routeservices for smaller vehicles like cars. Unlike their competitors, SWAT goes a step further and offers dynamic
routing of demand-responsive and high-capacity vehicles - using big data, machine learning and artificial
intelligence. SWAT offers products for optimizing People Transport as well as Logistics & Fulfilment services.

Q3

UTEC provides holistic business strategy advice and support, ranging from financing, marketing,business partner matching and talent recruitment in Japan. UTEC is also tapping into its strong local
network to support SWAT’s Japan market entry.

estie, inc.
Modernizing Real Estate
Q1

estie founder Ei Hirai developed and implemented statistical analysis methods for real estate
performance during his time engaging in overseas real estate investment and office leasing sales at
Mitsubishi Real Estate. Hence, he started estie to solve the industry problem where even professionals
have not been making objective decisions based on sufficient logical evidence, while tenants wereforced to make decisions with insufficient information in 2018.

Q2

The estie team possesses deep real estate industry knowledge, which they leverage on to build
algorithms for estimating rents and other real estate quantitative indicators. These algorithms are hard
to imitate as they are based on one of the largest integrated databases in the market.

Q3

As a lead investor in Series A and beyond, UTEC provides a range of value-add activities, including
advice on corporate strategy, operations, sales & marketing, and HR.

Algorithm to estimate rent of
individual office building

Real estate integrated database on a map

Adacotech Inc.
Accelerate the evolution and revolution of manufacturing
Q1

16 U T E CAdacotech Inc. was incorporated in 2012 with the aim of practical applicationof its anomaly detection AI, based on "Adaptive Learning Recognition Method
Using Higher-Order Local Autocorrelation Feature Extraction Methodology," atechnology invented at Japan's National Institute of Advanced Industrial Scienceand Technology (AIST).

Q2

Adacotech Inc.’s proprietary anomaly detection AI products provide close-tozero false negatives (detecting abnormal objects as normal) with less amountof training data. The products achieve high speed inference and explainability,
and are already applied in quality assurance divisions of many manufacturing
companies.

Q3

UTEC led Series A financing and beyond as a lead investor, assisting in thedevelopment of Adacotech's corporate strategy, business development and teambuilding.

Anomaly detection with close-to-zero error

Many examples of introduction to production lines, mainly in theautomobile, electronic parts, and semiconductor industries

Questions

Q1

Q2

Q3

OriginStrength

UTEC’s value add

ROMS, Inc.
Robotic unmanned store and dark store
solutions developed by ROMS

ROMS: Robotics solutions for omni channels and supply chains.
Q1

ROMS is a startup company founded in 2019 that develops hardware-based automation
and robotics solutions with the mission of "transforming retail and supply chainsthrough digitalization and automation to create the next EX/CX.

Q2

ROMS provides a variety of automation solutions centered on its world-class "NFC
(Nano Fulfillment Center)" that combines a small automated warehouse with robotic
picking for EC, retail, and logistics facilities.

Q3

UTEC has been involved with ROMS since its early days, providing ongoing support
for Series A and subsequent financing, business strategy planning, governance, andexecutive recruitment.

A demonstration store in Tokyo using the ROMS
unmanned store solution

VividQ Limited
Towards the mass adoption of 3D holographic display
Q1

Initially founded as a data compression startup, VividQ pivoted to a software startup
building commercial applications for 3D holographic displays using their patented
technology, thanks to the support from Prof. Tim Wilkinson of The Centre for Advanced
Photonics and Electronics, Cambridge University.

Q2

 igh-quality, fast and scalable implementation of computer-generated holograms,
H
computational aberration correction technology, and GPU-enabled fast
implementation. Partnerships with major suppliers for the constituent parts requiredfor holographic display configuration.

Q3

Co-lead of the Seed round, support of the Seed-2 round, set-up of the APAC team,business development in the Japanese market, building relationships with Japanese
academia

VividQ holographic display can
express "the sense of depth”

AR HUD, one of the applicationsof VividQ software, superimposes
information in a form that matches
the object in the real world

VividQ team with many PhD
talents from University ofCambridge, Oxford University,and so on

OPALai Pte. Ltd.
AI-driven alpha and beta indices named 'AiLA' for Commodities,
Carbon and related Asset Classes
Q1

O PALai was started in June 2017 by Pravin Chandrasekaran, a Harvard alumnus, who has two decades of experience incommodities derivates across seven countries, including roles at Deutsche Bank, Citigroup, Rabobank, and ADM. The rest of
the team comes from deep commodities, financial, & technical experience in UBS, BNP, Barclays, Shinshei bank, and CERN

Q2O PALai uses an ensemble of statistical Machine Learning and Deep Learning techniques by analyzing numerous features
to model the term structure of assets. OPALai’s AiLATM offers thematic alpha generation Indices for Investors and Tracker
Indices for Corporates covering industries and sectors such as Energy, Power, Metals and Agriculture. AiLA Indices has
accumulated an AUM of $500M+ from Global Investment Banks, Corporates, Index Providers and ETF Issuers.

Q3

As the lead institutional investor in OPALai, UTEC supports the company in financial strategy, andbusiness development including facilitating their expansion to Japan by recruitment of professionals,
and client partnerships with trading, financial and manufacturing corporations.

OPALai’s Product Offerings for Pricing,
Hedging and Trading

AiLA Index (for Illustration purpose)

17

UTEC Portfolio CompaniesIT

TXP Medical Co., Ltd.
Saving Lives with Medical Data
Q1

Transition fromwhiteboard-based
system to NSERCEO Dr. Tomohiro Sonoo developed software on his own
to solve the problems he faced in the field of emergency
medicine at Hitachi General Hospital where he was an active
emergency physician. In 2017, he started TXP Medical toexpand the software to hospitals across Japan.

Q2

TXP Medical has competitive advantages in that it hasa deep understanding of the needs of the medical field,
strong networks of regional flagship hospitals across Japan,
and a rigorous research team that continues to publish innational and international conferences and papers.

Q3

As a lead investor in Series A and beyond, UTEC supports
TXP Medical in making strategies to increasing corporate
value and in recruitment to form a strong team.

NSER focuses on operationaltransformations of tertiary
emergency centers

Integration of fragmented
medical data around acutemedical cares

Capex, Inc.
Virtual humans who are close to humans
Q1

CEO Shuntaro Kogame, who served as COO at bitFlyer, started Capex
with the aim of solving social issues using new technologies such as
VR/AR and natural language processing 2019.

Q2

From the UI/UX of avatars to a dialogue engine with a unique algorithm
based on emotional data, Capex aims to design a total interaction
experience that enhances the closeness to humans.

Q3

L ead investment from seed round, advice on general management
strategy, recruitment support, product feedback and B2B expansion
supportPATONA was launched for iOS and Android. Using the direct interaction withusers as a starting point, Capex brushed up the interactive experience andexpanded it to virtual humans

HashPort Inc.
Closing Japan's 1st IEO(2021)

Innovating Japan with Blockchain Technology
Q1

18 U T E C

Mr. Seihaku Yoshida was the youngest Venture Architect in the Tokyo officeof BCG Digital Ventures, the digital business development arm of the Boston
Consulting Group, and worked on projects in Japan and China. Mr. Yoshida
started HashPort in July 2018 with the rise of blockchain technology.

Q2T he unmatched expertise and know-how in the field of “token,“ which led to Japan's
first IEO (Initial Exchange Offering) followed by Japan's first IEO of a game token,
the ELF token (usable in the blockchain game "THE LAND ELF Crossing"). Currently
developing Web3 Wallet for the Osaka-Kansai Expo in 2025. Through these efforts,
HashPort continues to be a leading company that revolutionizes the web 3.0 industry.

Q3

F inance and team building support as the lead investor since Series A, Government policy
recommendation regarding to Accounting/Taxation of crypto assets/Web 3.0, IPO preparation

Closing Japan's first IEO
of a game token, the ELF
token (2024)

Developing digitalwallet for OsakaKansai ExpoQuestions

DATAFLUCT, Inc.
Democratization of Data Utilization with data handling andautomated machine learning at its core
Q1

Q1

Q2

Q3

OriginStrength

UTEC’s value add

The "DATAFLUCT smartcity
series" is being developedwith the theme of solving
urban problems with data andrealizing sustainable citiesC EO Hayato Kumemura, who has been involved in launching more than 30
new businesses over the past 13 years in multiple companies such as Nikkei
and Recruit and is also an invited staff member at the Japan Aerospace
Exploration Agency (JAXA), founded the company in 2019 to specialize innew businesses using data science.

Q2

L inkage between geographic information and image analysis cultivatedby JAXA, automatic machine learning technology to search for the optimalmodel without the need for the data scientist to be an expert, and a clouddevelopment platform that enables the rapid launch of new applications.

Q3

F inance support as a lead investor in Series A and beyond, overall management
strategy including productization, collaboration with academia, introduction ofprospective enterprise prospects, recruiting, preparation for IPO"DATAFLUCT cloud terminal",
a multi-cloud AutoML tool forbuilding machine learningmodels with no code

"DATAFLUCT co2-monitoring", anenvironmental monitoring service that uses
satellite data to visualize atmospheric carbon
dioxide concentration and economic activity

Kuzen Inc.

The "kuzen" editor screen.
No code is needed to build achatbot quickly

Changing the World by Automating Chat
Q1

Q2

Q3

Based on experience at the University of Tokyo's "Entrepreneur Dojo,"
investment funds and IT consultancy, Shogo Ota and Kota Shirakura, both
graduates from the University of Tokyo, founded the company with thedetermination to create a globally active startup in the IT field from Japan, seizing
the timing of the change in communication tools, chat in particular.

Conceptual diagram of "kuzen"
Integration Hub, which enables avariety of dialogue interfaces andlinkage with SaaSStrengths of kuzen include: a track record of over 200 large
corporation deployments; the only chatbot tool that provides a wide variety offunctions required by enterprise customers with no code; a patented proprietaryscenario creation algorithm; the ability to build a variety of dialogue interfaces tosuit customer needs; and the flexibility to integrate with external systems.
Advice on finance strategy and IPO preparation, recruitment support andorganization building

Image of an end-userusing the chatbot

Sinumy Corporation
Sinumy provides the ultimate personal authentication technology to
the real world and make the world happy with a seamless experience.
Q1

Y asuhiko Adachi, Founding CEO, believed that the meaning of human life is to "create the next generation," andone of the most important things to leave to the next generation is a "seamless society." He founded the company
to create a seamless society by solving real world personal authentication issues by way improving the accuracyof such authentication.

Q2

A uthentication consists of three types of information: memory information, physical information, and biometric
information. In the real world, however, there are issues such as the time required to confirm memory and remove
objects, and the fact that a single leak of biometric information makes such authentication system unavailable
for the person in question. Hence, Sinumy has enabled hands-free authentication and settlement of all kindsof transactions with only a smartphone in a pocket or bag, based on its patented technologies for "high-speed,
high-accuracy location measurement" and "settlement-level authentication."

Q3

S upport for finance, hiring of senior management, R&D and sales personnel, establishment of business
management structure, dispatch of UTEC's Venture Partners, etc.
19

UTEC Portfolio Companies

IT

Obviously AI co-founders Nirman andTapojit – Immigrants from India and
Bangladesh living in the US

Obviously AI, Inc.
Full-stack no-code AI Platform with a vision to democratize Data
Science and LLM (Large Language Models) implementation
Q1

Co-founders Nirman Dave and Tapojit Debnath were classmates at Hampshire College in Boston
where they obtained their Bachelor's degrees in Computer Science. CEO Nirman comes withentrepreneurial experience, having sold his previous startup to Intel. CTO Tapojit was formerly an AI/
ML researcher at MIT. Obviously AI has a team of 10 people based in San Francisco Bay Area.

Q2O bviously AI's Edge-sharp AutoML & Bayesian Hyperparameter Optimization offers an ensemble of over
100 AI Models and a superior training time which is 75-100x faster than other AutoML Platforms. In addition,
the company has developed proprietary tools such as Paintbrush (Parellel computing), Data Maker (DataPreparation) and X-ray (LLM deployment). Today, Obviously AI serves over 50 happy customers across theglobe, establishing the company as a leading no-code Generative AI platform for SMB/mid-market.

Q3

S upport for Obviously AI’s expansion into Japan/APAC by facilitating client and Go-to-market partnerships. Additionally, UTEC
also offers hands-on support to the company in fundraising, recruiting, product strategy and GTM (Go-to-market) strategy.

Prediction report built from uploaded
data using AutoML technology

Visualization of model performance with
Explainable AI

Studio Unbuilt Inc.
Architecture DX through High Quality Design
Q1

The two founders Keiji Morishita and Aya Morikawa who studied architecture at Nagoya
Institute of Technology and then gained experience in the IT industry, cofounded StudioUnbuilt in 2017 with the aim of revolutionizing the architectural design industry using IT.
The company launched "madree," a website that allows users to request floor plan designs
via smartphone, to solve a pain in the custom-built housing area that was discovered
while managing "Studio Unbuilt," their original crowdsourcing service specializing inarchitecture.

Q2

Passion and experience of the founding team in the architectural design industry, accessto architectural experts through Japan's only crowdsourcing operation specializing inarchitecture, and continuous accumulation of design data through the madree's new
business modelQ3

HR support, finance strategy, business development

madree: a design-based house building platform

STUDIO UNBUILT: crowdsourcing services
specializing in architecture

Alumnote Inc.
Support for building alumni networks for universities and corporations

20 U T E C

Q1

Toga Nakazawa, who won Japan's Minister of Internal Affairs and Communications
Award at the Entrepreneurship Koshien in 2021 while a law student at the
University of Tokyo, started Alumnote to create a system to funnel funds touniversities in order to overcome Japan's social problem of declining international
competitiveness of universities.

Q2

The company developed "Alumnote Community," which enables the creation ofan alumni data platform that is easy for universities to manage, something that has
been difficult with social networking services. The company aims to revitalize thealumni community with tools to streamline community management and functions
that enable tracking and visualization of alumni behavior. In addition to organizing
events, the system allows for donations, crowdfunding, and job board postings,
aiming to sophisticating donation marketing in Japan.

Q3

General advice on managerial issues for seed stage startups, such as fundraisingand team formation. UTEC also outsourced one of its donation projects for the
University of Tokyo community to the company.

Alumnote Community

Questions

Q1

Q2

Q3

OriginStrength

UTEC’s value add

ALGO ARTIS Corporation
Plannning AI service for electric power and logistics companies
Coal-fired power plant
Q1

ALGO ARTIS was started as a new business project within DeNA in 2017. ALGO ARTIS was
subsequently founded as its spin-out in 2021.

The founders are a scarce team of engineers who can handle heuristic solutions fully andcommunicate with customers smoothly for gigantic scheduling operation systems.
	ALGO ARTIS's algorithms enable customers to optimize complex real-world operations
that are difficult to solve using conventional methodologies. The company provides fullstack secure supports from the back-end side, by linking algorithms and front-end, tobenefit customers with system development capabilities and a level of real-world operationthat can be flexibly implemented based on the cloud.
Q2

Q3

UTEC led Series A financing as lead investor. Hands-on support for business planning,finance, hiring, risk control, etc.

Supply chain optimization leveraging AI

forest inc.
Bring joy and satisfaction to consumers around the globe throughintroducing sustainable and high quality Japanese products.
Q1

The Founders, with their deep experience in retail, marketing, and investment/ M&A, have established forest to incubate brands that embrace the spirit ofJapan and seek to introduce them to the borderless world of e-commerce.

Q2

Experienced Founders with a proven track record in acquiring consumer
brands and growing them to reach their full potential. Identification of EC
brands through proprietary data collection technology. Adding value to
e-commerce brands through the application of digital marketing strategies,
supporting cross-border e-commerce expansion, and optimizing sales andinventory planning through data analytics.

Q3

S trategic planning support, human resource recruitment, organizational
strategy, business development, financial support from seed phase

Cross-border EC site "omakase"

Founding members with unparalleledexpertise in retail, marketing, andinvestment / M&A

Growing andscaling up Japanese
e-commerce brands

Medcom, Inc.
Promoting Digital Transformation at Health Systems bycreating an ICT platform for healthcare
Q1F ounded in 2016 when the founder realized the slow adoption of digital transformation in healthcare when he was at
NTT Docomo. Frontier Field provides "Medcom" a smartphone service that realizes DX for medical institutions in asecure environment, and developing applications to promote work style reform in the medical field.

Q2

N TT Docomo, among other vendors specializing in hospital communication systems, and major organizations
such as the Japan Hospital Association, have strong partnerships in the medical and communication sectors. Theirpatented technology for sharing smartphones with a unique login feature is a key strength. Unlike PHS (Personal
Handy-phone System), their system includes chat functionality, integration with electronic medical records, a uniquelogin feature for identifying staff attendance, quick contact capabilities to designated destinations, and enhanced
security measures tailored for medical institutions.

Q3O ngoing support for business and finance strategies, team formation and business execution.
21

UTEC Portfolio CompaniesITbooost technologies,Inc.
ERP for ESG Management for Enterprise
Q1

Established by Mr. Hirokazu Aoi, who was the leader of the Smart Energy Business Teamat Funai Research Institute, to support new electric power companies that entered themarket with the deregulation of electric power. With energy management systems
and BPO for new electric power companies as its ancestral business, it has entered thecarbon accounting field in 2021. From 2023, started offering ERP systems to achieve ESG
management for enterprises.

Q2

Over 10 years of industry experience with more than 70 electric power suppliers, andtechnical expertise in consistently developing ERP for the energy domain. A track recordof implementation centered around enterprise companies.

Q3

Finance support, support for introduction and recruitment of human resources, support
for collaboration with academia and governing bodies

Carbon accounting platform "ENERGY X GREEN"

Co-developed carbon accounting platform with enterprises

ONIGO K.K.
Instant grocery commerce that delivers products
in as little as 10 minutes (Q-commerce)
Q1

After working for Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corporation in Russia, Mr. Naoya
Umeshita started CarPrice Japan and sold it to Rakuten (now Rakuten Car). Later,while providing strategic and capital policy support to entrepreneurs, he focused on
the Q-commerce field, which was emerging simultaneously around the world, andfounded OniGO in 2021.

Q2

Execution speed that led to the opening of the store within 2 months of its
establishment, financing that involved foreign investors from the beginning, supply
chain development, and B2B partnerships.

Q3

Planning financing strategies, placement and recruitment assistance

Picker picks products in dark store

OniGO's exclusive riders deliver to customers

ARCH ,Inc.
Solving reproductive health issues with the mission of"increasing life choices".

22 U T E C

Q1T he company was founded in June 2021 by its founder, Ms. Yukiko Nakai, who has experience
as a business manager of the media business and president of a subsidiary at Yahoo Japan, tosolve the issues she felt from her own experience with infertility treatment. Co-founder Mr.
Takuhiko Ichiyama is a reproductive medicine doctor who graduated from Juntendo University
School of Medicine, and Mr. Takahiro Shiino is an engineer who served as CTO of several venturecompanies after working at Yahoo!

Q2O ur strengths include a team with a high level of combined IT-related experience and skills necessary
for this project, such as electronic medical record systems and medical media, and a clinic platformthat enables integrated data management that accompanies women throughout their lives.

Q3

L eading a seed round of financing and providing management support for business andorganizational strategies, etc.

Providing a seamlessmedical experienceQuestions

Q1

Q2

Q3

OriginStrength

UTEC’s value add

XMile Inc.
Aims for a world where non-desk workers are the main players with thepower of technology
Q1

Having experience in leading new business units at a major startup and seed-stage fintech
startup (as a Director and COO), Mr.Noro founded Xmile in 2019 to solve the problem of"the extent of the room for digital transformation in the blue-collar industry" and "driver
shortage" in the blue collar industry.

Q2

X Mile has developed Japan's largest non-desk worker-specific job search service, "X
Work," with over 100,000 registered users. Additionally, it supports non-desk workers' jobchanges through "Driver Career" and "Construction Career" etc. Furthermore, it supports
digitalization and productivity improvement of operations through the SaaS "LogiPoke" fortransportation companies.

Q3

Leading Series A funding as a lead investor, also providing support for sales, recruitment,
and management.

Promoting a multi-product strategy focused on
non-desk industries as a compound startup

To promote the digitalization of non-desk industries, vertically
deploying SaaS, Marketplace, etc., segmented by industry

Eureka Robotics Pte. Ltd.
A pioneer in Robotics & AI for HA-HA (High Accuracy-High Agility) tasks in precision
manufacturing to tackle labor shortage and unlock exponential productivity gains
Q1

E ureka Robotics’ AI-powered Robotic Controller is a brainchild of a decade of research at Nanyang Technological
University (NTU) Singapore, The University of Tokyo (UTokyo), and Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT). CEO
Dr. Pham Quang Cuong is an Associate Professor of Robotics at NTU (on leave), a former JSPS Fellow at UTokyo andholds a PhD in Neuroscience & Robotics from Sorbonne University France. CTO Dr. Hung Phan is a PhD in Robotics
from NTU. Eureka has offices in Singapore, Japan, Vietnam, and France.

Q2

E ureka’s core technology is powered by a combination of Physics-based Robotics Models and Machine Learning (ML)
Models which enables HA-HA. Eureka has achieved 10x higher calibration accuracy when compared to the industry
standard, and is the first company in the world to cross 10M real-world HA-HA operations. Eureka's marqueecustomers/partners include Pratt & Whitney, Coherent, Sumitomo Bakelite, Bridgestone, Sigma Koki, and Denso

Q3A s a lead investor, UTEC helps Eureka to scale-up via strategic support on product, business development,
distribution, and fundraising. Additionally, UTEC is supporting the company’s expansion into Japan by facilitating
teambuilding, client relationships, and Go-to-Market partnerships.

Eureka co-founders Dr. Cuong and Dr. Hungat their lab in NTU

The Eureka Controller capable ofhandling HA-HA tasks

Cordia Directions, Inc. (Peach Cars)
Revolutionizing used car ownership in Sub Saharan Africa byleveraging the power of IoT and Machine Learning
Q1

C EO Kaoru Kaganoi, who has prior global experience with McKinsey, met COO Zachary Petroni, who possesses
extensive business experience in Africa, at Safeboda. Together, they started Peach to revolutionize used carmarket in sub-Saharan Africa. Peach employs a team of over 40 people across Kenya and Japan, with teammembers having experience at notable companies such as OLX, Toyota, Jiji, Safaricom, and Tokyo Marine.

Q2

P each is pioneering a Marketplace 3.0 model by matchmaking buyers and sellers to revolutionize used car ownershipin Kenya. Peach leverages its technology platform comprising of a proprietary smart engine-check IoT device,responsive web/mobile apps, automated inspection and data analysis to enable trust, transparency and customer
centricity. With over 400 cars sold, Peach is on its way to be the No. 1 digital used cars marketplace in Kenya.

Q3

As the lead institutional investor in Peach, UTEC supports the company in productstrategy, R&D enhancement, cross-border expansion, and strategic Go-to-market
partnership with Japanese automakers.

Peach Cars’s Team in Kenya

Peach Cars’s
enginecheck IoT
device23

UTEC Portfolio Companies

IT

Quanmatic Inc.

Management team with
top achievements in theirrespective field

Enable practical use of perpetually growing information.
Q1

B ased on the novel research results of Dr. Nozomu Togawa (Chief Scientific Officer, Professor at Waseda
University), a leading expert in the fields of information engineering, quantum computation, and algorithm
development, Quanmatic was founded in October 2022 by CEO Sumitaka Koga, Dr. Shu Tanaka (Chief
Technology Officer, Associate Professor at Keio University), and Chief Product Officer Yosuke Mukasa.

Q2

A pplication capabilities in quantum computing technology enabled by leading scientists in mathematical optimization,
AI, and machine learning. Core product suite focused on large-scale computation based on top scientific journal articles
authored by the founders. Business problem-solving capabilities of management team with a deep understandingof both business and technology, extensive DX experience in large enterprises, and experience in strategy consulting
firms. Track record of working on large projects with major companies, including the world's first demonstration of
manufacturing process optimization using quantum technology with a major Japanese semiconductor manufacturer.

Q3

Financing support from the Seed to Series A round. Supporting the development ofcorporate strategy, business development, and team building.

issin Holdings Inc.
Realize a world full of vitality through the developing and providing
healthcare devices and services that blend into everyday life.
Q1issin Inc. is a new company founded by Tao Cheng, a serial entrepreneur who founded
popIn, which UTEC invested in July 2008, and acquired by Baidu Japan in May 2015.

Q2

T he founder's achievement of launching a best-selling product "popIn Aladdin" which
was sold over 200,000 units since its release, and has achieved the No. 1 market sharefor home projectors in Japan. The clear vision and product conception capability basedon deep understanding of users' pain, and the ability to expand overseas enabled bytheir cross-border mass production capabilities and members' extensive experience

Q3

U TEC led Series A financing and beyond as the lead investor, assisting in thedevelopment of issin's corporate strategy, business development, and team building.

UTEC
Portfolio
Companies
24 U T E C

Demonstrated manufacturing process optimization with a major
Japanese semiconductor manufacturer.

Demonstrated theuse of quantum
computing to findsolutions to problemsof 100M QPU or
more.

"Smart 5 min", which
provides a simple
5-minute heart rate
based workout"Smart Bath Mat" that measures yourweight unconsciously
issin's Founder and CEO Mr. Tao Cheng, also
the Founder of popIn and Serial Entrepreneur

MEMO

25

UTEC Portfolio Companies

Physical Science & Engineering

Algal Bio Co., Ltd.
Unlocking algae’s potential for a better future
Q1

Based on the results of over 20 years of algae bio research by Professor
Emeritus Shigeyuki Kawano of the University of Tokyo, Dr. Takeshi Takeshitaof the Kawano Laboratory founded the company in March 2018.

Q2

Based on intellectual properties related to the generation, cultivation, andinduction of functional components of a diverse range of algae strains, theCompany aims to build the world's first algae biofoundry targeting global
customer companies in the three sectors of energy, food, and health.

Q3

As a lead investor from the founding, carried out financing through
Series B and beyond. Providing support in the recruitment of executive
management, the formulation of business strategies, and fundraisingefforts.

Algal Bio‘s proprietary techniques enables the company to produce “Nanairo
Chlorella” ("Seven-Colored Chlorella") which changes color corresponding to
the carotenoids and long-chain fatty acids present

A typical algal body (left)
A super oil-producing algal body (right)

BionicM Inc.

Mass-cultivation using a thin-layer
light bioreactor

Robotic Prosthesis

Powering Mobility for All.
Q1

F ounder Sun Xiaojun, himself a prosthetic leg user, started BionicM in December
2018 based on his engineering experience at Sony and doctoral research at
Masayuki Inaba's Lab at Graduate School of Information Science and Technology,
The University of Tokyo, which is renowned for its robotics research. For three
years prior to the incorporation, Sun and UTEC conducted R&D through the
START Program by JST (the Japan Science and Technology Agency).

Q2

 ased on his advanced research in humanoid robotics at The University of
B
Tokyo, BionicM’s founder Sun, Ph.D. in Information Science and Technology,
created a highly efficient powered bionic prosthetic. The product has been
FDA registered in the United States, the biggest market for prosthesis.

Q3

As a lead investor since the seed stage, UTEC supports BionicM in its teambuilding, business development, fundraising and governance.

Founder at SXSW award

Safety Features

Nelumbo, Inc.
Materials innovation to enable the best products in energy, environment, and entertainment.
Q1

Nelumbo was founded by UC Berkeley engineers with a lifelong desire to see broad adoption andacceptance of materials science as a new path for delivering value to the world. The main product suite
today targets longstanding frost and corrosion challenges with heat exchangers in Air Conditioners todeliver a bold move in a market that impacts billions of people and has decades of opportunity.

Q2• Unique, innovative platform technology in material science.
• Business model that allows customers and Nelumbo to share the benefit of superior technology andmanufacturing.
•O ne of the applications has been sold in a cross-border deal, signifying the underlying technologicalcompetitiveness.

Q3

26 U T E C

The application areas for the technology are diverse, including metals and fibers. UTEC supports inconstructing business alliances related to HVAC and functional textiles, areas where Japanese companies
keep particularly important positions in the global value chain.

Cofounders Dave Walther, Ph.D., Liam
Berryman, and Lance Brockway, Ph.D.

Applicable industries

Artistic Example

Questions

Q1

Q2

Q3

OriginStrength

UTEC’s value add

SUN METALON Inc.
Making all product ideas tangible everywhereQ1

K azuhiko Nishioka and Koji Kageyama, who were at Nippon Steel at the time, conceived of their own
metal 3D printing technology using their microwave-based steelmaking method, which had never existed
in the market before, and after conducting experiments at a campsite, they founded Sun Metalon in
February 2021. Their vision is "By enabling local production and local consumption of metal parts, wedramatically expand the possibilities for human beings in space."

Original metal 3d-printing technology(Ultra-fast, cheep and huge)Innovative metal 3d printing (ultra-fast, ultra-cheap, ultra-huge) method based on original technology
and its patent.
	Founding team of top engineers with extensive experience in industry and academia, supported by astrong scientific advisory board (MIT, Oxford, The University of Tokyo)
Q2

Effective management support, based on a wealth of experience and success in the deep tech startups.
	Support for hiring executive personnel and introduction of various expert personnel (marketing,intellectual property strategy, etc.)
Q3

Kepler Corp.

In-situ production of metal powder from raw metal
powder (Co2-free)Comparison of printed
paper and Kepler's
display

Display technology that expresses texture
Q1

Mr. Kosho Tsuboi, a designer who designed global hit products such as
KDDI's "LIGHT POOL" and Meizu's "Gravity," established this company
to commercialize the "paper-like electronic calendar" that he presented
in a project with Google.

Q2

Integrated hardware and software technology to realize displays thatmimic the characteristics of paper and various other materials

Q3

Finance support, strategic support, introduction and recruitment support
for human resources, and support for collaboration with academia
Mimic wood textures
on display

RICOS Ltd.
Solving Product Design Challenges with AI and Simulation
Technologies
Q1

 ICOS was founded by Yu Ihara, based on the results of his doctoralR
research at the University of Tokyo's Graduate School of Frontier Sciences
on 3D simulation (CAE) and projects supported by IPA (Informationtechnology Promotion Agency, Japan).

Q2

R ICOS' original Graph Neural Network algorithms named IsoGCN (patent granted) thatenables two order of magnitude of speed in computer simulation, thereby providing designers
and engineers in various fields to enjoy far greater freedom in design and engineering
exploration. The IsoGCN AI has been incorporated into automated, generative CAE solution.

Q3

 usiness development, management team building, and governance as aBlead investor in multiple financing rounds.

Highly accurate GNN algorithms catering to various types ofphysical simulations

Simulation toolutilizing GNN
running on a browser

27

UTEC Portfolio Companies

Physical Science & Engineering

Charco Neurotech Ltd
Bringing smiles back to the lives of Parkinson's
Disease Patients
Q1

Multi-award winning entrepreneur Lucy Jung realized the potential of stimulatory
treatments when she designed the "Arc Pen“ which proved effective on patientswith microphilia. Believing in the potential of a non-invasive device that would
treat Parkinson's Disease through the proven mechanisms of cueing and focusedvibrotactile stimulation, Lucy founded the company in June 2019.

Q2

Unprecedented product "CUE" that combines focused vibrotactile stimulation andcueing for the non-invasive treatment of Parkinson's Disease.

Q3

Hands-on support in regulatory approval and commercial expansion of the
Charco Neurotech "CUE" device in Japan, where an aging population is causing asignificant increase in the incidence of Parkinson's Disease.

The Charco "CUE" Device

PD patient with the packaged CUE Device

EnteraSense Limited
Improving patient outcomes through rapid and accurate detection
and monitoring of Upper Gastrointestinal Bleeding (UGIB).
Q1

Realizing the need to solve issues related to UGIB detection (necessity to use
endoscopes, long wait times, significant related costs); Harvard Medical School
Professor of Enterology Professor Chris C Thompson and serial medical device
entrepreneur Donal Devery joined hands to found EnteraSense in Galway, Ireland in
2015.

Q2

• PillSense ability to diagnose UGIB within 15 minutes accurately and non invasively(current endoscopic methods incur wait times of ~27 hours in the US).
• S trong and experienced team who can execute product development andcommercialization.

Q3

Support of collaborations with global optical device companies, electronic medical
device companies based in Japan.
Support of market entry and commercialization in Japan.

EnteraSense's diagnostic devicethe "PillSense"

The EnteraSense teamGaianixx Inc.
Contribute the greatest benefit to humankind with”Multi-functional inter layer™
Q1

A co-founder Mr. Takeshi Kijima has elucidated the mechanism of "Dynamic lattice matching technology"
at Tabata Lab in The University of Tokyo and optimized M4 technologies (Material, Method, Machine,
Member) for single crystallization of hetero-epi layers. With active support by UTEC, co-founding
members were recruited and Gaianixx was found.

Q2

Proprietary epitaxial multiple-layer single-crystallization technology with ”Multi-functional inter layer™”,
enabling a business model applicable to various industries due to the crystallization technology suitablefor various types of substrates, crystals, or functional layers.

Q3

UTEC provides comprehensive hands-on support ranging from team building to finance strategy evenat pre-incorporation stage.

Epitaxial multiple-layer single-crystals in
4-6inchLattice image of single crystal

28 U T E C

Questions

Q1

Q2

Q3

OriginStrength

UTEC’s value add

Liminal Insights Inc.
Accelerating the transition to electric mobility bytransforming battery manufacturing with data analytics.
Q1

L iminal was founded in 2016 by top technologists from Princeton University and fellows in the Activate
entrepreneurial fellowship program, partnered with Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory’s Cyclotron Road
Division. Liminal CEO Andrew Hsieh, the co-inventor of the underlying technology, is an Activate Entrepreneurial
Fellow and holds a Ph.D. in Chemical & Materials Engineering from Princeton and B.S. in Chemical and
Biomolecular Engineering from UCLA.

Q2

L iminal’s proprietary technology leverages ultrasound and machine learning analytics for advanced battery
inspection throughout manufacturing stages enabling 100% cell inspection. The non-destructive ultrasonicinspection provides a fast and detailed look inside battery cells, offering a better understanding of their physicalintegrity during the production process.

Q3

UTEC provides Liminal with global perspectives to support business alliances and business development in Asia andJapan in particular, as East Asia remains to be important region for battery technology development and manufacturing.

Cofounders
Shaurjo Biswas, Ph.D. (CTO), Andrew Hsieh, Ph.D. (CEO),
Barry Van Tassell, Ph.D.

Yield Management System

Ubifly Technologies Pvt. Ltd. (ePlane)
Revolutionizing Urban Air Mobility (UAM) by manufacturing eVTOL (electricVertical Takeoff & Landing) aircrafts for Cargo & Passenger Transport
Q1

ePlane was founded in 2019 in Chennai (India) as a spin-off from IIT Madras, one of Asia’s
foremost technical universities. Scientific co-founder Dr. Satya Chakravarthy is a Professor &Head of Aerospace Engineering at IIT-Madras with a PhD from Georgia Institute of Technology.
Dr. Chakravarthy also offered the world’s first electric aircraft course and established The National
Centre for Combustion at IIT-Madras.

Mockup of ePlane’s e200 – 200kg eVTOL aircraftQ2

ePlane is the first company in the world to achieve "Aerodynamic Synergy” - resulting in Super
Circulation around the aircraft wing due to the wing-rotor interaction. The end-goal of thecompany is to build e200 (200kg) aircrafts for passenger & cargo transport, with the potential to
be a market leader of eVTOLs in emerging markets

Q3

UTEC provides the company with global perspectives on product strategy, manufacturing
scale-up, business development and fundraising. In addition, UTEC also supports ePlane’s plans
to collaborate with Japanese manufacturing companies and battery makers

The ePlane team at IIT-Madras

Oxford Quantum Circuits Limited
To put quantum in the hands of humanity to solve theworld’s most challenging problems.
Q1

Q2

Q3

D
 r. Peter Leek, the Research Fellow at University of Oxford who heads the UK's
Superconducting Quantum Computing development at the Leek Lab, developed OQC's core
IP - the Coaxmon - a packaging technology based on a 3D architecture. After obtaining thepatent, Peter Leek founded OQC in June 2017 as a spin-out from the University of Oxford.
OQC’s patented 3D architecture, the Coaxmon, combines unparalleled scalability withworld-class performance. Execution leadership of the management team to become
the fourth company in the world to launch on AWS (Amazon Braket) and the first in theworld to install machines (Toshiko, 32QPU) in data centers: Cyxtera (UK) in September
2022 and Equinix (Tokyo) in February 2023, leading the commercialization of quantum
computing in the NISQ (Noisy Intermediate-Scale Quantum Computer) era.
C ollaborations with academia including the University of Tokyo, hands-on support in OQC’s expansion
into Asia-Pacific, Japan team recruiting, and fundraizing support from Series A to Series B round.

Inside the dilution refrigerator of OQC'squantum computing hardware

A stylized rendering of
OQC's unique 3Darchitecture, theCoaxmon.

29

Questions

UTEC Portfolio Companies

Physical Science & Engineering

Q1

Q2

Q3

OriginStrength

UTEC’s value add

TriOrb Inc.
Aims to improve productivity by enabling collaborative transportwith the industry's first omnidirectional movement platform
Q1

Q2

Q3

C EO Shuichi Ishida has been engaged in research and development of ball-driven omnidirectional movement mechanisms
since 2008 when he was a student at Kyushu Institute of Technology. After receiving his Ph.D., he joined the National Instituteof Advanced Industrial Science and Technology (AIST) and spent 10 years conducting joint research with private companies tosolve problems at manufacturing sites. He developed TriOrb BASE based on the research results of a ball-driven omnidirectional
movement mechanism. He founded the company in February 2023 with the support from the SCORE and START programs of
the Japan Science and Technology Agency (JST) and technology transfer from Kyushu Institute of Technology.
 The challenges of industrial application of omnidirectional movement platforms, which have long been limited to academic research,
have been addressed from a hardware-mechanical perspective. Difficulties in achieving precise movement in the intended direction,
insufficient adaptation to floor level differences, and limitations in the transport capacity of heavy objects have been resolved.
Compared to conventional omnidirectional movement mechanisms, the solution offers a combination of high disturbance runningcapability, high precision movement control, and both compact size and high load capacity for the platform.
A s the lead investor, UTEC provides support in patent license negotiations, business development and corporate management.

UTEC
Portfolio
Companies
30 U T E C

TriOrb BASE Concept Model

Self-developed
Autonomous Mobility Software

The image of longobject transportation based on the
robots collaboration

MEMO

31

UTEC Portfolio Companies

Fund

Deep30 Limited Partnership
Updating the future together through the unlimited possibilities of deep learning
Q1

Since coordination with hardware is so important for AI technologies, early-stage
investment necessitates a higher risk than conventional investment for internet
businesses. To enable this, an investor that can see the potential of realizing AI
technologies, such as deep learning, is required.

Q2

While acting as a bridge for industry-academia partnerships, Deep30 provides
technological advice for societal implementation and back office support. Itestablishes integrated support structure that provides research development in thefield of AI and, training for engineers.

Q3

Guidance related to knowledge of business, legal, and financial affairs. required toestablish and operate a VC fund. Introduction of potential customers and allies tothe invested companies and follow-up funding.

BLUME VENTURES-FUND III
Blume Ventures GIFT TRUST IV
Blume is India’s largest homegrown and most active tech-focused
early-stage VC firm with an AUM of over $500M.
Q1

F ounded in 2010 by Karthik Reddy and Sanjay Nath, Blume raised its first fund of $22M in 2011, which
was supplemented with an Opportunity Fund. It subsequently raised a $60M Fund II in 2015, a $41M
Fund IIA Opportunity Fund, a $102M Fund III in 2018 and approximately $300M Fund IV in 2021.

Q2

Blume has spurred the emergence of tech startup ecosystem in India by investing in
GreyOrange, Tricog, Locus, Carbon Clean Solutions, and many more innovation-heavy startups.
Blume is also the pioneer of Platform approach in India with advisory services, hiring and crossborder support,etc. Some of the key exits from Blume’s portfolio include Taxiforsure (acquired
by Olacabs), Zipdial (acquired by Twitter), Minjar (acquired by Nutanix) and E2E (partial exit
with IPO listing on NSE Emerge).

Q3

 TEC is Blume’s largest LP from Japan and has partnered with Blume to launch an initiativeU
called BUDHA (Blume UTEC Deep-tecH Accelerator) to invest in Indian startups working on
deep science and technology, and empower them to emerge as winners in global markets

UTEC
Portfolio
Companies
32 U T E C

Blume Day 2020

Partnering with Exceptional Founders

Questions

Q1

Q2

Q3

OriginStrength

UTEC’s value add

Amadeus V Technology Fund LP
A leading deep tech venture capital fund in the UK and Europe
Q1

Founded in 1997 by Anne Glover and Hermann Hauser to support the growth of British andEuropean technology ventures into the world stage.

Q2

The management team consists of CEO Anne Glover and Dr. Hermann Hauser FRS, alongwith partners with a proven track record of investing in the IT, Life Science and Engineering
fields. Amadeus Capital Partners has a strong relationship with leading universities in the
UK and EU such as Cambridge and Oxford as well as a wide network of venture capitals andcorporates.

Q3

UTEC aims to build a strong partnership with Amadeus, one of the largest deep tech VCs
in Europe through investments and supporting activities together towards start-ups whichhave a synergy to Japan. UTEC and Amadeus Capital Partners will work together in the“AUGMENT” – Amadeus UTEC Global Market Expansion of Novel Technologies partnership toaccelerate the globalization of technological and scientific start-ups from the UK, Europe, andJapan through the respective academic and industrial network, deep knowledge of cuttingedge science and technology, and access to local markets.

33

Alumni

Alumni of UTEC in the Front Lines, Home and Abroad

June 2023 Listed on TSE Growth

A kihiko I shikawa
Aidemy, Inc. FounderSupport for the internalization of
DX organizations and theoperation of AI systems

Akihiko Ishikawa founded Aidemy Inc. while enrolled at the University of Tokyo's Faculty of Engineeringin 2014. Inspired by his own research and the challenges he faced in AI programming, in December
2017, he launched "Aidemy," a platform designed to train artificial intelligence engineers (datascientists proficient in AI), initiating his business. Aidemy provides services that enable corporations
and individuals to swiftly integrate cutting-edge technologies, including AI, into their business
operations. The company focuses on supporting the internalization of AI and DX, offering training and project collaboration to help clients
foster talent and promote AI utilization and digital transformation within their organizations. Recently, Aidemy has been expanding into theareas of GX/SX and materials informatics. Aidemy went public on the Tokyo Stock Exchange Growth Market in June 2023.

February 2023 Acquired by Moderna, Inc.

Seiji Hirasaki

OriCiro Genomics, Inc. Founder

Efficient synthesis of genomesized DNA from DNA fragments

Seiji Hirasaki, after working at Nihon Keizai Shimbun and serving as adirector at AnGes, a company involved in gene therapy development, co-founded OriCiro Genomics, Inc.
in order to commercialize the groundbreaking technology invented by Professor Masayuki Suetsugu of
Rikkyo University, which enables the linking and amplification of DNA without the use of cells. He quickly
recognized the potential of this technology to meet industry needs, particularly in DNA manufacturing for
vaccine raw materials. He has successfully led the company from its inception through to its growth phase.

Nasir Kato Bashiruddin
OriCiro Genomics, Inc. CEO (at the time)

Nasir Kato Bashiruddin, raised in Seattle and a graduate of the University of Washington, obtained his PhD
in Organic Chemistry from the University of Tokyo. He built a solid track record as the Director of Advanced
Development at the drug discovery support company PeptiDream, before joining OriCiro Genomics in
2021. Leveraging his extensive experience in pharmaceutical collaborations, he refocused the company’sbusiness model on the development and manufacturing of therapeutic drugs, and led the team at OriCiro
Genomics to an M&A with Moderna, Inc.

December 2022 Listed on TSE Growth

Yasuhiro Kuda
ELEMENTS, Inc. Founder

High-accuracy image matchingdeveloped in an eKYC biometricauthentication cloudYasuhiro Kuda, a graduate of Keio University's Faculty of Law specializing instatistical mathematics, began developing forensic statistical appraisal
techniques and computer visioning technologies. In December 2013, hefounded ELEMENTS, Inc. The company offers large-scale data-driven personal authentication andoptimization solutions as BaaS (Backend as a Service) to service providers across various industries,
including the online identity verification service "LIQUID eKYC" and the personal authentication service"LIQUID Auth." ELEMENTS went public on the Tokyo Stock Exchange Growth Market in December 2022.

34 U T E C

June 2022 Listed on TSE Growth

I wao Y oshino

Microwave Chemical Co., Ltd. FounderWorld's first commercial-scale
microwave chemical plant(3200 t/yr)

Iwao Yoshino (formerly at Mitsui) founded Microwave Chemical Co., Ltd.
with CSO Tsukahara (formerly associate professor at Osaka University) who
had always aspired to expand innovative technology to the world fromJapan. Their strong drive to apply his technology to form a Japanese startup that contributes to theenvironment through efficient chemical processes led to the co-founding of Microwave Chemical in 2007.
Microwave Chemical’s stellar team comprises various experts such as researchers and engineers in thefields of chemistry and physics. This team has developed a proprietary platform utilizing microwave
technology. Microwave Chemical went public on Tokyo Stock Exchange in June 2022.

May 2022 Acquired by Eurofins Scientific SE

Ryuji Suzuki

Repertoire Genesis Inc. FounderDevelopment of immunotherapy
using repertoire analysis

Dr. Ryuji Suzuki received M.D. from Tohoku University in 1986 and studied at the University of Texas MD
Anderson Cancer Institute in 1989. He was convinced that accurate repertoire analysis on immunity cell
receptors (TCR / BCR) with his original unbiased gene amplification technology is essential for thedevelopment of tumor immunology. After returning to Japan, he joined a mega pharma and a national research institute, and through his researchbuilt a network of doctors and specialists in various disease areas. Hence, he founded Repertoire Genesis with the mission of “Curing The Incurable” in
2014. Repertoire Genesis supports for the development of new diagnostic methods / therapies based on immunodiversity analysis to challenge
unsolved medical needs. M&A by Eurofins Scientific SE was completed in May 2022, giving the company a foothold to enter the global market.
* Dr. Ryuji Suzuki, former Chairman of the Board of Directors at Repertoire Genesis Inc., passed away in April 2024. We remember him fondly and our prayers remain with Dr. Suzuki and his family.

December 2021 Listed on TSE Mothers*
Temperament and competency AI
measurement tool for
corporations,
GROW360
Institution for a Global Society Corporation Founder

Masahiro Fukuhara

Masahiro Fukuhara (formerly at MUFG and Managing Director at asset
management firm Barclays Global Investors (BGI) founded Institution for a
Global Society(IGS) in 2010 with the vision of “Inspiring self actualization
through assessment and education”. The IGS team comprises experts inmachine learning and NLP. Leveraging on their expertise, they make use of big data derived fromelementary school students to senior citizens to assess and educate HR. They provide such services to awide range of customers, from international organizations, governments, schools to large corporations.
IGS went public on Tokyo Stock Exchange in December 2021.

December 2021 Listed on TSE Mothers*

Tomohito Ihara
Green Earth Institute Co., Ltd. CEO

Using Coryneform bacteria to
produce biofuels and green
chemicals.

Tomohito Ihara joined Green Earth Institute(GEI) and has been the CEO
since 2013 after working for METI and Recruit. GEI can produce bio-fuels
and green chemicals from non-edible biomass such as stems, leaves, anddebris, whereas traditional fermentation process requires biomass. Furthermore, by leveraging a wide
range of domestic and overseas networks that have been created through their business activities so far,
GEI aims to establish a new platform for the bio-refinery industry. GEI went public on Tokyo Stock
Exchange in December 2021.

35

Alumni

Alumni of UTEC in the Front Lines, Home and Abroad* Listed on TSE Growth Market due to market reclassification

December 2021 Listed on TSE Mothers*

Ryota Hayashi

Nikkei CPI Now

Finatext Holdings Ltd. Founder

Ryota Hayashi (formerly at Deutsche Bank London and GCI AssetManagement) founded Finatext (currently Finatext Holdings) in 2013.
Based on deep knowledge and experience in finance, Finatext has thetechnological ability to rapidly analyze financial information and develop
services in a user-friendly UI/UX. Finatext uses economic statistical analysis technology based on big
data developed by Japan’s top professionals working at the forefront of statistics and economics
research at the Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications, and the Bank of Japan. Finatext went
public on Tokyo Stock Exchange in December 2021.

December 2021 Listed on TSE Mothers*

Satoshi Erdos KatoJDSC Co., Ltd. Founder

Optimize delivery
route by predicting
home absence

Satoshi Erdos Kato founded the Japan Data Science Consortium(currently JDSC) in 2013 and became its representative afterworking for McKinsey & Company and a US-based manufacturer.
JDSC is capable of bridging the company's practical business and the knowledge of academia, byleveraging knowledge relating to IoT/data utilization from Koshizuka Laboratory at The University ofTokyo's III/GSII, and that relating to AI/Blockchain from Tanaka Laboratory at the University of Tokyo's
Department of Systems Innovation. JDSC went public on Tokyo Stock Exchange in December 2021.

December 2020 Acquired by Cox Automotive Inc

Radu B. Rusu
Fyusion, Inc Founder

Smooth Fyuse 360° image
rotation with image
stabilization

A graduate of the Technical University of Munich in Computer Science, Radu
is a world leader in 3D image recognition technology. While working at
Willow Garage Inc, Radu founded the world's largest open-source projectfor 3D image and point butt processing: "Point Cloud Library". Then in 2013, Radu founded Fyusion, Inc. withthe vision of applying 3D image technology based on intelligent robotics to contribute to the real world.
Fyusion has been successful in obtaining many patents on their novel technologies and was acquired by Cox
Automotive, Inc. in 2020. Presently, Fyusion's 3D spatial photograph application technologies contribute to thenumerous business segments of Cox Automotive.

December 2020 Listed on Nasdaq

Kevin J. Knopp
908 Devices Inc FounderM908 : World's First
HandheldMass Spectrometer.

Dr. Kevin is a co-founder and CEO of 908 Devices Inc. Kevin co-founded
Ahura Scientific in 2002, and was Senior Vice President overseeing
Operations, R&D and Safety and Security Sales through Ahura’s acquisition
by Thermo Fisher Scientific in 2010, where he continued as Vice-president and Site Leader of the
Portable Optical Analysis division. An experienced entrepreneur, Kevin co-founded 908 Devices Inc. in2012 to disrupt chemical and biomolecular analysis by handheld and desktop mass spec devices. Kevintook 908 Devices public on the NASDAQ in December 2020.

36 U T E CDecember 2019 Listed on TSE Mothers*

T aku T oguchi
AI inside Inc. FounderDX Suite UITaku Toguchi started investigating the business potential of Artificial
Intelligence in 2004. After founding a few startups that weresuccessfully acquired, he started AI inside Inc. in 2015 to solve theproblem of productivity in aging societies using an AI platform. With a relentless focus on customer
experience and leveraging on Taku's own library of technology patents, AI inside's DX Suite, an AI
platform with applications like AI-OCR, has become the top selling SaaS product in Japan. AI inside went
public on Tokyo Stock Exchange in December 2019.

February 2019 Implemented MBO (Management Buyout)

Issei Takino
MUJIN, Inc. Founder

The world’s first fully automatic
warehouse run by robots of JD.com

Issei Takino established Mujin with the world-famous robot engineering expert
Dr. Rosen. Before that, Issei graduated from Soka University of America andworked for the famous Warren Buffet owned ISCAR Co. Ltd, the world’s mostprofitable manufacturing company. He has a shining record of achievements,
including many awards for his technical solution sales activities proposing manufacturing processes. His
experience at competitive production sites in Japan has given him a wide range of knowledge, pragmatismand drive to make great strides in the robot venture industry, which is considered to be particularly difficult
to commercialize. February 2019 Implemented MBO (Management Buyout).

December 2018 Listed on TSE Mothers*

Hiroaki OhtaACSL Ltd. CEO (at the time)

Fully made in Japan platform
designed for all industrial
applications

Hiroaki Ohta is an assistant professor in the Department of Aeronautics and Astronautics at theGraduate School of Engineering, Kyoto University, and also a research scientist of Professor
Shuji Nakamura’s research group at the University of California, Santa Barbara. After working for
McKinsey & Company, he joined ACSL as a COO in 2016 and became the President of ACSL since 2018. With “Liberating Humanity
through Technology” as his mission, he developed industrial automation technologies and IoT systems through the use of industrial
drones. They were enabled by the company’s core technology which was developed with the vision “think for themselves and fly.” He has
implemented various projects, including utilization of drones in the logistics industry, inspections of tunnels, water pipes, and inside ofships, as well as disaster-stricken areas at the request of Japan’s Cabinet Office. ACSL was listed on the TSE Mothers* in December, 2018.

September 2017 Acquired by O LUXE HOLDINGS LIMITED

Hiroyasu Koma
GLM, Co., Ltd Founder

Tommykaira ZZ

Hiroyasu Koma established Koma Enterprise in 2000, developing Business Process
Outsourcing Operations to electronics appliance manufacturers in and out of the country.
He helped the business reach annual sales of 2 billion yen. In 2010, he founded GLM Co.,
Ltd. (formerly known as Green Lord Motors) from the parent company “Kyoto Electric Car Project” at Kyoto University. In 2014 , thecompany received government safety certification for its electric sports car, which was the first to be mass-produced by a venturecompany. The mass production of “Tommykaira ZZ” began in 2015. In 2016, GLM announced its next-generation vehicle, “GLM
G4.” In September, 2017, the company formed a capital alliance with O Luxe Holdings, a company listed on the Hong Kong Stock
Exchange, to expand its business globally to European and Middle Eastern countries, as well as China.
37

Alumni

Alumni of UTEC in the Front Lines, Home and Abroad* Listed on TSE Growth Market due to market reclassification** Listed on TSE Prime Market due to market reclassification

May 2015 Acquired by Baidu Japan Inc.

Tao Cheng
popIn Inc. Foundera"Smart Bath Mat" that allows you tomeasure your weight unconsciously

After graduating from the Tokyo Institute of Technology, Tao Cheng began his
master’s degree at the Graduate School of Information Science and Technology
at the University of Tokyo. In 2008 , while he was still pursuing a master’s degree,
he established popIn to commercialize his invention. In 2014 , he released “READ,” a new evaluation index forInternet contents. Now he founded his second company, issin Inc, which again received investment from
UTEC. issin develops health care products and services integrated into daily life. In 2022, issin will begin sellinga "smart bath mat" that allows users to measure their weight unconsciously.

June 2013 Listed on TSE Mothers
December 2015 Listed on TSE 1st section**

Kiichi Kubota
PeptiDream Inc. Founder

Synthesis of non-standard
peptides and targets

Kiichi Kubota joined Nissan Motor Co., Ltd., then SRL, Inc. (formerly known as Special
Reference Laboratory), and served as the president at JGS Corporation. In 2006, heestablished PeptiDream Inc. based on the Flexizyme technology developed by professor Hiroaki Suga at the University ofTokyo. After leading the company as its CEO, he became the Chairman of PeptiDream in 2017. Their proprietary Peptide
Discovery Platform System (PDPS) enables them to produce numerous highly diverse non-standard peptides and evaluatethem, which in turn allows them to develop new therapeutics by using highly potent hit candidates and select leadcompounds with ease. The company executed its IPO on the Tokyo Stock Exchange Mothers in 2013 and was listed on thefirst section of the Tokyo Stock Exchange in 2015.** The company was awarded “The 2nd Nippon Venture Award.”

September 2011 Acquired by mixi, Inc

Yusuke Asakura
Naked Technology, Inc Founder

At the time of the foundation

Yusuke Asakura is originally from Nishinomiya City, Hyogo Prefecture. Afterattending a training institution for horseracing jockeys and training racehorses,
he graduated from The University of Tokyo Faculty of Law, and subsequently joined McKinsey & Company. He
later returned to Naked Technology, the company he established, while he was at The University of Tokyo, andserved as the President & CEO. After selling Naked Technology to mixi, he joined mixi and became its President &CEO. He resigned after successfully improving business performance and served as a visiting scholar at Stanford
University. He is now serving as a visiting scholar at National Graduate Institute for Policy Studies. He is also an
Outside director for RAKSUL INC. and SEPTENI HOLDINGS CO.,LTD., and a Partner at Tokyo Founders Fund.

July 2011 Listed on TSE Mothers*

Masaki Hiraga
Morpho, Inc. FounderVideo stabilization
technology

In 1997, Masaki Hiraga graduated from The University of Tokyo’s Department ofInformation Science. In 2002 , he completed his doctoral course in the samedepartment. In 2004, he founded Morpho, Inc., a company that conducts R&D ofimage enhancement technology and conducts product development using such technology, and assumed the position of
President. He founded the company based on the belief that computer science is a practical subject, aspiring to apply
cutting-edge research to solve the needs of the society. Currently, the company provides various image enhancement
softwares to global smart phone manufacturers and is extending its businesses to fields of dashboard cameras, security andsurveillance cameras, and network services. The company was listed on Tokyo Stock Exchange Mothers in July, 2011.*
38 U T E C

August 2010 M&A with Yahoo Japan Corporation

G en M iyazawa

Cirius Technologies Inc. Founder

A system in which advertisements
are displayed to users
who are in close proximity to areas
specified by advertisers

After graduating from the University of Tokyo in 2004, Gen Miyazawa foundedCirius Technologies and took the position of Representative Director. Upon
receiving investment from UTEC in 2005, he implemented mobile SEO
projects and advertising distribution projects linked to location information for mobile devices. In August 2010 ,Yahoo Japan acquired Cirius Technologies. After being appointed as Corporate Officer (the youngest) & General
Manager of Search Service Company in April 2014, General Manager of Media Company in April 2015, he wasappointed as Managing Corporate Officer and General Manager of Media Company at Yahoo Japan in April
2018. In October 2020, he was appointed as Director, Head of Corporate Group.

UTEC
Portfolio
Companies
39

Team

Support from professionals with diverse backgrounds

Investment Professional

Tommy
Goji

Atsushi
Usami

Tomotaka Goji

Noriaki Sakamoto

Atsushi Usami

Supervises fund management and startup
investments

IT/AI, Healthcare, Finance

Life Science & Healthcare

Managing Partner
CEO and President

●

●

●

Tomotaka (“Tommy”) Goji is the Co-founder,
Managing Partner, CEO, President & Representative
Director of The University of Tokyo Edge CapitalPartners Co. Ltd. (known as “UTEC”), and Chairmanof Japan Venture Capital Association (JVCA).
Since the inception of The University of Tokyo
Edge Capital Co. Ltd. in April 2004, he has raised
and managed five funds totaling approximately
JPY 85 billion (USD 600 million), built the team,and guided investments, value-up and exits of
UTEC portfolio companies. 20 of UTEC’s portfolio
companies were acquired and 20 went public.
T hese UTEC funds are established on thepremise of the Japanese law called "The
Limited Partnership Act for Investment"that he authored to enact in 1998 at the
Ministry of International Trade and Industry(MITI, now known as METI: the Ministry of
Economy, Trade and Industry) and became thefoundation for Japanese VC funds thereafter.
He left the government to implement thelaw in technology seed investments byinitiating UTEC, after engaging in legislation
at the Agency for Cultural Affairs and the
Financial Services Agency.
 oji has performed research in data scienceG
to develop a model to indentify startup
readiness from big data such as researchers'
papers, and received Ph.D. in Engineeringfrom the University of Tokyo.
At Japan Venture Capital Association, he
was Executive Director since July 2015, Vice
Chairman since July 2022, and Chairman
since July 2023.

Tommy cofounded UTEC in April
2004, after his duties in the Japanese
government since April 1996, at METI,
the Cultural Agency and the Financial
Services Agency. He is currently
Chairman of the Japan Venture Capital
Association. Tommy graduated fromthe University of Tokyo’s Faculty of Law,earned his MBA at Stanford University,and received his Ph.D. in data scienceat the University of Tokyo’s School ofEngineering.

40 U T E C

Nori
Sakamoto

Partner/Managing Director
COO and Board Director

●

●

●

 t METI, Nori Sakamoto wasAengaged in developing the acts for
SME finance and home appliancerecycling. After leaving METI,
he joined his family business inapparel logistics, establishing andorganizing businesses.
 t McKinsey & Company, he workedA
on projects for pharma, medical
devices, auto, high-tech, consumer
goods and retail companies inJapan, Southeast Asia, and Europe.
 ori served as a board member
N
auditor in ACSL (listed in the TSE
Mothers in December 2018) and
Repertoire Genesis (acquired by
Eurofins Scientific SE), and a board
member in Neural Pocket (listed
in the TSE Mothers in August2020). JDSC Co., Ltd.(listed in the
TSE Mothers in December 2021),
Finatext Holdings Ltd.(listed in the
TSE Mothers in December 2021),
Institution for a Global Society
Corporation(listed in the TSE
Mothers in December 2021) and
ELEMENTS, Inc.(listed in the TSE
Mothers in December 2022).

Noriaki graduated from the Faculty of
Economy of the University of Tokyo andentered METI.
He left METI in 2008 and was appointed
vice president of a logistics company.
He then earned an MBA from Columbia
University.
He was an engagement manager at
McKinsey & Company and then joined
UTEC in August 2014.
He is currently General Manager ofPlanning Department of Japan Venture
Capital Association (JVCA).

Partner & Board Director

●

●

●

●

●

●

A tsushi Usami focuses on seed/early-stage
life science investments.
 e currently serves on the boards ofH
EditForce Inc., Bugworks Research inc.,
bitBiome Inc., Celaid Therapeutics Inc.,PURMX Therapeutics Co., Ltd., United
Immunity, Co., Ltd., RegCell Co., Ltd. andothers.
 e led investments of Repertoire Genesis
H
Inc. (Acquired by Eurofins Scientific SE)
and OriCiro Genomics, Inc.(Acquired byModerna, Inc.).
 e provides support for Life Science
H
Innovation Network Japan (LINK-J).
B efore joining UTEC, he worked as a
strategy consultant at Mitsubishi ResearchInstitute (MRI), serving pharmaceutical,
medical device and other manufacturing
companies across a range of areas
including mid-to-long term management
planning and new business development.
In recognition of his contributions, he
was awarded the Encouragement Award
for Venture Capitalists at the 23rd Japan
Venture Awards in 2023.

Atsushi Usami studied pharmacology
and neuroscience. He received a Ph.D.
in pharmaceutical sciences from the
University of Tokyo and is a pharmacist.
He worked as a consultant at MRI
before joining UTEC in October 2013.

Team

Keisuke
Ide

Hiroaki
Kobayashi

Kiran
MysoreKeisuke Ide

Hiroaki Kobayashi

Kiran Mysore

Physical Science & Engineering, IT

Life Science & Healthcare

AI/IT, Healthcare, Physical Sciences

Partner

●

●

●

●

 eis Ide focuses on deep techK
investments in physical scienceand IT, especially those fromacademia. He spent 15 years in
the US, half of which in Silicon
Valley, as an engineer andmanagement consultant.
 e sits on boards of US andH
Japanese startup companies suchas Liminal Insights (US), Nelumbo(US), RICOS (Japan) and Algalbio(Japan).
 e was the lead investor andH
served as board director atstartups such as AI inside (IPOon TSE), GLM Inc. (M&A by HKSE
listed company), IID (IPO on TSE),
and played an instrumental rolefor Phyzios' M&A exit to GoogleInc.
 e was awarded Forbes Japan
H
Midas List (2017, 2020), Japan
Venture Award (2021).

He started his career in Silicon Valley
as an engineer at KLA in San Jose, CA.
He then joined The McKenna Group asa consultant in technology marketing.
After returning to Tokyo, he served as adirector in a startup company designing
ASICs, before joining Globis CapitalPartners as a venture capitalist.
He has a BS (Tau Beta Pi) in Systems
Engineering from the Universityof Virginia, and MS Honors inManagement Science and Engineeringfrom Stanford University.

Principal

●

●

●

●

 iroaki Kobayashi joined UTEC in
H
August 2019 and focuses on seed/
early investments in Healthcare,
MedTech, IT, Life Science, etc. as aprincipal.

Principal●

 e currently serves as a boardH
member at TXP Medical, Metcela,
Medcom, Enterasense, etc.
 rior to UTEC, he worked in theP
medical device industry both in astart-up and in MNC, There he led
diverse activities including alliances
in manufacturing, development
and distribution, industryacademia collaborations, KOL
management, physician training
and product marketing.

● e is an emergency medicine andHintensive care physician by training
and worked 5+ years in multiple
academic medical centers.
●

Prior to joining UTEC, Hiroaki Kobayashi
worked for JOMDD, a medical device
start-up and a multinational medical devicecompany.
Prior to the medical device industry,
he worked for the University of Tokyo
Hospital and Hitachi General Hospital as an
emergency and intensive care physician.
Hiroaki Kobayashi graduated from the
University of Tokyo School of Medicine(M.D.) and earned M.B.A from the Ross
School of Business at the University ofMichigan as a Fulbright Scholar.

K iran is an AI-researcher-turned-VC. He
joined UTEC in January 2018 and focuseson seed/early investments in IT and AI,
including applications of AI in Healthcare
and Physical Sciences. He currently has
Board engagements (Director or Observer)in Eureka Robotics, Peach Cars, Tricog
Health, Bugworks Research, OPALai,
Obviously AI, SWAT Mobility, Liminal
Insights, and Blume Ventures. He wasformerly a Board Member of Agara (PMLabs) which was acquired by Coinbase in
October 2021.
B efore joining UTEC, Kiran was the headof India/SEA Operations at Deloitte
Tohmatsu Venture Support (DTVS) Japan.
He supported over 50 deep-tech Asianstartups by connecting them with Japanese
corporations, and also worked closelywith METI Japan, to lead CEATEC IoT
Acceleration for Asian startups. Prior tothat, he was an AI researcher at UTokyoand also co-founded a student-led social
enterprise named 'Kriya'.
K iran has been selected as a Young Global
Leader by Stanford ASES (USA), St. Gallen
Symposium (Switzerland) and Yenching
Academy (China). In 2020, Kiran wasfeatured in the prestigious FORBES Asia
30 Under 30 list in the Finance & Venture
Capital category.

Kiran led India/SEA Operations at Deloitte
Tohmatsu Venture Support (DTVS) Japanand co-founded a social-enterprise named‘Kriya’. He started his career in 2013 asa Software Engineer handling businessanalytics at Cleartrip India, a fast-growing
online travel startup.
Kiran graduated with a Master's inTechnology Management from the
University of Tokyo in 2016. At UTokyo,
his specialization was Deep Learningand his research paper was publishedin PICMET 2017. He was a recipient of afull-scholarship from the UTokyo School ofEngineering (SEUT).
41

Team
Investment Professional

Lenny
Chin

Azusa
Shiohara

Lenny (Kayo) Chin

Atsushi Shimada

Azusa Shiohara

IT, Physical Science & Engineering

Life Science & Healthcare

Life Science & Healthcare

Principal

●

●

●

●

L enny (Kayo) Chin joined UTEC
in July 2021 and focuses oninvestments in seed / early-stage
startups in the fields of AI, quantum
computing, and other technologies
with the potential to create
disruptive innovation.
 e currently serves on the boards
Hof Oxford Quantum Circuits,
Quanmatic, obniz, RICOS, forest
and issin Holdings.
 reviously, he worked at LenovoP
and PwC Advisory LLC in Tokyo,
Japan. Leading strategic planningand operations at Lenovo Japan, hemanaged the consumer business’
P&L for NEC—Japan’s marketleading PC brand.
 s a turnaround advisor at
A
PwC Advisory LLC, he provided
restructuring / turnaround advisory
to 12+ global Japanese companies
operating in financially distressed
environments.

Before joining UTEC in 2021, Lenny (Kayo)Chin was a Senior Manager at Lenovo
Japan and a turnaround advisor at PwC
Advisory LLC.
He earned a BS in Mathematics from theCollege of Creative Studies at UC Santa
Barbara and an MBA from UCLA Anderson
School of Management.

42 U T E C

AtsushiShimadaPrincipal

●

●

●

●

A tsushi Shimada focuses on identifying
and evaluating new life sciences
technologies and also provides operating
assistance including BDL and IP to earlystage portfolio companies. He joined
UTEC in 2018 after working for Bayer
Pharmaceuticals Japan.

Principal●●●

A tsushi has more than 20 years experiencesin business development and licensing in
the pharmaceutical industry with diverse
experiences in intellectual property
work as a Patent Attorney. As a businessdevelopment executive, he has lead
triple-digit-value deals locally and globally
managing multi-disciplinary teams.
 e worked for Takeda Pharmaceuticals
H
USA and Japan as a director and Bayer
Pharmaceuticals Japan where he led in/out
licensing, strategic pipeline development,
and alliance management work. He also
engaged in the M&A deals with Amgen
Japan KK and Nycomed at Takeda Japan.

● zusa joined UTEC in September
A
2021.
S he focuses on seed/early-stage
biotech/healthcare investments.
 rior to joining UTEC, she workedP
as a manager of the biotech/healthcare team at Arthur D Little,
a global management consulting
firm. At Arthur D Little, she hada particular focus on cuttingedge biotechnology-enabledbusinesses, supporting her clientswith new business development,
R&D and other management
issues.
S he holds an MBA from London
Business School and an MSc in
Pharmaceutical Sciences from the
University of Tokyo.

 e was awarded great contributor toHstart-up ecosystem from Japan Patent
Office.

Atsushi started his career in a IP Law Firm
and then joined Takeda Pharmaceuticalcompany Japan where he spent three
years in the international HQ of Takeda
Pharmaceutical International in Illinois
USA. He joined UTEC in 2018 afterworking for Bayer Pharmaceuticals Japan.
He graduated from Osaka University(Engineering) and IE business school(Madrid, Spain) and is a registered Patent
Attorney.

Azusa has experience as a management
consultant at Arthur D Little, a global
management consulting firm.
Azusa holds an MBA from London
Business School and a BA and MSc
in Pharmaceutical Sciences from the
University of Tokyo.

Team

HyungKyu
Shin

Hiroki
Toda

HyungKyu Shin

Hiroki Toda

IT/AI, Life Science & Healthcare, FinancePhysical Science & Engineering

Associate

●

●

●

●

 yungKyu joined UTEC in DecemberH2022.
 efore joining UTEC, HyungKyu
B
worked at the investment banking
division of Mitsubishi UFJ Morgan
Stanley/Morgan Stanley (Tokyo,
Hong Kong) for 6 years. He mainly
focused on M&A advisory, financing(Equity, Debt) and other discussions
for further improvement of corporate
valuation.
 fter graduating high school inASouth Korea, HyungKyu moved toJapan as a full scholarship student,
sponsored by MEXT yungKyu holds a BA in Economics
Hfrom the University of Tokyo

HyungKyu graduated the Departmentof Economics from the University ofTokyo
Prior to joining UTEC in December
2022, he worked at the investmentbanking division of Mitsubishi UFJ
Morgan Stanley/Morgan Stanley(Tokyo, Hong Kong)

Associate

●

●

●

●

Hiroki joined UTEC in May 2023.
 e focuses on investment andHbusiness support in the physicalsciences area.
 rior to joining UTEC, he workedP
at Bain & Company, where he wasinvolved in DD for PE funds andcost-cutting projects for consumer
product companies.
 e received a Ph.D. in Chemistry
H(Engineering) from the Universityof Tokyo. His research topic wasoxidation of ammonia, and he is thefirst co-author of a Nature Chemistry
paper on the subject. He received
the Dean's Award (Research) fromthe Graduate School of Engineering.

He received a Ph.D. in Chemistry(Engineering) from the University ofTokyo.
Dean's Award of the Graduate Schoolof Engineering (Research)
Research Fellow of the Japan Society for
the Promotion of Science (DC2)
He joined UTEC in May 2023 afterworking at Bain & Company

43

Team
Platform

TakashiMiyahara

PR

Maiko
IinumaMadokaNoma

Takashi Miyahara

Maiko Iinuma

Madoka Noma

Platform, Value-add

Human Resources

PR and Community

Platform Director and Principal

●

●

●

●

Joined UTEC in 2022.
 s the Platform Director, overseesA
the Venture Partner and HR
teams that deliver Value Add toportfolio companies, supporting
investments hands-on frommultiple perspectives including
business, finance, HR, intellectual
property, and operations.

HR Manager

●

●

●

 dditionally, as an Investment
A
Principal, serves as an external
director for Datafluct andAdacotech, and as an auditor for
ONIGO.
 rior to joining UTEC, led the B2BPSaaS business as an executive
officer at Money Forward,
contributing to its IPO, and held
business leadership positions
at Facebook (now Meta) andAmazon.

After graduating from Hokkaido University,
joined Itochu Corporation. Worked in Food
Department and served in Europe before
leading several PMIs at IBM Business
Consulting Services (now IBM Japan). As
the head of New Business Development
at GREE, then established the B2B SaaS
business at Money Forward and contributed
to its IPO as an executive officer. At
Facebook (now Meta), responsible for new
business in Japan, and at Amazon, engaged
as the head of the consumer electronics andoffice supplies seller service.

44 U T E CHR● aiko joined UTEC in September
M
2021.
S he is in charge of supporting
holistic HR activities includingorganization development,
recruiting of management talents
mainly for IT portfolios.
 fter working as a system engineerAand software marketing manager
at IBM, Maiko joined an executive
search firm, where she engaged
in leadership management for
both Japanese and multinational
companies.
 reviously, Maiko was working
Pfor an IT start-up. She joined as
the first person in the back office,eventually becoming a recruiting
manager for both business andengineer positions.

Maiko started her career at IBM as asystem engineer and software marketing
manager and then joined Spencer Stuart
as an associate for tech and consumer
goods. Maiko was the first HR manager
at tech start-up company before joining
UTEC in September 2021.
Maiko holds a BA from the Faculty of
Literature at Keio University.

Platform Associate

●

●

●

Joined UTEC in 2021 as an intern andfocuses mainly on PR for UTEC andsupports for portfolio companies.
She became a Platform Associatesince 2023.
 rior to joining UTEC, shePconducted joint research with amajor chemical manufacturer in thefield of regenerative medicine at
the University of Tokyo's Graduate
School of Engineering, utilizing her
expertise in chemical engineering.
S he received the Dean's Award of
the Faculty of Engineering of the
University of Tokyo (Gold Award).

Graduated from the University of Tokyo
with a Bachelor's degree in Engineeringand a Master's degree in Engineeringfrom the same university. Utilizing her
expertise in chemical engineering, she
conducted joint research in the fieldof regenerative medicine with a major
chemical manufacturer. She received
the Dean's Award (Gold Prize) from the
Graduate School of Engineering, The
University of Tokyo. Licensed handler ofPoisonous and Deleterious Substances.

HR

HR

KiyomiTominaga

HirofumiOki

Kiyomi Tominaga

Hirofumi Oki

Platform/HR

Human Resources, Executive Talent

HR Assistant

●

●

●

Joined UTEC in June 2023. Kiyomi
is in charge of assisting with HR
support for our portfolio companies.

HR Specialist● reviously, Kiyomi worked at an AI
Pstartup, where she was in charge oflabor administration and support
desk for foreign employees in the
HRGA department.
 rior to that, she worked as aPteacher and an HR coordinator at
a Japanese language instructor
dispatch company, and in HR at aninternational apparel company.

●

After 8 years of experiene as a Japanese
instructor and HR coordinator at aJapanese instructor dispatch company,
worked as a HRGA at an American
apparel company and an AI startup.
Joined UTEC in June 2023 after a
temporary contract with UTEC in 2022.
Graduated from Beijing Language andCulture University in China.

 e joined UTEC in 2018. As a Senior Manager,H
he spearheaded the establishment andmanagement of the HR, Executive Talent Team
responsible for forming executive teams fordomestic and international portfolio company.
From 2023, he assumed the role of VenturePartner, focusing on supporting investment
targets from the U.S. and sourcing executive
talent internationally. Over five years heproduced more than 150 executive talents,
including CEOs and co-founders, and was
involved in several IPOs and M&As, both
domestically and internationally. He provided
extensive support to over 70 portfolio
companies, encompassing organizational
strategy, leadership development, andexecutive talent assessment. He also engaged
in co-founding initiatives, including teambuilding from pre-establishment stages.
Additionally, he spearheaded the creationof UTEC’s unique executive talent pool,“UTEC Startup Opportunity Club,” gathering
executives from the Life Science, PhysicalScience, and IT sectors.
In his previous role, he was responsible forestablishing and leading a team specialized in
bio-ventures at a British recruitment agency.
He worked on executive talent recruitment
and career consulting in the healthcare sector,
both in Tokyo and Jakarta.

Since his student days, he has worked
at a startup focused on organizationaland HR consulting for ventures. His
experience spans executive headhunting
in the Web/IT sector and recruitment
consulting for healthcare ventures. In
August 2018, he joined as a UTEC HRManager and is currently involved as a
UTEC Venture Partner.

45

Team
Administration

Hiroyuki
SakitaKiyoakiTakamori

Hiroyuki Sakita

Fumi Yoshioka

Kiyoaki Takamori

Administration

Administration

Administration

Controller

●

●

●

 iroyuki Sakita is in charge of fundHadministration, investor relations
and corporate management.
In Deloitte Japan, he engaged
in regulatory audit and advisory
services for public companies andpre-IPO companies.
In startups, he experienced
various administration duties,
such as fundraising, accounting,HR, legal affairs, etc.

He joined Deloitte Japan in 2007,
and engaged in regulatory audit andadvisory services as a manager. After
working for startups, Hiroyuki joined
UTEC in January 2018. Certified Public
Accountant (Japan)

46 U T E C

Fumi
Yoshioka

Manager●●●F umi Yoshioka is in charge of fundadministration, investor relations
and public relations.
 efore joining UTEC, she worked
B
for an accounting and tax firm,
providing accounting and tax
services for corporations andpartnerships.
 rior to that, she worked at
P
Deloitte Japan and had engaged
in regulatory audit and advisory
service for limited partnerships,
public companies and pre-IPO
companies.

Fumi started her career at Deloitte
Japan and engaged in regulatory audit
and advisory service.
After working for an accounting and tax
firm, she joined UTEC in 2014.
She graduated from Kyoto University
with a B.A. in Economics and is a
Certified Public Accountant.

Manager●●● iyoaki Takamori joined UTEC in
K
November 2021. He is in charge offund administration.
 efore joining UTEC, he worked
B
at WM Fund Associates, a fundadministration service provider,focusing on fundraising,administration, and systemdevelopment.
 rior to that, he engaged inPaccounting and finance operations
and organizational restructuring
projects at a company as head of
department.

After 10 years of experience inaccounting and finance operations
for companies, he joined WM Fund
Associates in 2017 and engaged infund administration as manager. He
joined UTEC in November 2021.
He holds a master's degree inInternational Accounting from Chuo
University.

Board Members
Keiji Mogi

Masao Hirano

Christina L. Ahmadjian

Chairman

Board Director (External)

Board Director (External)●

Keiji Mogi is the chairman of UTEC. He
graduated from Sophia University’s Faculty ofForeign Language in 1964 and received amaster's degree at University Catholic deLouvain in 1965, sponsored by the Belgian
government. At Mitsui Bank (currently SMBC),
he served as the chairman secretary of thegeneral affairs department, the deputy branchmanager of the New York branch, and as thehead of the Brussels and London branches.
● He served as the Public relations manager at
Sakura Bank (currently SMBC), Director of
Public Relations (assumed to be the director of
the same bank in 1992). In 1996, he joined
Sakura Card Co., Ltd. as a vice president, and in
1997 he served as the Senior Vice President at
Sony Life Insurance Co., Ltd.. From 2006 to
2016, he was a Bridgepoint Capital Advisor in
the UK. From 2007 to 2012, he taught as
Professor of Economics at Teikyo University
Faculty of Economics. Since 2006 he has served
as a VenCap International Advisor in the UK.

●

Hiroyuki Takahashi

Kazuki Nakamoto

Corporate Auditor (External)

Corporate Auditor (External)●

Hiroyuki Takahashi is an external corporate
auditor of UTEC. He graduated from the
University of Tokyo’s Faculty of Nuclear
Engineering in 1987 (Master of Engineering). In
1989, he became a research associate. He
served as a Lecturer at the international
cooperation and education office, an Associate
Professor of Research into Artifact at the Center
for Engineering, an Associate Professor of HighEnergy Research Organization, a Professor of
Department of Nuclear Engineering and
Department of Bio-engineering. He is now a
Professor at the Institute of Engineering
Innovation, The University of Tokyo. Since April
2014, he has served as a Special Advisor to the
Dean of Engineering, The University of Tokyo.
Since November 2017, he also serves as a Vice
Director of the Division of University Corporate
Relations at the University of Tokyo.

●

Masao Hirano is currently a Professor at Waseda
Business School (Graduate School of Businessand Finance), and the president of the Japan
Business Model Association. He has an extensive
professional background in both private equity
investment and management consulting. He
graduated from Tokyo University’s Faculty ofEngineering, Department of Applied Chemistryin 1980 and then joined JGC Corporation as aproject engineer. In 1987, he joined McKinsey
and became managing partner of McKinsey
Japan in 1993. From 2007 to 2011, he was a
Co-Head of Carlyle Japan, a buy-out fund of a
global asset management firm, in which he led afew private equity investments in Japan. He
graduated from Stanford University, M.S.
Engineering Economic Systems.

●

After graduating from Harvard University in
1981, she joined Mitsubishi Electric Corporationin 1982. She earned her MBA from Stanford
Business School in 1987 and her Ph.D. from theHaas School of Business, University ofCalifornia, Berkeley, in 1995. After serving as
Assistant Professor at Columbia Business
School, and Professor at Graduate School ofBusiness Administration, Hitotsubashi
University, she currently serves as a Professor
Emeritus at Hitotsubashi University and aSpecial Appointed Professor at College ofBusiness Department of Global Business, Rikkyo
University . Since 2009, she has served as amember of the board (outside director) at Eisai,
Mitsubishi Heavy Industries, JPX, Sumitomo
Electric, Asahi Group Holdings, NEC, and NGK
Spark Plug . She is a U.S. citizen and has lived inJapan for over 25 years.

Kazuki Nakamoto is currently a member of theAsset management committee of Kindai
University and an advisor to Crosspoint
Advisors, Japan’s leading independent advisory
firm. He graduated from Osaka University’s
Faculty of Science, Department of Math in 1976
and then joined Daido Life Insurance Company.
He became a Manager of the Operations
Planning Department in 1996, served as theBoard Director in 1998, the Managing Director
in 2001, the Director and Managing Executive
Officer in 2006, the Senior Managing Executive
Officer, Director in 2007, the Representative
Director Senior Managing Executive Officer in
2008, the Senior Managing Executive Officer
and Director in 2010. Later he became theStanding Corporate Auditor, and retired fromthis position in 2014.

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