A food self-sufficiency rate shows how much food a country produces compared to what it consumes. It’s an important way to understand a country’s food security and resilience, especially during global crises like wars, pandemics, or climate change. This has become more important in recent years.

With the release of the ERC-721 standard on Ethereum in 2017, NFT art projects like CryptoKitties and CryptoPunks quickly captured global attention, and celebrities, artists, and companies worldwide started generating their own NFTs at an enormous rate. This led to the NFT boom of the early 2020s, of which you are undoubtedly familiar.

An explanation of the innovation ecosystem that is spreading in Tokyo, the premier destination for start-ups.

Located about 50 km from Tokyo, Tsukuba City is not exactly famous among tourists. However, it does have a reputation among scientists and researchers, being home to one of Japan's leading universities, the University of Tsukuba, as well as many national and corporate research institutes.

We spoke with Masubuchi and Luan, Co-Founders and COOs of Emunitas, a company building a platform connecting global talent with Japanese businesses. They shared with us their founding story, business development, and the potential of startups based in Beppu.

"The key to innovation is finding practical applications for advanced technology in unexpected places."

In a world where over 800 million people face food insecurity and the global population is expected to reach 9.7 billion by 2050, food production is reaching its limits. Japanese plant-based food company dishwill approaches this crisis with a unique perspective.

Despite its relatively modest size, Hamamatsu is home to several globally leading companies. Suzuki, Honda, Yamaha, and Hamamatsu Photonics were all founded here and have grown into internationally recognized brands.

As climate change increases disaster risks, addressing aging urban infrastructure has become an urgent challenge. Leading this challenge is Mr. Park Jongduk, CEO of a disaster prevention AI company based in Hamamatsu City.

My interest in the themes of war and peace began during a school trip to Nagasaki. As a young student, visiting the Peace Park and Atomic Bomb Museum left an indelible mark on my mind.

Hiroshima Prefecture is located in the Chugoku region on the western side of Honshu, the main island of Japan, and has prospered as a checkpoint connecting the north and south of the country. Hiroshima City, which is the location of the prefectural government, has a unique history.

Naruhiro Nagao works on regional revitalization through the operation of coworking spaces. This article explores the possibilities of a new business model originating from regional Japan, breaking away from the Tokyo-centric development.

Fascinated by his beloved sea, Kimura founded his company after a "terrible" first sailing experience. We spoke with him about his challenges in developing the autonomous navigation platform "Eight Knot AI CAPTAIN" to make maritime navigation safer worldwide, how he overcame those obstacles, and his message for future entrepreneurs.

Nagoya is the capital of Aichi Prefecture, which lies right in the center of Japan’s main island of Honshu. Aichi Prefecture is an economic powerhouse, second only to Tokyo in terms of GDP and per capita income, and is the host to a nascent start-up boom.

As heat dissipation in electronic devices becomes an increasingly critical issue with the proliferation of data centers, EVs, and AI, we spoke with Kenji Nishitani, CEO of U-MAP, about his entrepreneurial journey, the company's unique materials technology, and his vision for the future of Japanese manufacturing.

Nagoya, Japan's manufacturing heartland, is building a new startup ecosystem. We interviewed Toshio Sumi, the first director of the Startup Support Division established five years ago, about initiatives to foster regional innovation.

Kitakyushu is the second most populous city in the Kyushu region. Formerly known as the Kitakyushu Industrial Zone, one of four major industrial zones in Japan, Kitakyushu was famous for its steel industry thanks to the Imperial Steel Works, the second steel mill built in Japan and the largest in the country for some time after its construction in 1896.

In Tsukuba, a city of 250,000 residents known as one of the world's leading research and development hubs, 29 national research institutions operate alongside 20,000 researchers.

"Making weddings more free and expressive of who couples are."We spoke with founder Murata about the challenges in the wedding industry, his innovative approach, and his vision for the future.

Fukuoka is emerging as one of Japan’s top startup cities, offering strong support for foreign entrepreneurs, affordable living, and a vibrant business ecosystem. With startup visas, incubators, and global connectivity, it’s an ideal base for innovation and growth.

At Fukuoka's startup support facility "Fukuoka Growth Next," the Global Business Support (GBS) team works towards attracting international startups and helping local startups expand overseas. We spoke with Mr. Ono, who serves as a startup support concierge while being an entrepreneur himself, about Fukuoka City's startup support ecosystem.

Japan is a distinctively shaped nation; a gracefully curving archipelago that is considerably longer than it is wide. As a result, its major cities form a chain along the length of the country, connected by highways and the tracks of the famous shinkansen bullet train. Fukuoka City is the westernmost of these metropolises, located on the island of Kyushu.

We turn our attention to one of Japan's most historically beautiful cities; Sendai, the capital of Miyagi Prefecture.

The Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology (MEXT) has been implementing various measures to support the creation and growth of university-based startups.