5 rising startups in Japan

We last checked in on newly funded Japanese startups at the end of December. Though investors and founders alike took a short holiday break, funds were being wired on the last working day of 2016 and the first of 2017. Here are the startups starting the year with larger bank accounts.

Gruff

Photo credit: ra2studio / 123RF Stock Photo.

Gruff, a data analytics startup that helps companies find monetization strategies, announced a seed round. Nihon Technology Venture Partners (NVTP) led the US$850,000 round.

Don’t assume this is just another startup riding the big data fad. Founder Hiroue Harada was hired by Recruit back in 2012 to improve the analytics programs for their lifestyle products. His work made such an impact that he was hailed as Japan’s “Data Scientist of the Year” in 2015 by Nikkei Information Strategy magazine.

Liquid

Photo credit: byrev.

Liquid, a TIA pitch contest finalist in 2015, has raised at least US$2.55 million in its series A. Multiple investors joined the deal, but the announcement was staggered, leading to an indeterminate final amount. Itochu, Credit Saison, and University of Tokyo Edge Capital were initially revealed as investors on December 25. Two days later, telecommunications giant KDDI broadcast that it had acquired shares worth US$2.55 million in a partnership with Liquid.

The startup has built a biometric scanning device that identifies individuals based on the middle three fingers of either hand. Liquid accounts are meant to be paired up with payment tools like credit cards to improve security and ease of purchase. The company also offers a cash and product register that shops can purchase.

Cykinso

Photo credit: Phalinn Ooi.

Cykinso, a startup that analyzes the bacterial contents of your intestines, has raised US$2.3 million. The Regional Healthcare Business Support Fund led the round.

Users send in a sample – the cheerful website studiously avoids specifics – and should receive results in six weeks. Visible on a computer or smartphone, the analysis parses the 1,000 types of bacteria in your guts and provides advice improving overall health.

The product is already in production following a successful crowdfunding campaign that raised US$40,000 on a US$8,500 target.

ZeroAgri

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ZeroAgri is taking aim at Japan’s agriculture industry. With a US$3.4 million round led by leading VC Globis Capital Partners, the startup is on its way. The core product is a sensor inserted underground that can detect key metrics for plant health like soil temperature and moisture. That data is transmitted to a small, solar-powered device, which connects to an app that farmers use to better care for their crops.

Tested and proven at Meiji University, ZeroAgri is part of a growing focus on agri-tech in Japan.

Matcher

Photo credit: jarih / 123RF Stock Photo.

Matcher is a startup that helps pair professionals on or past the tail end of their careers with students just starting out. Colopl Next led the funding for an undisclosed sum.

Japanese working culture highly values personal relationships, so a service that helps promising students connect and consult with established members of a particular industry is a natural fit. Businesses will want to take note too. As TechCrunch Japan noted, the startup also released a feature wherein corporates can take a peek at the students listed on the platform. When they find promising students, corporates send them an invitation – called a ‘scout’ – to visit the office and have a casual chat. This feature could be what propels Matcher forward. Considering the country’s shrinking student pool, competition for the best and brightest is only going to intensify.

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from Tech in Asia https://www.techinasia.com/funded-startups-japan-jan-9-2017
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