Umitron, a fishy startup, wins big at Arena

Ken Fujiwara (right) picks up the prize from a sponsor. Photo credit: Tech in Asia.

Fish farming data analytics startup Umitron this afternoon came out on top in our pitch contest at Tech in Asia Tokyo 2017. The young company beat five other candidates to clinch the Arena win, with boss Ken Fujiwara pocketing US$4,500 in the process.

These were the brave combatants that took part in this year’s competition, in alphabetical order:

Authlete

Co-founder Takahiko Kawasaki started the pitch in an unconventional fashion – with a brief breakdance.

Photo credit: Tech in Asia.

After that he explained that Authlete builds security software for APIs. It uses tools that help users grant websites or applications access to their information without the need to reveal passwords.

The startup raised a seed round worth US$1.2 million in May, coming from 500 Startups and other investors.

Cinnamon

The team behind Cinnamon believe people spend too much time flicking through documents to find specific info. So its service, which is aimed at large corporations, taps into AI to scan text and then extract the required details into a database.

Our esteemed judges watch the six pitches. Photo credit: Tech in Asia.

Cinnamon got into Arena at the last moment after impressing us while exhibiting at our Bootstrap Alley.

Cloudike

Cloudike does cloud – the storage kind. Its Dropbox-like personal cloud product is offered through telcos to their customers, enabling them to share and store data through their phones. It has offices in South Korea, Russia, and the US.

Photo credit: Tech in Asia.

Customers can pay via carrier billing, offering an inclusive alternative to people with no credit cards.

See: How we launched a cloud solution for the emerging 2 billion

Gruff

Far from what its name implies, Gruff is a data analytics startup that helps companies with monetization strategies.

Photo credit: Tech in Asia.

Founder Hiroue Harada – not the one pitching – is a data analytics veteran, named Japan’s data scientist of the year in 2015 by Nikkei Information Strategy magazine.

Gruff raised a US$850,000 seed round led by Nippon Technology Venture Partners in January.

MyDearest

MyDearest produces original stories in virtual reality. Users can buy each VR book for US$5 to $7.

Photo credit: Tech in Asia.

The stories are told through a combination of 3D graphics, text, and audio for an immersive experience without the need to hold up a book or Kindle.

See: 14 startups, 1 rising star: elite Japanese pitch contest crowns new champ

Umitron

Umitron’s into some fishy business, but that’s good in this case.

Photo credit: Tech in Asia.

The startup uses a combination of sensors, software, and data analytics to optimize feeding amounts and timing in fish farming.

Converted from Japanese yen. Rate: US$1 = JPY 113.

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This is part of the coverage of Tech in Asia Tokyo 2017, our conference taking place September 27 and 28.

This post Umitron, a fishy startup, wins big at Arena appeared first on Tech in Asia.

from Tech in Asia https://www.techinasia.com/tia-tokyo-arena-2017-winner
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