Young Leaders Creating the Future and Hopes for Startups

Building Bridges Between Students and Entrepreneurship

SusHi Tech Tokyo 2024 is an event that brings together city leaders, startup companies, venture capitalists, and companies with cutting-edge technology to increase the number of startups in Tokyo, inspire new solutions to urban issues through inter-city cooperation, and lead to the social implementation of cutting-edge technologies in Tokyo. TMG led workshops for participants and sessions on the future of businesses and cities. One of them was the Student Program, and ITAMAE was formed as a student team to manage it.

They designed and managed an event called WASABI to get people interested in the main SusHi Tech Tokyo event, a session focusing on the mindset needed for young people to work on a global field, and an event section called Student Pavilion, where they held various sessions and workshops for students and people involved in startups.

Keio University senior Yagishita Haruka explains why she joined ITAMAE: "When I went to Canada as an exchange student in 2022, I realized that I had a narrow perspective and had only focused on specific communities. I decided to participate because I was clueless about the world of startups at that point and wanted to learn more about them, especially since I had just finished job hunting."

Saito Rihito, a junior at Sophia University, says, "When I was a high school student, I won a business contest organized by the student council. That sparked my interest in business including startups. I participated in various activities and as I did, I became interested in career education. I joined ITAMAE because I thought it would be a good opportunity to present the option of startups and entrepreneurship to students."

They all came together as ITAMAE members with one common desire: to familiarize students with entrepreneurship.

A Very Successful Event

The event came after a long period of preparation. Kuramoto Karen, a junior at Keio University, says, "I was involved in the planning and management of several workshops, and I was very happy that we received a comment from the questionnaire we gave to the participants that said, 'I enjoyed it from the bottom of my heart.' It was a rare opportunity for me to interact with students from other universities and people from various companies, and it was a great experience."

Koriyama Karin, also a junior at Keio University, adds, "During the preparation, I was very worried about whether we would have a lot of people and if we could make the event exciting. In the end, we had so many visitors, including students, and I was relieved that so many people liked it."

All four of them say that they had been worried if people would come on the day of the event, but their fears were unfounded. All the sessions and workshops were a great success, with some being above maximum capacity.

First Experiences, Many Challenges

It was their first time organizing a student-led event like this, so they experienced many challenges in the preparation stage. "The PR team I was in was formed three months before the event, so basically, we had no time. We were so preoccupied with the immediate tasks in front of us every day that it was a challenge to function well as a team," says Yagishita.

Saito adds, "We had very limited resources, so team building was difficult. In addition, it was often difficult to reconcile the opinions of students and companies while communicating with those companies." He shares how his experience and connections with startups helped: "There were parts that went well because I was able to consult with the businesspeople I knew and ask them to speak at events."

Because this was their first experience, they had to start with the basics and think about what to prepare and how, and what kind of team they needed, leading to many delays in the preparation stage. Saito continues: "Looking back, there were many things we could have improved. I think if we can make ITAMAE a ten out of ten, it will be an even better event, so I want to aim for perfection."

Hopes are high for the ITAMAE team from next year onward.

Their Views on Startups and Entrepreneurship

Did this experience affect their views on startups and entrepreneurship? Kuramoto says, "I am more familiar with startups now. If I were to choose, I am more interested in supporting people who start their own businesses," suggesting that she hopes to get involved with various startups as a supporter.

At a session entitled "Building Startups Globally from 'Day 0,'" Koriyama learned that it is important to think about the market you want to target when starting a business. She found a renewed confidence about her future business direction: "I would like to continue building my business with a global perspective."

In fact, she is already operating her own business of popularizing sake overseas. One cannot help but have high hopes for this young entrepreneur with a global perspective aspiring to spread Japanese culture.

In a City That Has Everything, You Can Do Anything

What makes Tokyo special to the four ITAMAE students? Kuramoto says that Tokyo is "a chaotic and hungry city." Koriyama says that it is "the place where you can gather people, goods, and money most easily." In their eyes, Tokyo is a place where it takes relatively little effort to get the resources needed for business and assemble people who are hungry for challenges and changes.

We asked where to visit in Tokyo and they readily answered with some ideas. Their recommendations include Shibuya, which has everything even by Tokyo's standards, shaved ice shops that offer delicate flavors unique to Japan, and sake breweries where you can see the craftsmanship up close.

Asked what kind of city they want Tokyo to be in the future, Saito says, "A city where all university students start their own businesses at some point," while Koriyama says, "A city where anyone can try their hand if they want to." They both have a vision of Tokyo in which the younger generation takes on any challenge without a second thought and they are encouraged to do so.

On the other hand, Yagishita shared the story of her best friend, an exchange student from Indonesia, who wanted to work in Japan but returned home because language barriers and cultural differences made it difficult to live in the country. She hopes that Tokyo will become "a city where people from overseas want to live."

You can tell these young leaders, full of passion and energy, aspire to make Tokyo a better city through startups and entrepreneurship.

Interviewees from ITAMAE

Yagishita Haruka (upper left)
Senior at the Faculty of Economics, Keio University. In ITAMAE, she organized student-led sessions and led the PR team, managing the ITAMAE's official account on the blog platform "note," and creating flyers to attract participants.

Saito Rihito (upper right)
Junior at the Faculty of Science and Technology, Sophia University. In ITAMAE, he led Student Pavilion and oversaw ITAMAE as a whole, designing the pavilion, communicating with related parties, and reviewing feedback from the team members.

Koriyama Karin (lower left)
Junior at the Faculty of Business and Commerce, Keio University. In ITAMAE, she organized sessions on five themes as a member of the Student Pavilion team.

Kuramoto Karen (lower right)
Junior at the Faculty of Policy Management, Keio University. In ITAMAE, she planned and organized the workshops as deputy leader of the Student Pavilion team.

SusHi Tech Tokyo, short for Sustainable High City Tech Tokyo, is a Tokyo-based concept that aims to create sustainable new value by overcoming global urban challenges through cutting-edge technology, diverse ideas, and digital expertise.

SusHi Tech Tokyo 2024: 
https://www.sushi-tech-tokyo2024.metro.tokyo.lg.jp/