Reading an environmental book in elementary school sparked Fujio's lifelong passion for nature. After majoring in mechanical engineering at university, he went traveling and remembers finding garbage tucked between trees in a remote jungle. It sparked the idea for Pirika, meaning “beautiful” in the indigenous Ainu language. It’s a litter picking app where people can upload photos of them disposing of waste, along with geotags to pinpoint problem areas. It’s become a global community effort with over 300 million pieces of trash collected. Fujio says this is just the tip of the iceberg and hopes to grow that number rapidly in the coming years.

When entrepreneur Kota decided to make a healthcare app he knew the perfect person to be his co-founder: his then roommate and doctor Yoshinori. Having been friends since high school, it was a natural partnership, and they began planning Ubie in their spare time. It’s an AI symptom search engine, where people can research their illnesses and find specialist help – promoting early intervention to detect diseases before they develop. The friends are now arranging to expand Ubie’s services to track treatments and day-to-day healthcare needs, and they hope to grow it into a global brand.

While studying cultural anthropology and sociology, Yasuto became fascinated by how people use their time. This progressed into a mission to create a way to help people organize their lives and their schedules. After years working as a product manager for a major web provider, he set up his own company and built TimeTree. It’s an app-based calendar made for sharing and communication. Whether it’s between friends, colleagues, or sports teams, Yasuto hopes it frees up space for fun and special moments. With 13 languages already available, recent additions include overseas holidays. Next, he wants to enhance the app by offering tailored event recommendations.

Game maker Kensuke spent more than ten years working in mobile telephone technology before branching out on his own. The advent of smartphones inspired him to make a change, and he set up his business, Gagex. He discovered his own niche crafting nostalgic, mouth-watering Shōwa era games, set in candy shops and diners. Memories of a Dining Room Story draws on traditional foods such as pork miso soup and baked eggs, and players assist an elderly couple in running a small diner. With a devoted fan base, Kensuke's company aims for lasting relevance, driven by the motto to be "interesting for the next 100 years".

While working as a cram school teacher, Kei traveled around Asia teaching in orphanages and children’s homes. He developed a way of sharing his love of education whist overcoming cultural differences and language barriers by using apps. Recognizing that a digital version of his lessons could benefit more people, he created Think! Think!, an app designed to keep learning exciting and grow children’s confidence. With the goal of reaching as many kids as possible, Think! Think! has been used in schools and in monitors in shopping malls. Kei plans to continue developing various projects and collaborations to ensure that children in all environments have the opportunity to learn while having fun.

Web designer Tomoya had been suffering from migraines when a conversation with a meteorologist colleague sparked an idea. They discussed the link between weather and physical health, and how low barometric pressure days can cause headaches. Leveraging his expertise in mobile content creation and UI/UX design, Tomoya built Zutool, an app featuring cute characters that allows people to follow forecasts and track their symptoms. Ten years later, it gained so much momentum that he supported the publication of a book combining his experiences with medical advice from doctors. They are currently working on new upgrades to make it easier to track overall health, including menstrual cycles.

Yangyang moved to Japan, from China, aged four. Over the years, his memory of Chinese faded, prompting a year-long language school journey to rekindle his connection with his mother tongue. Inspired by fellow students and teachers who taught him, he created HiNative – a language app where people can seek assistance from native speakers. AI is used, but every response is immediately verified and even answered by native speakers all over the world to provide clearer communication. Yangyang says the emphasis is on connection and culture, rather than learning exam-style languages. He’s now working on building a live stream feature to enable real-time international exchange.

When the internet first emerged, Koki was certain that it would one day transform how we communicate — and he wanted to be a part of it. So he joined the IT industry and was soon hired by the Japanese social networking company, MIXI, to be in charge of their game releases. Passionate about connecting people, Koki’s games are multiplayer - like the hugely popular title Monster Strike which marked its 10th anniversary in October 2023. With his strong belief in the power of communication and gaming, Koki and his team continue to look for new ways to deliver surprise and excitement through live-ops and big collaborations.

Takashi made it LIFULL’s corporate philosophy to create a society where everyone can attain comfort and happiness. Driven by his passion for changing the real estate industry, he later created LIFULL HOME'S which is now one of the largest real estate and property sites in Japan. When smartphones came on the scene, he and his team built an app to make finding new homes even easier. Takashi believes access to information is key to helping people find their perfect place. LIFULL HOME'S will continue to take on new challenges, including improving the app, and providing a tailored experience that can match the needs of every property hunter.

Living in England as a young child, Yota quickly discovered a love for games. He was particularly drawn to Japanese role-playing titles as a way to feel safe, express himself and explore his cultural identity through the story — an experience which inspired him to create games as an adult. He wants to ensure that they offer exciting and heartening experiences to players through their titles. Wright Flyer Studios successfully created an inspirational RPG, Heaven Burns Red, with the famous game studio "Key", known for creating great storylines that remain in the player’s heart. Next, he plans to release more titles and make Wright Flyer Studios one of the best game studios in the world.

As a professional nutritionist, Mikiko would meet with clients one-on-one to give them healthy eating advice, but she wanted to help more people than she could fit in her schedule. So when her parent company launched an in-house startup program, she jumped at the chance to make an app for her services, even though she didn’t have any prior developer experience. Teaming up with marketer, Jiro, she created Asken: a diet and nutrition platform that gives people detailed information about healthy living and nutrition via an interactive AI dietitian. Moving forward, they hope to expand into the US and Asia, launch a program for pregnant women and new moms, and add nutritional plans tailored for children and the elderly.

Twin sisters Anna and Mizuki founded their mobile gaming company coly, because they wanted to create games that would appeal to women. Neither of them had a background in tech, but they saw a gap in the market, quit their jobs and started working from their studio apartment. Promise of Wizard, their fourth game, is full of beautiful anime imagery and deep, character-driven stories that have won them legions of fans. Women make up not only most of their player base but also 70% of coly's team. Anna and Mizuki value real connections with fans, so coly started expanding its offline business with collaborative cafes. By taking on new challenges, the twins aim to continue growing their games around the world.

Rina came from a farming family but, on her parents advice, went to university and joined an IT company instead of taking over the family business. Years later, when she revisited her former farmstead and saw the fields abandoned, she wondered if there might be other producers in the same situation. Visiting farmers all over the country, Rina learned they couldn't make stable profits because they weren't able to set their own prices. So she created TABE CHOKU - a platform where farmers can sell online to consumers. Shoppers can order high-quality food straight to their door and try out growers’ recommended recipes. Rina aims to keep helping deepen the relationships between buyers and producers through the app.

Formerly a venture capitalist, Takeshi left finance to join the gaming space ー for him, an industry bringing something exciting to the world. About a decade later, he founded his own game company Altplus. A major title from the group, Hypnosis Mic - Alternative Rap Battle, is the game version of the popular original character & music project under the same name Hypnosis Mic, and players can enjoy its new rhythm senses and original stories. They enter a world where conflict can only be settled through rap battles. Takeshi enjoys making social games that promote community and entertain fans with high quality graphics, sounds and tailored communications. Altplus is now exploring several new fields like the metaverse, live gaming and in-person events.