News Releases
2014

* Information contained in this news release is current as of its date of announcement. Be aware that information contained herein is subject to change without notice.

Asian Entrepreneurship Award 2014 - 53 Entrepreneurs from 12 Countries and Economies to Pitch their Business Plans in Japan at Asia’s Largest International Business Competition
Three-day event at Kashiwa-no-ha Open Innovation Lab ahead of July grand opening

June 23, 2014
Future Design Center Incorporated Association
TX Entrepreneur Partners General Incorporated Association
Division of University Corporate Relations - The University of Tokyo
Mitsui Fudosan Co., Ltd.

Future Design Center, TX Entrepreneur Partners, the University of Tokyo’s Division of University Corporate Relations, and Mitsui Fudosan Co., Ltd., are pleased to announce the Asian Entrepreneurship Award 2014 (AEA 2014). The event will be from Sunday, July 13, through Tuesday, July 15, 2014. The main venue for this international business competition for Asian startups will be Kashiwa-no-ha Conference Center and KOIL in Kashiwa-no-ha Smart City - A New Vision for the Cities of Tomorrow - , whose grand opening is also in July.

AEA aims to nurture entrepreneurialism in Asia while establishing Kashiwa-no-ha Smart City, the fruit of cutting-edge urban planning to foster new industries, as a major hub of global innovation. For AEA’s third year, 18 companies have been nominated. They are competing their business plans aiming to conquer social economic issues at Kashiwa-no-ha Smart City.

AEA originated in Japan in 2012 as a contest for young entrepreneurs transforming the world from Asia. It aims to contribute to society by fostering advanced technologies and ideas that create new industries and resolve global issues. Its mission is to bring together entrepreneurs with ideas and technologies and accelerate innovation through competition. The nominees for this year’s awards all seek to resolve social and economic issues by leveraging their technological and R&D capabilities.

AEA started accepting applications from this April, selecting nominees for their innovativeness, strong economic and social impact potential, and implementation feasibility. During the event, nominees will benefit from mentoring by professionals who support venture companies, and from discussing with peers and experts while networking. On the final day, entrepreneurs will present their business plans in front of the judging panel and the general audience, with award-winners being announced. Prize at AEA 2014 will be total 4.8 million yen, including the 3 million yen for First place, and other prizes like two years rent-free at KOIL. KOIL is a membership facility shared working space in which entrepreneurs, creative professionals, engineers, researchers, and people from other walks of life form collaborative projects.

The First Prize winner at AEA 2013 was CONNEXX SYSTEMS Corporation from Japan, for its energy storage system. The previous First Prize winner was Clearbridge BioMedics Pte Ltd from Singapore, for developing next-generation cancer diagnostic tests that utilizes cutting-edge microfluidics technology. Other award recipients have included Terra Motors Corporation from Japan, which became the leader in the domestic electric motorcycle market just two years after starting business. Another, also from Japan, has been Axelspace Corporation, which developed the world’s first commercial micro-satellite. AEA looks for the 2014 nominees to progress in their businesses through this event.

*The number of people indicated in the title is subject to change.


At AEA, all presentations and Q&A sessions including the Final sessions will be in English. (Photo is from AEA 2013)

AEA 2013 saw Hisashi Tsukamoto (third from right) accept First Prize on behalf of CONNEXX SYSTEMS Corporation .

General Information

Name Asian Entrepreneurship Award 2014 (AEA 2014)
Dates July 13 (Sun) - 15 (Tue), 2014
Venue Kashiwa-no-ha Gate Square (Kashiwa-no-ha Open Innovation Lab (KOIL) and Kashiwa-no-ha Conference Center (KCC))
Language English (some programs will be in Japanese or with simultaneous Japanese-English interpretation)
Admission Free
Website http://www.fdc.or.jp/aea2014/en/
Host Future Design Center Incorporated Association,
Co-Hosts TX Entrepreneur Partners General Incorporated Association, Division of University

Qualification for Entry

Each member of the Nominating Committee nominates one company from respective countries and economies that meets the following requirements (in principle):

  1. Five years old or younger
  2. Not listed on public stock exchange
  3. Technology startup

Note: See attachments for more information on entrants and members of the Nominating Committee. Four Japanese startups were nominated in a preliminary contest that ended on May 11, 2014

Award Procedures

  • The entrant companies present their business plans in the semi-final and final sessions held on July 14 and 15, respectively.
  • In the semi-finals, entrants deliver 10-minute presentations on their businesses. The top six go to the finals.
  • In the finals, six companies deliver 15-minute presentations. An impartial judging panel chooses award winners.

Judging Criteria

  1. Innovativeness / economic and social impact of the business
    (potential of the business to change the world, scalability of the business)
  2. Implementation feasibility of innovation
    (competitive advantages, management team, overall consistency of the business strategies, communication skills including presentation itself)

Awards

  • First Prize: 3 million yen
  • Second Prize: 1 million yen
  • Third Prize: 500,000 yen
  • Supplementary Prize
    • Free tenancy for two years at KOIL Park
    • JAL Bonus Miles (50,000 miles for two people as first prize, 40,000 for two people as second prize, and 30,000 for two people as third prize)
    • Laptop computers courtesy of Hewlett-Packard Japan, Ltd. (three for first prize, two for second prize, and one for third prize)
  • Intel Prize
    : Invitation to APEC Accelerator Network Summit 2014
    *Prize awarded to one person of the top-placing team among the entrants from Japan.
    *APEC Accelerator Network Summit 2014 is an Asian entrepreneur competition sponsored by Intel Corporation, to be held in Taiwan in August 2014.
  • Shui On Group Prize1
    • Right to use InnoSpace2 as an operational base for entering the Chinese market (six months, free use for up to two persons)
    • Free KIC and InnoSpace business-matching sessions
    • Free support services for incorporation of business, recruiting, legal consultation, etc.
    • Return air ticket for two persons of the winning team between their home country and Shanghai, China

      *1. Awarded to the top-placing entrant whose business deals with IT or IT-related clean technology
      *2. InnoSpace is an incubation facility located in the Knowledge and Information Community (KIC) complex in Shanghai.
  • Japan New Business Conferences Chairman’s Prize: 300,000 yen

Please note that all prizes are subject to change.

About the Host

Future Design Center Incorporated Association (FDC)
[Website]http://www.fdc.or.jp/
Future Design Center (FDC) is a think tank that brings together the most advanced talent and technologies from Japan and around the world to address a variety of issues, including the environment and resources, food supply, medical care, and education, and provides state-of-the-art models for practical and concrete solutions to these problems. Entrepreneurs with foresight, ambition, and the ability to implement these new solutions are critical in the fields related to the FDC mission. FDC hosts the Asian Entrepreneur Award in order to support entrepreneurs from across Asia who are taking on the challenges of this type of innovation and promote the creation of new industry.

About the Co-Hosts

TX Entrepreneur Partners General Incorporated Association
[Website]http://www.tepweb.jp/e/
TX Entrepreneur Partners (TEP) is a startup support organization for the activities of entrepreneurs that mainly operates along the Tsukuba Express rail line. TEP collaborates with local universities, research institutions, government entities, private enterprises, and individuals to build the network to support sustainable Eco-system. The organization co-hosts Asian Entrepreneurship Award to provide entrepreneurs with the opportunity to broaden their perspectives beyond their own countries or economies and take a wider view including all of Asia and the world, while also fostering the environment needed to nurture entrepreneurship in the area along the Tsukuba Express rail line.

Division of University Corporate Relations - The University of Tokyo
[Website]http://www.ducr.u-tokyo.ac.jp/en/
The University of Tokyo’s Division of University Corporate Relations aims to ensure that the results of the original research conducted at the University of Tokyo are practically applied in society and to promote innovation with strong impact by providing support for the entire intellectual property process from its discovery, evaluation, management and application through the starting of businesses and commercialization. In the area of support for business startups and university-originated ventures, the division implements a wide range of activities; in addition to incubation projects and a program that nurtures and trains student entrepreneurs, the division is also involved in funding business startups through University of Tokyo Edge Capital Co., Ltd. By co-sponsoring the Asian Entrepreneurship Award, the division is focused on further fostering a culture of entrepreneurship with a global perspective.

Mitsui Fudosan Co., Ltd.
[WEB]http://www.kashiwanoha-smartcity.com/
Mitsui Fudosan Co., Ltd. is currently implementing an urban development project at the Kashiwa-no-ha Campus district based on its “Smart City” concept of urban living focusing on co-existing with nature, health and longevity, and the creation of new industry. The company’s initiatives have included the opening of Kashiwa-no-ha Open Innovation Lab on April 14 this year as a new vehicle for fostering interaction between enterprises and individuals to create new industries. Co-hosting the Asian Entrepreneurship Award is a key aspect of Mitsui Fudosan’s urban planning with a focus on the creation of new industry.
A project is currently underway to build a complex in front of Kashiwa-no-ha Campus station, with plans to house creative office space surrounded by lush greenery and an innovation base equipped with venture-support infrastructure and services. This project is scheduled for completion in the spring of 2014. Co-hosting the Asian Entrepreneurship Award is a key aspect of Mitsui Fudosan’s urban planning with a focus on the creation of new industry.

Inquiries
From the general public
Asian Entrepreneurship Award 2014 Logistics Secretariat
Tel: +81-3-3508-1213 (between 10:00 and 17:00 on weekdays)

From members of the press and government organizations:
Asian Entrepreneurship Award 2014 Public Relations Center
Tel: +81-3-5544-8481

Click here to get more information.(PDF:237KB)