Could you share more about your internationalisation programs and how they support your home-grown tech businesses expanding globally?
A key initiative is “SusHi Tech Tokyo” (Sustainable High City Tech Tokyo), Tokyo’s flagship global innovation and startup event that aims to create a sustainable city with cutting-edge technology. It brings together startups, investors, corporations, and ecosystem leaders from around the world to collaborate, work on open innovation, and generate businesses with strong social and economic impact.
The next SusHi Tech Tokyo will take place from 27–29 April 2026.
SusHi Tech Tokyo 2026
Can you tell us about some of the startups you’re working with at the moment, and which ones you think could do well in Singapore?
In September 2025, we launched the “SusHi Tech Global” initiative, which is designed to expand the vision and activities of SusHi Tech Tokyo — “Realising sustainable cities through high technology” — to the rest of the world.
As part of this initiative, we select startups with the potential to generate innovation through outstanding technology and ideas as “SusHi Tech Global Start-ups” (Startup Company | SusHi Tech Global), providing comprehensive support to foster innovation and growth. Some of these startups are expected to find success in Singapore in the near future.
Singapore is known for its strong innovation ecosystem. Have you seen that in action?
SWITCH is highly recommended for startups and ecosystem players to join. We value its impact and scale, as well as the diverse connections it provides to businesses, governments and academia.
We are aware that a number of appealing grants are available in Singapore for overseas startups. We encourage startups in Tokyo to consider applying for these grants and taking advantage of these opportunities.
When startups from your country enter the Singapore market, what are some of the most common challenges or support needs they face?
Singapore has a business-friendly environment and a very supportive community. This makes it an ideal destination for companies that want to expand their business globally. However, the high cost of human resources, competitiveness in hiring skilled talent, and high office rents are some of the challenges that Tokyo’s startups face when entering the Singapore market.
Why should Singaporean startups explore your market as part of their own global expansion journey?
Tokyo is one of the world’s largest cities. It has a (nominal) GDP of $1,118 billion (FY 2021) and boasts high-quality human resources and the safest environment in Asia. At the same time, Tokyo is home to many large companies, universities, and research institutes, making it a destination with abundant opportunities for potential business partners and access to high-level human resources. There are also many small and medium-sized enterprises with world-class technologies in Tokyo.
Japan and Singapore are currently jointly organising the “Japan-Singapore Co-creation Platform” and the “Japan-Singapore Fast Track Pitch” to accelerate co-creation between Japanese and Singaporean companies. This kind of proactive support from the national government is another attractive feature of Tokyo and Japan as a whole.
Additionally, Japanese society values freedom and fairness. This provides an invaluable advantage for your business to grow continuously.
