Building a Thriving Tokyo: How Inclusion and Innovation Are Driving Growth

 

Home to more than 14 million people, Tokyo is a thriving metropolis that continues to change and adapt. Modernisation enables such a large population to prosper, and new developments in technology, with a focus on inclusivity, are helping with the challenges and opportunities for both locals, and international visitors. 

To accelerate this trend, Tokyo Metropolitan Government supports start-up companies such as those with cutting-edge technologies aiming to improve people's lives. New opportunities create growth for both domestic and international businesses, while positioning Tokyo as a global node of innovation. 

When developing new technologies for companies, or society in general, a focus on inclusivity ensures that everyone has the opportunity to flourish and enjoy all that Tokyo has to offer.  

Tokyo is the industrial powerhouse that elevated Japan to become a key global economy. Embracing technology has allowed the creation of the Shinkansen high-speed railway system, state-of-the-art skyscrapers, ingenious subterranean flood defences, and companies creating a gross domestic output of more than US$1 trillion. Tokyo has managed to do this while regularly being described as one of the most liveable cities in the world, with excellent health care, education opportunities, public transportation, flourishing parks, and fantastic food. It is also arguably one of the safest cities in the world. For start-up companies, these benefits help both attract and retain the ideal talent that allows a business to flourish. 

Tokyo Innovation Base aims to support start-ups through a wide variety of programmes and services.

Tokyo Metropolitan Government has launched several initiatives to further boost Tokyo's position as a tech leader. One new concept is “Sustainable High City Tech Tokyo”, or “SusHi Tech Tokyo" (scheduled to take place in 2025), in which advanced technology and diverse thinking help create a more sustainable society. Its Start-up conference enables start-ups, investors, corporations, and city leaders from Japan and overseas to interact and develop the tech ecosystems of the future. Located in the centre of Tokyo, "Tokyo Innovation Base" offers new businesses a wide range of services to help facilitate their growth.  

The organisation has focused its mission on key ideas of Global, Growth, Collaboration and Connect, with an aim to create a holistic start-up ecosystem that brings together investors, governments, companies and educational institutions. 

Groove X, based in central Tokyo, was a participant in SusHi Tech Tokyo 2024. The organisation uses cutting-edge technology to design products that provide familiarity and emotional connection. They have created the LOVOT, a portmanteau of "love" and "robot", that looks like a hyper-cute penguin with expressive eyes. Fully autonomous, it can trundle around the room, but its soft skin and warm body show it was designed to be held. In urban environments, where many live alone and pets may be restricted, a LOVOT could be an ideal companion. 

LOVOT, a product of Groove X designed for companionship.

Kaname Hayashi is the founder and CEO of Groove X and the creator of LOVOT. “It requires a large number of sensors and a vast amount of computing power to process them," he says. "The result is a seemingly natural being that moves in response to its surroundings like a living creature, as a result, people feel a sense of familiarity and empathy.” Hayashi's goal is not just a single robot, but the growth of a new robotics industry centred on Tokyo. “We would like to create a new Japanese industry that will follow the automobile industry and introduce it to the world," he says. "It is very difficult to achieve close co-operation between the three areas of creativity, hardware and software, but I believe it is necessary for robotics. In this respect, Tokyo is home to human resources in all three areas.” 

Hayashi chose Tokyo's Ningyocho district as the location of Groove X's offices. During the Edo period, this was where generations of craftsmen created the dolls and puppets from which the district gets its name (“Ningyo” meaning “doll”). “We, as doll makers utilising modern technology, would like to make Ningyocho a new robot town.” 

Tokyo is also a hub for international business and tourism, which Hayashi sees as a key advantage. “If you open a store in Tokyo, you will be known to people all over the world," he says. "We also have the opportunity to listen to the voices of people [from] around the world. We would like to use Tokyo as a starting point to communicate our products and services to the world.” 

The synergy created in Tokyo by multiple hi-tech fields working together is one of the keys to growth. With 37 million residents, Greater Tokyo is the most populous metropolitan area in the world. The proximity of so many companies and people means there is vast potential for connections, collaborations and mutual success. 

Reiko Katayama, CEO of Hogaku, a design company committed to supporting the deaf and hard of hearing.

Hogaku, who also participated in SusHi Tech Tokyo 2024, is a Tokyo-based design company where more than half of the employees are deaf or hard of hearing. Their product Miruoto was achieved as a result of successful collaboration. Hogaku CEO Reiko Katayama explains: “Miruoto is a system that displays the sound of sports in real time. By using this in competition, the deaf and hard of hearing people can enjoy sports together. This system was created by three facilities, Hogaku Inc., Aisin Corporation and Waseda University Iwata Lab.” The innovative system is being considered for use in table tennis and badminton at the 2025 Tokyo Deaflympics where each smash of the shuttle or roar of the crowd is shown on screen with animations. Katayama also sees the benefit of basing her company in Tokyo. “I was born and raised in Tokyo," she says. "I've been to many different countries, but I feel that Tokyo is the best place to accelerate my business. I believe that with the flow of start-up promotion and the inherent hospitality of Tokyo, we can create better services for our clients.” 

Tokyo is embracing innovative technology and diversity for a brighter, more inclusive future. Through collaborations between the city, companies and academia, Tokyo is equipped with unique conditions vital for the creation of new ideas and their growth to international success. 

 

Produced for the Tokyo Metropolitan Government by BBC StoryWorks Commercial Productions