Kickstarting Kansai: Rocket Pitch Night launches in Osaka for the second time

Over 600 participants join signature pitch event hosted by Venture Café and Ritsumeikan University

Sep 6, 2024
BY LUCAS MALTZMAN
Kickstarting Kansai: Rocket Pitch Night launches in Osaka for the second time
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J-STORIES - After a successful event last year, Rocket Pitch Night 2024 is back in Kansai, gathering some 600 startup enthusiasts in Osaka on Friday (September 6). Launched in 2019, Rocket Pitch Night is a flagship project of Venture Café Tokyo that aims to “accelerate entrepreneurial activity in Japan.” 
The event in western Japan was held as part of collaboration between Ritsumeikan University and Boston-based non-profit group Venture Cafe's Japan branch. It drew 40 startups across Japan participating in four categories: medical/healthcare, social/education, AI/VR, and design/agriculture. Each startup was given three minutes and three slides to present their innovative ideas, following the pitch format from Babson College, which has been ranked as No. 1 in entrepreneurship for the past 31 consecutive years by U.S. News & World Report. 
Attendees use a QR code to submit their opinion on the People’s Choice award at Ritsumeikan University, Osaka Ibaraki Campus on Sep. 6, 2024.     Source: Venture Cafe Tokyo (Same below) 
Attendees use a QR code to submit their opinion on the People’s Choice award at Ritsumeikan University, Osaka Ibaraki Campus on Sep. 6, 2024.     Source: Venture Cafe Tokyo (Same below) 
In the medical/healthcare category, participants offered tech-powered solutions to medical issues such as loneliness, stress management, and early detection and treatment of diseases like cancer and diabetes.
     Rocket Pitch Night 2024 came back to Osaka after its successful launch in the city last year 
     Rocket Pitch Night 2024 came back to Osaka after its successful launch in the city last year 
One of the startups was Kyoto-based medical company Second Heart, which aspires to eliminate diabetic foot amputations using a health management app. Yukihiro Ishida, founder and CEO of Second Heart, told the audience that it plans to provide services in Malaysia, which has one of the highest rates of diabetes in the world.   
“After Malaysia, we’ll probably expand into Singapore and Indonesia and try to IPO in Singapore. We believe that will be a natural path for our growth,” he said. 
With nearly two decades of experience as a clinical engineer in Japan, Ishida had met hundreds of diabetic patients, including some who eventually had to have their limbs amputated.
Yukihiro Ishida, founder and CEO of Second Heart, explains his medical startup's tech-powered solutions to eliminating diabetic foot amputations across Asia. 
Yukihiro Ishida, founder and CEO of Second Heart, explains his medical startup's tech-powered solutions to eliminating diabetic foot amputations across Asia. 
“Now that we have everything we need to combat this global problem, we want to fulfill our mission to end foot amputation,” he said.
Venture Cafe plans to open its second and third Asian office in Fukuoka and Yokohama late this year, which it hopes will serve as gateways for startups between Japan and Asia. 
Writing by: Lucas Maltzman
Editing by: Toshi Maeda,  Desiderio Luna
Photos: Courtesy of Venture Cafe Tokyo
For inquiries regarding this article, please contact jstories@pacificbridge.jp

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Click here for the Japanese version of the article.
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