Startups

Drugmakers from Japan, the U.S. and Europe have announced a more than $1 billion fund to invest in startups developing treatments for antibiotic-resistant infections.

The coronavirus crisis has prompted Japan to ease regulations on remote medical treatment, creating an opening for tech companies and offering a glimpse of the future of health care in the world’s most rapidly aging society.

A startup developed a system to quickly predict how flooding could affect surrounding areas, pairing artificial intelligence (AI) with drone technology.

As face coverings become the norm amid the coronavirus pandemic, Japanese startup Donut Robotics has developed an internet-connected “smart mask” that can transmit messages and translate from Japanese into eight other languages.

An app to help people stop smoking received government approval Friday, becoming the first prescription digital therapeutic in Japan and heralding an emerging field of treatments developed at lower cost.

At 23, Shunji Sugaya had what he calls a “life-changing episode. ”It was March 2000, and Sugaya had just won an award at a business contest where Masayoshi Son, the founder of what was then called SoftBank Corp., was a judge. He sent Son an email to thank him, the two met up, and before long SoftBank offered to buy Sugaya’s idea for $2.8 million or for Sugaya to join the company and receive stock options. Sugaya turned it down.

Japanese space startup Astroscale said Wednesday that it has acquired an Israeli startup that aims to carry out maintenance on satellites in orbit, a move heralding its expansion into an emerging field of space services.

A picturesque vacation getaway in the western Japanese city of Kobe has been named the site of a planned smart city as the pandemic stirs interest in country living.

The rocket engine roared to life with a burst of bright orange flame, firing at 70% of full power for five seconds in a test that featured fuel used to power much of the planet but not harassed to reach outer space: liquefied natural gas.

Zetta, a spinout from the Tokyo Institute of Technology, also known as Tokyo Tech, has developed a nonwoven nanofiber material that can be washed repeatedly without losing its ability to protect the wearer from viruses. The startup, based in the western Japanese city of Matsuyama, plans to get into the business of making masks from the high-tech fabric.