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The editorial department went behind the scenes to cover the final pitch of "Incubate Camp", in which 16 entrepreneurs selected from over 600 applicants participated.

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IncubateFundis a long-established VC with Japan's largest seed investment record.

The editorial staff went behind the scenes on the last day of Incubate Camp 15th, a management camp hosted by the fund on a particular day in October. This is a report of the day and testimonials of the entrepreneurs who participated.

What is "Incubate Camp," a management training camp where entrepreneurs and investors pair up?

In mid-October, I went behind the scenes to cover Incubate Camp 15th, sponsored by the Incubate Fund, which was held somewhere in the Kanto region. Incubate Camp is a seed acceleration program with a long history that has been held since 2010 by the Incubate Fund for entrepreneurs in the founding stage. It will be the 15th time in October 2022.

Pitch on the first day
(Credit: IncubateFund, Photography: Wataru Doi)

Among past participants, many startups have successfully raised funds through this program and achieved rapid growth. The camp is used to establish and grow startups and as a community where entrepreneurs and investors can have lively discussions.

Mentoring
(Credit: IncubateFund, Photography: Wataru Doi)

The most significant feature of the Incubate Camp is that 16 investors with the right to make investment decisions and 16 selected entrepreneurs who are seriously aiming to raise funds will participate. They will form a pair and brush the pitch for fundraising for 2 days and 1 night. This is an enthusiastic and intense program; it is often called an "entrepreneur/investor joint management camp".

Mentoring
(Credit: IncubateFund, Photography: Wataru Doi)

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The winner was Arch, which is taking up the challenge of DX for rental item management of construction equipment

The final pitch also has some slightly different points from other events. First, there are encouraging comments from the paired investors before the entrepreneur's pitch. With humor, the investors introduce the appeal of entrepreneurs that became apparent during the one-night, two-day mentoring period.

Supporting comments from investors
(Credit: IncubateFund, Photography: Wataru Doi)

In addition, since most of the judges are investors with the right to make investment decisions, there were many sharp questions about investment feasibility, and the venue was somewhat tense.

Supporting comments from investors
(Credit: IncubateFund, Photography: Wataru Doi)

And the ranking of the final pitch was as follows.

First place Arch, Inc. / Mr. Futoshi Kitayama (Person in charge: XTech Ventures / Mr. Hiroki Teshima)
Business Overview: Development and sales of "Arch”, ", a business management service that connects the construction industry and the construction equipment rental industry

Second place K. K. CYBO / Takashi Nitta (in charge: JAFCO / Tomoko Numata)
Business Overview: Development of technology for high-speed analysis and processing of cells using AI

Third Place ZABoooN, Inc. / Mr. Katsuya Todaka (Responsible: Global Brain / Mr. Keisuke Tateoka)
Business Overview: Development and operation of ship management SaaS "MARITIME 7" that promotes the digitalization of the maritime industry

Tied for Fourth place Tensor Energy / Ms. Nana Hori (Person in charge: Globis Capital Partners / Mr. Satoshi Fukushima)
Business Overview: Provides the "Tensor Platform", a cloud operation management platform for renewable energy and storage batteries

Tied for Fourth place Quollio Technologies, Inc / Mr. Ryota Matsumoto (Person in charge: Itochu Technology Ventures / Mr. Shinzo Nakano)
Business Overview: Development of data catalog SaaS

16 entrepreneurs who finished pitching
(Credit: IncubateFund, Photography: Wataru Doi)
Social gathering
(Credit: IncubateFund, Photography: Wataru Doi)

Short interviews with 3 entrepreneurs

We conducted simple interviews with three pairs of entrepreneurs and investors who had just finished their final pitches. We asked them for their testimonials.

ZABoooN, Inc. Mr. Katsuya Todaka

Pair Investor: Mr. Keisuke Tateoka, Global Brain
Business Overview: Development and operation of ship management SaaS "MARITIME 7" that promotes the digitalization of the maritime industry

Credit: IncubateFund

First, thank you for your hard work on the final pitch. After finishing, could you share your honest impression?

Mr. Todaka

Okay. It's frustrating because I was aiming for the win.

Thank you. Please tell us the most unusual experience of this Incubate Camp.

Mr. Todaka

There were many experiences, but the most important thing is that the mentoring from Mr. Tateoka, who I paired up with this time, has raised my perspective on the business.

Please tell us how you would like to use this experience in your future business.

Mr. Todaka

The issue of seafarer labor management is not limited to Japan but is a global issue. We want to expand our business with an eye on overseas markets actively.

Thank you. I would also like to ask Mr. Tateoka, who was paired with Mr. Todaka. From your point of view, Mr. Tateoka, what do you particularly appreciate about ZABooon and Mr. Todaka?

Mr. Tateoka

The best aspect is that Mr. Todaka has a deep knowledge of the niche maritime industry. Because of his deep understanding of the industry, he knows how to position himself in this industry and how to win. This is truly FMF (Founder Market Fit). This perspective will definitely contribute to future fundraising and business expansion.

Thank you!

Mr. Katsuya Todaka / Mr. Keisuke Tateoka

zooba Inc. Ms. Ayane Nawa

Pair Investor: Mr. Atsushi Nouchi, Bonds Investment Group
Business Overview: Development of zooba that automates SaaS account addition, deletion, and access right management performed by the information system department as a business

Credit: IncubateFund

First, thank you for your hard work on the final pitch. After finishing, could you share your honest impression?

Ms. Nawa

I am filled with regret.

Please tell us the most unusual experience of this Incubate Camp.

Ms. Nawa

I have broadened my horizons to see what kind of market and how I should win the business.

Please tell us how you would like to use this experience in your future business.

Ms. Nawa

Before participating in this Incubate Camp, I wanted to solve the problems I could see right before me. However, over the two days, I learned that it is important to take a step back and look at the issue from a higher perspective and see how it is viewed from the outside world. I want to continue working with this in mind for the next three to five years. Also, I want to do my best to provide services that will please many customers.

Thank you. I would also like to ask Mr. Nouchi, who is paired with Ms. Nawa. From your point of view, Mr. Nouchi, what do you particularly appreciate about zooba and Nawa?

Mr. Nouchi

There are so many things, but the most important aspect is that Ms. Nawa is very honest. It is most important for entrepreneurs to listen to the opinions of those around them as much as possible and to sublimate those opinions firmly within themselves. After two days of mentoring Ms. Nawa, I felt this honesty was her greatest strength.

Thank you!

Atsushi Nouchi / Ayane Nawa

Arch,Inc. Mr. Futoshi Kitayama

Pair Investor: Hiroki Teshima, XTech Ventures
Business Overview: Development and sales of "Arch", a business management service that connects the construction industry and the construction equipment rental industry

Credit: IncubateFund

First, thank you for your hard work on the final pitch. After finishing, could you share your honest impression?

Mr.Kitayama

I'm delighted to have won, and I'm full of gratitude to Mr. Teshima and the investors who mentored me yesterday.

Thank you. Please tell us the most unusual experience of this Incubate Camp.

Mr.Kitayama

The first is that the resolution of the business has increased. In particular, I learned a great deal from the perspective of how to climb mountains specifically to expand our business in the future. Also, I learned how to make a presentation by clearly understanding Arch's strengths and concisely conveying them.

Please tell us how you would like to use this experience in your future business.

Mr.Kitayama

First, I would like to receive an investment from Mr. Teshima, who has been paired with me this time (laughs). I also came up with a new idea based on the feedback from the VCs I met over the past two days and the passion of the entrepreneurs, so I would like to work on making those ideas a reality.

Thank you. I want to ask Teshima-san, who is paired with Mr. Kitayama. From your point of view, Mr. Teshima, what do you particularly appreciate about Arch and Mr. Kitayama?

Mr. Teshima

First of all, I feel that Arch has the potential to become a significant two-sided platform that represents Japan in the future. And I think it's wonderful that Mr. Kitayama has the business acumen and the ambition of an entrepreneur. When I was listening to the presentation from the side, I felt that the content was not an expression that was a broad version of a major company's presentation but that it was able to convey the essence. I have high hopes for Mr. Kitayama and Arch.

Thank you!

Mr. Hiroki Teshima / Mr. Futoshi Kitayama

Message from Mr. Minamide, the person in charge of planning

Finally, Mr. Masaya Minamide of IncubateFund, the general manager of "Incubate Camp 15th", who has been planning the camp since spring, gave us encouraging comments for entrepreneurs.

Mr. Minamide

I thank all the 16 entrepreneurs who participated. We are delighted to have been able to manage one event together with entrepreneurs selected from over 600 entries. I think that the Incubate Camp is the only event where you can continue to face business plans with famous Japanese investors in two days and one night. We will continue working with the executive office to make it a meaningful camp.

Below is a list of companies that participated

LOCKON FZCO/ Mr. Masahiro Kubota
Development of WEB3 protocol "LOCKON" that analyzes blockchain transactions, determines wallet addresses that continue to generate profits and reproduces transactions

Wanna technologies, Inc. / Yu Onozuka
Installation of EV quick chargers with digital signage and development of services that provide quick charging networks

Renue Co., Ltd. / Yusuke Yamamoto
Development of an algorithm that detects explicitly recurring expenditures and subscriptions

K.K. CYBO / Takashi Nitta
Development of technology for high-speed analysis and processing of cells using AI

Magic Shields, Inc. / Mr. Akiji Shimomura
Developed Koroyawa, a new material that is soft only when a person falls to prevent fractures caused by falls in the elderly

Arch,Inc. / Mr. Futoshi Kitayama
Development and sales of "Arch", a business management service that connects the construction industry and the construction equipment rental industry

zooba Inc. / Ms. Ayane Nawa
Development of zooba that automates SaaS account addition, deletion, and access right management performed by the information system department as a business

adsai,inc / Mr. Tatsuya Itai
Developed "selfdemo", a system demonstration creation SaaS that transforms communications related to system introduction and establishment

BEAMING Co., Ltd. / Mr. Hiroyuki Jiroku
Launch of autonomous fan community "Fandom" & development of management support platform MUSER

SHOCHU X / Keisuke Hashimoto
Launch of Shochu DtoC brand SHOCHU X

VEGEVEGE.inc / Mr. Hirotaka Sakuraba
Development of "HIMEPA", a digital violence identification application that utilizes a unique crawler and AI face analysis technology

Tensor Energy k.k./ Ms. Nana Hori
Provides "Tensor Platform", a cloud operation management platform for renewable energy and storage batteries

ZABoooN, Inc./ Mr. Katsuya Todaka
Development and operation of ship management SaaS "MARITIME 7" that promotes the digitalization of the maritime industry

digipost (before entrepreneurship) / Mr. Yuya Morita
A project that aims to redefine mailboxes that have not evolved in over 60 years and aim for the development of "postal SaaS"

Toremoro Inc./ Mr. Takahito Nakano
Development of SaaS "Orderly" for unifying delivery operations

Quollio Technologies, Inc / Mr. Ryota Matsumoto
Development of data catalog SaaS

Editor's comments

This year's Incubate Camp brought together Japan's leading investors and was filled with intense enthusiasm. Incubate Fund, which has led seed investment in Japan for more than 10 years, can create such a camp.

One aspect impressed me through the pitches of the 16 groups of entrepreneurs who participated this time. That is the globalization of the founding team. Many startups welcomed foreigners as CXOs, and most startups announced their intention to enter overseas markets during their pitches.

Japanese startups face certain hurdles in entering the global market due to the language barrier. However, the startups that participated in this year's Incubate Camp may easily overcome such hurdles.