Phoenixi, a Kyoto-based residential incubator for corporate intrapreneurs and social entrepreneurs, held the Kickoff event for the 11th cohort of its Incubation Program on June 12 at toberu 1, the company’s residential incubation facility. The event welcomed approximately 90 attendees, including program partners and supporters.
As in the previous cohort, half of this cohort’s Fellows are from overseas, bringing together a highly diverse group across nationalities and professional domains. Reflecting this diversity, the event was conducted in both Japanese and English. In addition, AI‑powered real‑time translation subtitles were introduced to ensure that all participants could fully engage in the discussions.
This page features the pitch videos presented during the event. ➡️ See photos
Event opening videos
- 45-sec recap of the previous Showcase [March 2026]: The final pitch event of the Social Innovator Program (SIP) Cohort 2
- Month 1 recap: Incubation Program Cohort 11 [May-June 2026]
Opening remarks
- Yutaka Iijima | COO and executive director, Phoenixi
- Masaru Takayanagi | Executive Officer, VP & CIO, Ajinomoto Co., Inc.
- Yoshiko Koizumi, PhD | Planning Group Manager, Marketing Research Div., Daikin Industries [on behalf of Katsunori Ishii, Executive Officer]
- Mihoko Arai | International Affairs Director, Economic Strategy Bureau, Osaka City
Pitches by six new Fellows:
- Toshiyuki Yamada | Ajinomoto Co., Inc. | MitasuVege: frozen meal delivery with a day’s worth of veggies, made easy
- Kaori Tada | Daikin Industries | AmPle: a subscription service for ambience place of hay
- Su (SuKha) | Fashion designer & icon | Something to Wear by SuKha Never Dies
- Yuya Ogawa | Founder & CEO, Noevis Inc. | Noevis: an interactive entertainment platform for neurodivergent children
- Pandi Agnes | Doshisha Business School, Global MBA ’25 | Xplore!: a platform connecting tourists and local mobility providers
- Brian Roy Tan, PhD | Co-founder & CEO, Wisdom Approach Pte Ltd | Scam Protect: identification using elemental fingerprinting
Panel discussion: “Mission Possible 2: Fostering Ventures and Talent Together”
- Masaru Takayanagi | Executive Officer, VP & CIO, Ajinomoto Co., Inc.
- Yuichi Yoshimura | New product planning Senior Manager, New business development office, NISSHA
- Izumi Kobayashi | Co-founder, Phoenixi | Independent Director of Omron and Fujits
Closing remarks
- Yukiko Hashitera | CEO and co-founder, Phoenixi
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About Phoenixi Co Ltd: Phoenixi operates a residential incubation program and a fund for program graduates to foster both business ideas that address social challenges and the entrepreneurial talent behind them. Program participants (Phoenixi Fellows) — including corporate employees, university faculty, students, and entrepreneurs — live for four months at the company’s facility “toberu”, where they engage in daily cross-sector interactions, startup-focused skill training, and personalized mentoring and coaching. Through this process, they develop new businesses that generate both profit and social impact. Founded in 2018 in Kyoto by Yukiko Hashitera, Dr Sachiko Kuno, and Izumi Kobayashi, Phoenixi is built around the concepts of “creating corporate-born ventures” and “sharing unusual time and space.” Since its inception in 2019, the company has supported a total of 13 cohorts and 96 Fellows (44 sponsored Fellows and 52 independent Fellows), with 31% women and 21% international participants.
