We held the "NQ Global Startup Gateway “R7 Achievement Showcase”" on Thursday, March 12th.

On Thursday, March 12th, we held the "NQ Global Startup Gateway R7 “Achievement Showcase”" at the Qrossover Lounge Yume on the 2nd floor of Nakanoshima Qross.

This event was held to showcase the results of the "NQ Global Startup Gateway (Nakanoshima Qross Global Startup Creation and Hub Promotion Project)" organized by Osaka Prefecture, and to share the future development and direction of the future medical startup ecosystem starting from Nakanoshima Qross. Through sessions on the COO talent development program, AI accelerator program, and NQ health accelerator program, the results of this year's initiatives and insights for the future formation of the ecosystem were shared.

At the beginning of the meeting, Mr. Takeshi Okumura (Supervisor for the Promotion of Future Medical Industrialization, Department of Commerce, Industry and Labor, Osaka Prefecture) gave the opening address, indicating that this project has been launched as a core project for forming a startup ecosystem at Nakanoshima Qross. He shared the innovative nature of the project, which is simultaneously promoting three programs: global support, COO talent development, and AI utilization, and that steady results are being produced in each program, and expressed expectations for further development in the coming years. Next, Mr. Yoshiki Sawa (Chairman, Future Medical Promotion Foundation) introduced the role that Nakanoshima Qross aims to play as a hub for the industrialization of future medicine, and explained the significance of this project and its future direction. He also shared that Nakanoshima Qross has entered its second year since opening, and that various stakeholders are actively participating, leading to discussions and co-creation. It was emphasized that the startup support measures at Nakanoshima Qross are not merely support, but rather focus on leading to the creation of concrete businesses, and that this requires initiative and execution from startups, supporters, and the entire community. Following this, Jun Miyagawa (CEO of MIRACLE SCIENCE INNOVATION Inc. and Assistant to the Chairman of the Board of Directors of the Future Medical Promotion Foundation) explained the overall picture of the NQ Global Startup Gateway and this year's initiatives. This project is designed as a two-year project that comprehensively promotes three programs under the leadership of Osaka Prefecture, and it was shown to be an Osaka model that "directly connects the social implementation of seeds to the world." The overseas network that was formed in a short period of time based at Nakanoshima Qross was also introduced as a strength, and the policy for creating startups that can compete on a global level was shared.

In the subsequent panel discussion on the Nakanoshima Qross version of the COO talent development program, themed "From Osaka to the World: Implementing the 'COO OS' that Holds the Key to Startup Success," Kazuyuki Motohashi (Future Medical Promotion Group, Life Science Industry Division, Growth Industry Promotion Office, Department of Commerce, Industry and Labor, Osaka Prefecture), Yoshihide Ishii (President and CEO, Alloy Therapeutics Co., Ltd. / online participant), Masataka Yamamoto (Director and COO, Mormil Co., Ltd.), Yuki Tsuchioka (Investment Manager, Genesia Ventures, Inc. / online participant), and Yosuke Ushimaru (Manager, Pharmaceutical Team, Bio & Fine Chemicals Department, Healthcare Division, Mitsubishi Corporation / online participant) took the stage. Moderated by Takehiro Okumura (General Manager, Alloy Therapeutics Co., Ltd. / Head of Quality, Alloy Cell Therapies), the discussion focused on the necessity of COO talent to advance drug discovery startups and the potential for forming a regional ecosystem through their development. Participants shared the realization that the essence of a COO lies in the practical ability to advance a project while involving experts, and they also cited the connections made between instructors and participants as a major achievement.

Next, in the crosstalk session for the NQ version of the Bio-Catalyst AI Accelerator Program, Shinya Yamamoto (General Manager, Deep Intelligent Pharma Co., Ltd.) gave an online program introduction, and Kazuma Yamakawa (Associate Professor, Department of Emergency Medicine, Osaka Medical and Pharmaceutical University) and Norimasa Nakamura (Research Director and Professor, Osaka Health Science University / Visiting Professor, Osaka University) presented their results online. Following this, Mari Kobayashi (MIRACLE SCIENCE INNOVATION Co., Ltd.) gave a review, and Motofumi Suzuki (Senior Manager, Deloitte Tohmatsu LLC) acted as interviewer, deepening the discussion on key points for breakthroughs in the life science and healthcare fields in light of the advancement of AI, as well as current challenges and future prospects in the healthcare deep tech field. In addition, a video message was received from Yu Moriguchi (Assistant to the Chairman, Future Medical Promotion Foundation / Specially Appointed Lecturer, Osaka University Global Medical Center). The program's distinctive feature was shared: it utilizes AI not merely as an efficiency tool, but as a means of promoting commercialization encompassing business strategy, regulatory affairs, intellectual property, and clinical trial design. Selected participants reported rapid progress, including AMED applications and the concretization of business plans, demonstrating the potential for accelerating commercialization by combining the knowledge of researchers and medical professionals with AI.

At the roundtable discussion on the "NQ Health Accelerator Program," Maki Kanan (Senior Officer for Investment in the UK, Business & Trade Section, British Consulate-General, Tech & Life Sciences), Junichi Higashi (Japan General Manager, MedTech Actuator LLC), and Lei Liu (Director, Innovation Partnership & i2.JP, AstraZeneca K.K.) took the stage. Moderated by Misato Yoshida (EVP, MIRACLE SCIENCE INNOVATION Inc.), the discussion covered Japan's potential and challenges from a global perspective, as well as the possibilities of startup support and international collaboration. It was shown that for Japanese startups to compete in the global market, in addition to technology, talent, funding, and experienced support are crucial, and that this program provides a practical foundation to address these shortcomings.

In the second half of the session, Takashi Serio (Representative Director, Japan Pharmaceutical Development Capability Promotion Organization) spoke on the theme of "Challenging Unresolved Medical Needs," arguing that drug development only gains value when it is used in clinical practice and becomes a standard treatment, rather than simply obtaining approval. He emphasized that the discomfort and challenges encountered in the field are the starting point for developing new treatments, and stressed the importance of universities, companies, medical professionals, and startups understanding each other's differences and collaborating.

At the end of the event, a networking session was held, allowing speakers and participants to interact actively. Through this event, the current state and future possibilities of the future medical startup ecosystem, starting with Nakanoshima Qross, were shared, and it provided an opportunity to foster new collaborations and challenges.