Japan SME Agency, METI-KYUSHU, and SMRJ Visit i2i for Industrial Collaboration

i2i held a Taiwan-Japan cooperation meeting on October 17 at the Nangang Software Incubator Center.Distinguished guests attending the event included representatives from Taiwan's Small and Medium Enterprise and Startup Administration (SMESA), the Japan-Taiwan Exchange Association, and the Taiwan-Japan Cooperation Delegation.

The delegation was composed of members from Japan’s Small and Medium Enterprise Agency, the Kyushu Bureau of Economy, Trade and Industry, and the Organization for Small & Medium Enterprises and Regional Innovation (SMRJ).

During the event, i2i also invited two promising Taiwanese startups, Arplanet and MetAI, to share their growth experiences and insights into Taiwan's industrial landscape.

About the Japanese SME Agency

The Japanese Small and Medium Enterprise Agency (Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry, METI) is an administrative body under Japan's Ministry of Economy, Trade, and Industry. It is responsible for overseeing and supporting the development of SMEs, focusing on economic, trade, and industrial policy formulation and execution.

Japan’s Business Structure

SMEs, including sole proprietors, make up 99.7% (approximately 3.57 million) of all businesses in Japan, employing about 70% of the country’s workforce.

Japan’s Startup Ecosystem Policies

In recent years, Japan's SME Agency has placed significant emphasis on fostering startup growth, launching a series of initiatives such as:

Five-Year Startup Development Plan:

This initiative aims to create a supportive environment for startups, with the goal of increasing investment in the startup sector tenfold within five years. The plan includes talent development, funding support, and promoting open innovation.

J-Startup Program:

Designed to support high-potential startups, this program offers funding, expert guidance, and market access resources to help businesses scale quickly and expand internationally. The initiative also seeks to encourage bilateral cooperation between Taiwan and Japan through industrial collaboration offices, fostering mutual growth within the startup ecosystems of both countries.