NIMS and UMI complete MoU on entrepreneurship and the creation of new business in the material and chemical fields

The National Institute for Materials Science (NIMS; President: Kazuhito Hashimoto) and Universal Materials Incubator Co., Ltd. (UMI; Representative Director: Shosuke Kiba), a venture capital firm specializing in the material and chemical industries, have completed a Memorandum of Understanding regarding collaborations in venture entrepreneurship and the creation of business using NIMS’s technology seeds as a foundation. Leveraging UMI’s expertise in venture support in the material and chemical fields, through mutual collaborations ranging from the discovery of NIMS’s technology seeds with the potential for becoming new business to support in the startup of venture companies and investments after business startup, we will provide powerful support for the social implementation of new materials and technologies, and promote the creation of new industry in the material and chemical fields.

Outline of collaborations

1. Introduce NIMS’s research seeds and provide information and advice on the creation of business by UMI
2. Both parties share knowledge of business creation that they have accumulated up to now
3. Promote the creation of venture companies using NIMS’s research results
4. Provide support in investments and assistance offered to venture companies by NIMS
5. UMI provides training programs for NIMS employees
6. Set up collaboration and contact meetings to promote exchanges of information

NIMS, Executive Vice President, Kazuhiro Hono (Left) and UMI, Representative Director, Shosuke Kiba (Right)

Background
The material and chemical industries in Japan overwhelm other industries in terms of the ratio of shipment amounts and added value as part of the manufacturing industry overall. Up to now, Japanese companies have brought about many innovations in this field, supporting the growth and development of other industries as well. In recent years, there has been an increase in the number of new venture companies established originating from academia (e.g., universities and national research institutes), and there has been an uptick in activities aimed at creating innovations, but many of these activities are focused on IT and biotech. Few material and chemical startups have been established, in part because of the time required from R&D to industrialization, and attention has been drawn to the lack of innovations created in this field. To resolve these issues, UMI and NIMS have decided to begin activities aimed at accelerating the social implementation of academic results in the material and chemical fields, utilizing technology seeds from NIMS, which continues to generate the world’s most advanced research results in material fields, along with knowledge and functions related to finances and business creation at UMI, a venture capital company that specializes in the material and chemical industries, collaborating and cooperating from the discovery of technology seeds aimed at business creation to startup support and investment activities after startup is complete. Through these activities, UMI and NIMS will revitalize the creation of new industry in the material and chemical fields originating from academia, and strengthen the competitiveness of the material and chemical industries in Japan.

About National Institute for Materials Science (NIMS)
Location: 1-2-1 Sengen, Tsukuba, Ibaraki 305-0047, JAPAN
President: Kazuhito Hashimoto
Established: Apr 1, 2001
NIMS was created through the merging of the National Research Institute for Metals (NRIM) and the National Institute for Research in Inorganic Materials (NIRIM) under the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology. At the time, it was the only public research agency in Japan specializing in research on substances and materials, and in 2016, it was designated as a special National Research and Development Agency that generates R&D results at the world’s highest level. Its goal is to conduct R&D targeting materials that will meet social needs, including the reduction of environmental and energy burden and the construction of safe, secure social infrastructures, while at the same time increasing the level of substance and material science and technologies in Japan.
https://www.nims.go.jp/eng/

About Universal Materials Incubator Co., Ltd. (UMI)
Location：1-12-22 Tsukiji, Chuo-ku, Tokyo 104-0045, Japan
Representative Director: Shosuke Kiba
Established：Oct 6, 2015
UMI invests in outstanding new technologies and businesses in the fields of materials and chemicals that form the foundations for future industry, originating from both Japanese companies and academia, based on the vision of “Strengthening Japan’s engineering capabilities and cultivating an industry structure that can compete globally, by fostering outstanding material/chemical companies.”
https://www.umi.co.jp/en/