Calling2Scale Gunma: Gateway to Japan is a curated 3-month international Bootcamp designed for advanced European startups, combining virtual and in-person activities.
Programme Goals:
• Support EU startups’ market entry into Japan: Enable fast and effective entry into the Japanese market and beyond by equipping startups with hands-on tools, regulatory insights, and cultural understanding. The programme positions Gunma as a strategic launchpad for broader expansion across Asia.
• Launch new EU innovation in the Japanese market: Connect European startups directly with committed Japanese industry players (e.g. Nippon del monte, Mitsubishi Pencil, Mitsuba, Oki Electronics), facilitating proof-of-concepts, pilot projects, and long-term commercial agreements based on clearly defined innovation needs.
Calling2Scale Gunma will take place between 22th September and 2nd December 2025, including a Immersion lab in Japan place between 17th-21th of November 2025.
Calling2Scale Gunma will focus on 6 impact technology domains based on the corporate’s innovation challenges and the EIT scope. We seek start-ups that offer solutions to the following challenges:
1. Healthcare Innovation – Leb by Mitsuba
First challenge: Relevant technologies include biometric sensing, AI-driven personalisation, gesture or voice interfaces, wearable devices, and behavioral analytics, as examples only.
Second challenge: technologies that improve caregiving efficiency and reduce workforce strain through smart, cost-effective automation. Examples include motorized mobility aids, IoT-based monitoring systems, adaptive ECUs, AI-driven task support, and safety-focused automation for care environments, among others.
2. Circular Energy – Led by Taiyo Yuden
First challenge: innovative technologies that enable circular use of manufacturing by-
products and recovery of critical materials. Relevant approaches include advanced material separation, chemical and mechanical recycling, hydrometallurgy, and biological or thermal treatments to maximise sustainability and resource efficiency.
Second challenge: solutions focusing on integrating advanced heat recovery technologies like regenerative burners and thermoelectric generators, combined with high-performance
thermal insulation to optimise energy use in ceramic firing.
Third challenge: system packaging, smart power management tailored for wearable tech, and robust designs capable of operating in harsh environments such as disaster zones and space missions.
3. Sustainable textiles – Led by Gunma Textile Technology Promotion Association
4. Smart Hospital – Led by Kuribara
First challenge: structured data handling, using AI to extract, standardise, and format clinical information efficiently. Example technologies include intelligent clinical documentation assistants, automated coding tools, context-aware EHR interfaces, and integration platforms, though other innovative solutions are also welcome.
Second challenge: Technologies that may be relevant include RFID and barcode
systems, IoT-enabled storage units, cloud-based inventory platforms, machine learning
algorithms for automated replenishment, blockchain for secure supply chain records, and
mobile dashboards for real-time monitoring though other innovative approaches are also
encouraged
5. Sensing Intelligence – Led by OKI
First challenge: AI-driven technologies to predict maintenance needs, improve real-time operations, and enhance production scheduling. Utilising edge AI enables immediate data processing on-site for faster decision-making, while reinforcement learning supports adaptive, efficient scheduling.
Second challenge: AI analysis of data from OKI’s Manufacturing Support System (Projection Assembly System), HR data, and other relevant sources, sensor data, primarily acceleration, image, GNSS, and water level gauge data to enhance earth observation and infrastructure monitoring. It involves leveraging big data analytics and AI/ML to extract actionable insights from diverse satellite data sources, including optics, infrared, SAR, and hyperspectral imaging.
6. Sustainable packaging & materials – Led by Mitsubishi Pencil
Detailed Explanation:
1. Online training bootcamp for the European startups
Bootcamp Aims to: Facilitate early engagement between European startups and Gunma-based corporates, helping to build meaningful connections ahead of the face-to-face meeting and enabling collaboration discussions to begin earlier. This paves the way for partnerships through joint projects, proof of concepts (PoCs), and long-term business collaborations. Provide European startups with curated tools, insights, and knowledge to understand the Japanese market through 6 diverse virtual 2-hour sessions that will discuss themes such as:
• Exploring Japan’s Innovation Ecosystem, from private sector to government Incentives
• Navigating business cultural barriers workshop
• Mastering the pitch – storytelling & preparation for pitching to the corporates
• Entering global markets: Regulatory framework & market entry strategies
• Sector deep dive: Global industry challenges, emerging trends, and innovation barriers
• Corporate collaboration: How to engage and work with large enterprises
• Proof of concept excellence: Frameworks and best practices for startups PoC’s in international markets
2. 1:1 support meetings with dedicated innovation contact points from within the participating Japanese corporates
An essential component of the first phase will be the 1:1 meetings aimed to initiating meaningful engagement between startups and Japanese corporates, building strategic alignment, and preparing the ground for real collaboration. Participating Japanese corporates and the senior staff from the Gunma Prefecture governor’s office, will be selected to support startups based on their specific needs.
These 1:1 sessions will focus on meaningful dialogue around real business challenges, aligning needs and solutions, creating a customized roadmap for identifying use cases, solution adaptation, and preparation for impactful in-person engagements in Japan.
3. Immersion Lab to Gunma & Tokyo (17th -21th November 2025)
Selected startups will join a five-day Immersion Lab in Japan this November, designed to give them a real, on-the-ground understanding of how to succeed in the Japanese market. Through hands-on experiences, direct meetings with local partners, and focused time with potential collaborators, startups will build meaningful relationships and gain practical insights. The primary goal of the Immersion Lab is to deepen the virtual connections established during the earlier phases of the programme and translate them into concrete, long-term partnership opportunities and PoC’s process. The immersion lab will expose the startups to Gunma’s dynamic business and commercial hub, creating a launchpad for scaling and establishing real market impact.
The Immersion Lab agenda will include:
• Curated matchmaking sessions with corporates, investors, and public sector partners to explore strategic alignment and co-development opportunities.
• On-site visits to corporate R&D centers, manufacturing facilities, and innovation hubs to gain firsthand exposure to market needs and operational environments.
• Access to industry-led tracks, business units, real data environments, and beta test sites that can serve as launching points for collaborative pilots.
• Sector-specific roundtables and deep-dive workshops designed to co-develop proof-of-concept (PoC) frameworks and pilot strategies.
• Peer learning and ecosystem exposure to Japan’s dynamic innovation landscape, including talent, regulatory pathways, and commercialisation models, with leading Japanese startups and European startups that already penetrated the Japanese market successfully.
The programme estimated value is 15,000 EUR per startup, with selected startups normally required to pay a participation fee of 5,000 EUR for participating in the programme; however, as this is the first Calling2Scale in Japan, startups will only need to pay 1,000 EUR to participate.
In addition, EIT Global Outreach offers a sub-grant of up to €2,200 per participating startup to cover travel and accommodation costs for the Gunma Immersion Lab in November. This support is provided upon the signing of a sub-grant agreement.
The call is open for Startups who meet these criteria and can be considered eligible:
• Must be established either in the member states of the European Union, including their
outermost regions, or in the overseas countries and territories, or from Horizon Europe
Associated Countries.
• Have a market-ready product (TRL 7 or higher).
• Have completed at least one funding round (e.g., seed or later).
• Actively seeking to expand into the Japanese market.
• Able to commit a C-level executive (e.g., CEO, CTO, Co-Founder) to participate fully in the
three-month programme, including an in-person visit to Japan.
• Demonstrate a global mindset and cultural openness, with readiness to operate in a new
business environment.
• Offer a solution relevant to one of the programme’s domains: Waste Management, CO₂
Emissions & Energy Efficiency, Sustainable Packaging & Advanced Textiles, Digital and Space Technologies.
