Next Step: The Japan Competition

The Columbia Venture Community (CVC) Taiwan, Columbia Alumni Taiwan, Columbia Venture Community Japan and Columbia Alumni Japan, in collaboration with Headline Asia, the Taipei Computer Association, BE Health, Startup Terrace and GTB Accelerator, invite Taiwan-based startups to participate in an exciting pitch competition that will springboard you into the Japanese market.

We are selecting up to 10 Taiwan-based startups to pitch to VCs in Japan. 3 winning teams will receive a ticket to Tokyo and all finalists will have the chance to undergo an intensive 4-week bootcamp to prepare you thoroughly to meet Japanese investors. Through our partner Headline Asia, you will have the opportunity to visit IVS Kyoto 2026, meet up with Japanese startups and also Japanese accelerators and incubators for a comprehensive overview of the Japan startup ecosystem.

We also encourage startups to apply to our organizing partner Headline Asia's Launchpad program at the same time through this LINK. Take your next step in your startup journey now and challenge yourself by looking beyond Taiwan for our inaugural Next Step Program to Japan and the Headline Launchpad program!

The CVC Taiwan Next Step: Japan Competition committee is happy to share with you the 9 finalists for our inaugural competition. We were thoroughly impressed by the quality of all the submissions and only decided on the finalists after 2 weeks of intense deliberations. We would like to thank all the companies who applied and wish you continued success in your startup journey. The finalists are, in alphabetical order:

Coherence Bio
DeepRad.AI
ekoXense
food+
Leeuwenhoek Laboratories
mLab
PETcision
Protuoso Biosciences
Veloscope

Congratulations to the finalists and we will be notifying every finalist by email with details for the finals to be held on Wednesday, May 27th, 2026 at Futureward Central.