The 2025 Japan-U.S. Innovation Awards Symposium

On Thursday, July 17, Consul General Yo Osumi and Deputy Consul General Takeshi Ishihara attended the Japan-US Innovation Awards at Stanford University, an event that recognizes outstanding companies and startups with connections to both the U.S. and Japan. Consul General Osumi gave the opening remarks, congratulating the startups and companies for their outstanding entrepreneurship and expressing a hope for continued economic collaboration between Japan and the US.

This year, Waymo (US), a pioneer in autonomous driving, and teamLab (Japan), an international art collective that creates immersive experiences, received the Emerging Leader Awards for their innovative work in their fields. The Innovation Showcase also highlighted five Japanese startup companies (Alpha Fusion Inc., Josys, NanoQT, POCKETALK Corporation, and Thinker Inc.) that are developing groundbreaking technologies, including solutions in biotech, enterprise software, quantum computing, AI translation, and robotics.

Later, representatives from tech companies Anthropic, Applied Materials, and AI Squared participated in a panel discussion on AI and Japan-US cooperation in 2025. Finally, there was a fireside chat with Stanford’s Dr. John L. Hennessy, former President of the university and current Chairman of the Board of Alphabet.

The Consulate helped sponsor this annual event, which is co-organized by the Japan Society of Northern California (JSNC) and Stanford’s US-Asia Technology Management Center.