Circuit board printing startup AgIC wins JapanNight VII pitch contest

JapanNight VII, organized by market consulting and brand localization firm Btrax, brought 14 of the Rising Sun’s most ambitious startups together for an on-stage pitch battle – the last stop before the final event in San Francisco. Organized by market consulting and brand localization firm Btrax, each startup was ranked by a panel of judges based on four criteria: technology, business model, pitch skill, and global expansion possibility. The top six teams are provided with airfare to the main event on November 5, among other prizes, that will provide them with an opportunity to meet Silicon Valley VCs and western media outlets.

AgIC, a startup that makes it possible for anyone to print their own circuit board, using off-the-shelf inkjet printers and conductive ink, took top honors. Represented by CEO Shinya Shimizu, AgIC was also the second-place finisher at Innovation Weekend Tokyo back in June. The 13 other finalists appear below, from highest to lowest ranked:

Sansan

What to do with that giant stack of business cards after a Friday night networking event? Sansan allows users to capture them via smartphone or rentable scanners and relies on real human transcription to make sure that lowercase L doesn’t become a capital I.

Kaizen

Kaizen Platform’s flagship product, planBCD, optimizes websites through data analytics, straightforward A/B testing, and staff crowdsourcing.

Akerun

We live in a digital world, but most people still carry physical keys to unlock their front door. Akerun wants to change that by using your iPhone as a digital key, via Bluetooth and an easy-to-install smart lock.

Cafetalk

Cafetalk is an online marketplace for knowledge that connects highly-qualified tutors (specializing in a variety of subjects, from languages to musical instruments) with students around the world. Lessons are implemented via Skype chat.

Fove

Virtual reality headsets could revolutionize the gaming industry, but Fove wants to revolutionize the headset itself by incorporating eye and motion-tracking technology that boost realism and visual immersion.

Paintone

Founder and CEO Shunsuke Nakamura designed Paintone, an app that combines pictures and sounds to generate cute animations, to spark his young daughter’s creativity.

CarryOn

Children grow fast and parents are often left with bags of lightly-worn clothes that no longer fit. CarryOn removes the hassle of reselling them by storing, packing, and shipping on behalf of the user.

TripleLights

TripleLights is an online marketplace that connects travelers with local tour guides.

Okuyuki

Illustrators can submit their work to Okuyuki and, through crowdfunded community support, bring it to life in the form of a physical 3D figure.

GameChanger

GameChanger makes a smart toothbrush that motivates children to keep their teeth clean by turning the mundane task into a game.

Sumatium

Sumatium is a cloud-based testing platform for Android devices that allows developers to run tests on multiple physical devices simultaneously – all from their own smartphone.

KitchHike

Co-CEO Yutaka Asari calls his startup the AirBnB for kitchens. “Hikers” can browse the menus of local “cooks” and make a reservation to eat a home-cooked meal – in the cook’s own home.

Ptengine

Ptengine analyzes site traffic and visitor behavior across multiple devices with a focus on simplicity and ease of use.

See: eFishery, a smart aqualife feeding system, wins Jakarta’s Get in the Ring pitch competition