LinkedIn Japan To Be Launched By Joi Of Neoteny Labs

Not only is Joichi “Joi” Ito extremely busy with Neoteny Labs and with his upcoming new appointment at MIT Media Lab, he just announced that he’ll be helping LinkedIn founder Reid Hoffman set up LinkedIn in Japan.

An excerpt from Joi’s blog post:

“As LinkedIn begins its global expansion, Japan is an important priority and recently I’ve been advising LinkedIn on a more formal basis.

Japan REALLY needs LinkedIn right now. LinkedIn is NOT a social network; it is a professional network. It is a network that allows people to build their professional identity, share business expertise and information, and advance your professional knowledge about subjects important to you. As privacy issues exceedingly become a concern, it’s very important to keep your casual, gaming and social networks separated from your professional network. I think LinkedIn will be an essential tool for professionals in Japan as it is in the rest of the world.

So, this is my last “real job” before I transition over completely to the Media Lab role: helping to launch LinkedIn in Japan.“