Japan's technology news: April 2025

USSC: Operationalising Australia-Japan-United States defence cooperation

National University of Singapore’s NUS Enterprise is to expand its Japan presence with the launch of its second BLOCK71 office, in Tokyo, adding to 2024 opening of Nagoya office / full item
Japan: Space agency and partner firm commence work on Mars landing spacecraft using inflatable decelerators / full item
Japan: Enish, a Tokyo Exchange-listed gaming firm, to use its balance sheet to purchase $667,260 worth of Bitcoin / full item
Japan: Lifehub Inc to unveil all-terrain electric wheelchair in 2026 that allows users to climb and descend stairs, and board trains and buses without assistance / full item
National University of Singapore’s NUS Enterprise is to expand its Japan presence with the launch of its second BLOCK71 office, in Tokyo, adding to 2024 opening of Nagoya office / full item

Secure World Foundation: Global Counterspace Capabilities

Japan: Antitrust watchdog serves Google a cease-and-desist order over requiring Android manufacturers to prioritize Google search apps and services / full item
Japan-ASEAN/India Open Innovation Exchange event is set for May 7th in Tokyo, featuring pitches by 12 startups from 8 ASEAN countries and India / full item
Japan: SBC Medical Group, a NASDAQ-listed beauty and cosmetic surgery clinic operator, completes Bitcoin purchase worth over $418K as part of ‘flexible financial strategy’ / full item
Japan looks at ‘decentralizing’ undersea cable stations, citing area concentrations of landing points as a communications risk factor / full item
Japan: Ministry of Economy, Trade & Industry is considering listing undersea cable and satellite manufacturing as critical for economic security / full item
An overview of Japan’s tokenization landscape, including a look at the role of Canton Network, a privacy-enabled open blockchain network / full item

Indo-Pacific 5×5: Daily geopolitics newsletters & downloads

Japan: Mitsubishi UFJ Trust & Banking is to issue the nation’s first fiat-pegged stablecoin, with the company now making ‘final adjustments’ on the coin prior to rollout / full item
Japan: Nippon Electric Glass announces plans to develop samples of larger glass substrates for semiconductor devices by as early as 2026, touting superior heat resistance / full item
Japan: Plug and Play Japan has established the investment limited partnership, ‘Plug and Play Japan Fund I’, to support global expansion of Japan’s startups / full item
The Philippines is working with Malaysia and Japan to link their instant payment systems for merchants, with sights on graduating from bilateral ties to a multilateral approach / full item
South Korea’s DSRV blockchain infrastructure company inks MOU with Japan’s Next Finance Tech (NFT) to pursue blockchain infra business across Asia, starting with Japan / full item

Secure World Foundation: Global Counterspace Capabilities

Japan: April 2025