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Shibuya Startup Support is an initiative by the Shibuya City Office to support international founders on their startup journey here in Japan.

Shibuya Startup Support

We are SHIBUYA STARTUP SUPPORT, an initiative led by the Shibuya City Office to invite your startup business (whether in Japan or from abroad) to Shibuya to grow with us. Think of us as a concierge to help you establish and expand your business in Shibuya as smoothly as possible.
Through this page we provide you with up-to-the-minute resources, access to face-to-face advice, and the opportunity to connect you to local business opportunities.

ALL OPPORTUNITIES

Members

Yoshiro Tasaka
Yoshiro Tasaka
LEADER

Yoshiro joined Shibuya City Office in January 2020 to take charge of internationalizing Shibuya City by building a startup ecosystem until January 2025. He worked for the Consulate-General of Japan in San Francisco for eight and a half years, involving himself in numerous activities in the Bay Area, such as setting up non-profit organizations. Upon returning to Japan in 2016, he worked as a board member of a startup in Tohoku and then joined Komatsu Ltd. He also served as Vice President of Landlog, a venture company established by Komatsu. Yoshiro is committed to developing Shibuya into a startup ecosystem to rival Silicon Valley, using the skills he acquired overseas and his work experience at both major corporations and startups.

Akiko Miyamoto
Akiko Miyamoto
LEADER

After 20 years handling brand strategy and communications for foreign clients at an advertising agency, Akiko joined Shibuya City in 2020. As Director of the Department of Industrial Promotion, Culture, and Tourism, she is responsible for industrial promotion, cultural policy, and startup support; significantly the promotion of public-private partnership-based community development initiatives such as the introduction of the digital local currency Hachi Pay and the art and technology festival DIG SHIBUYA. She was appointed as Director of the International City Strategy Division in August 2025 to lead projects including strategic city promotion, startup support, and urban data utilization. Utilizing a global perspective and strong coordination skills, she drives Shibuya's urban strategy forward, shaping Shibuya's future by integrating experience from both the private and public sectors.

Asuka Higa
Asuka Higa
LEADER

While working in education as a book editor, Asuka developed a deep interest in the public sector. After engaging in community development projects, she joined Shibuya City to work in senior welfare and cultural fields, before being seconded to the Tokyo 2020 Organizing Committee. She joined Shibuya City's startup ecosystem in 2025, where she is responsible for building the startup ecosystem and implementing related initiatives. She excels at translating concepts into tangible business ventures and collaborating/negotiating with stakeholders, supporting the realization of Shibuya's startup initiatives through public-private partnerships.

Saeko Seno
Saeko Seno
LEADER

Saeko joined the Shibuya City Office's Global Core Cities Promotion Office in April 2021 as the department’s 2iC. Before that, she worked in various fields in the municipal government including public relations, foreigner registration, senior welfare, human resources, and system operation. Fluency in both IT systems and English (unfortunately hard to come by in the halls of regional government!) marks her as a great communicator and an integral part of the Shibuya Startup Support team. She loves both Southern California and her dog.

Yoshino Okamura
Yoshino Okamura
LEADER

Yoshino joined Shibuya City in 2018, where she worked in the General Affairs Department on projects across the entire city. From 2021, seconded to the Cabinet Office's Science and Technology Innovation Promotion Office, she handled national startup policy tasks including follow-up on the first-phase Startup Ecosystem Hub Cities project and promoting the Global Startup Campus initiative. Possessing exceptional responsiveness and foresight, and backed by strong trust from government agencies, she supports Shibuya's startup initiatives from a policy perspective, connecting local administration and national policies to shaping Shibuya's future.

Nao Masumoto
Nao Masumoto
LEADER

While working on urban infrastructure through duties in the Civil Engineering Department, Nao also participated in public-private partnership projects as a member of the Shibuya City Select Team. During university, gained experience supporting students participating in overseas internships and planning/operating international exchange events through international volunteer activities. Having joined Shibuya City in 2022 and assigned to the Global Hub City Promotion Division in April 2025, she is a rising talent poised to shape Shibuya's future, continuously embracing challenges with a forward-thinking mindset.

Miyu Goto
Miyu Goto
LEADER

In April 2025 Miyu was dispatched to Shibuya City from Tokyu Corporation through a personnel exchange program, and is responsible for formulating Shibuya's redevelopment strategy, area promotion, and event planning; playing a central role in Shibuya's urban development and communications. Leveraging the strong communication skills and balanced perspective cultivated through approximately 10 years of overseas residency, she promotes collaboration with domestic and international stakeholders. With an international perspective, she transcends public-private boundaries to promote the appeal of Shibuya City's startup ecosystem globally. Driven by a strong desire to contribute to Shibuya's development, he works to create distinctive Shibuya-style value while respecting the area's diversity.

Paul Bragiel
Paul Bragiel
LEADER

Paul Bragiel is a three-time entrepreneur whose venture includes Bragiel Brothers, an early stage technology fund focusing on Silicon Valley. He's collectively invested in the seed rounds of over 250+ companies with holdings in other multi-billion dollar companies like Niantic (Pokemon Go), Stripe & Zappos.

Chika Yamamoto
Chika Yamamoto
LEADER

Chika is an entrepreneur and ecosystem builder based in Berlin. She is the founder of CROSSBIE , which focuses on bridging Japan and the global startup ecosystem. Also, she is an ambassador for AsiaBerlin, a collective platform, powered by the Berlin Senate Department, to bring together startup communities in the world, and Digital Hub Global Ambassador for, Germany Trade & Invest (GTAI), the economic development agency of the Federal Republic of Germany.

Taisuke Alex Odajima
Taisuke Alex Odajima
LEADER

Taisuke Alex Odajima is the CEO of EDGEof Innovation. He has been a bridge for startup ecosystems in Japan and overseas. Working with embassies and startup support organizations in more than 20 countries, he is involved in innovation-related policies in each nation. He was appointed as the selection committee for the “J-Startup” program by the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry Japan.

Yosuke Sasaki
Yosuke Sasaki
LEADER

Yosuke Sasaki is a partner, chief of staff and head of CEO Office at SoftBank Investment Advisers(SBIA). After starting his career at the Bank of Tokyo Mitsubishi (now MUFG Bank), he joined Softbank Corp (now SoftBank Group Corp), where he led multiple financing activities, M&A transactions, and the management of several portfolio companies. As part of the SoftBank Vision Fund’s founding team, Yosuke helped launch and build the world’s largest technology fund. He is based at SBIA headquarters in London and serves as co-representative of SBIA’s Tokyo office. Yosuke also acts as an advisor and investment committee member of Deepcore, which is AI-focused early stage VC fund. MBA from the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania.

Tom McInerney
Tom McInerney
LEADER

Tom McInerney is an active angel investor and company advisor. Tom was a seed investor in Segment, Notion, Bird (series a), Arcadia Power, Getaround, Memsql, Mode, Labgenius, Tala and others. Tom began his career as an engineer / scientist at Apple’s worldwide headquarters in cupertino and worked at sony on the VAIO computers before becoming an entrepreneur and investor. An avid environmentalist, Tom is on the national council of the World Wildlife Fund (WWF).

Justin Waldron
Justin Waldron
LEADER

Justin Waldron is co-founder / President of Playco, based in Tokyo. He’s an active angel investor in 60+ companies and previously co-founded Zynga, an unicorn company based in San Francisco.

Jonathan Siegel
Jonathan Siegel
LEADER

Jonathan Siegel is a Founder of Xenon Partners based in Japan and Silicon Valley. Jonathan is the author of “The San Francisco Fallacy.” He has multiple degrees like MBA, Computer Science and others.

Ayumi Ode
Ayumi Ode
LEADER

Special Advisor for Global Outreach. Ayumi Ode represents the Japan chapter of 500 Startups, one of the most active accelerators in the World. Ayumi has previously worked for two startups. She gained an MBA from Columbia University.