<DCON 2026 Pre-Event Newsletter May 8-9> A Unique Business Contest Where Tech College Students Compete with AI and Business Value. Featuring the 2024 Winners! Tracing Their Path and Current Success

Teenage technical college students, with no prior entrepreneurial experience but armed with core AI deep learning technology, conceived the anti-scam measure 'Sagi-dome Taro' as a 'business that solves social issues' in less than a year, launching the startup 'ToI Nexus'. Today, they have been adopted for social problem-solving proof-of-concept projects in collaboration with local governments and police, and have grown enough to take the stage as representatives of next-generation startups at 'SusHi Tech Tokyo 2026' (starting April 27), one of Asia's largest global innovation conferences hosted by the Tokyo Metropolitan Government. How did 'ToI Nexus' transcend the boundaries of student entrepreneurs to be evaluated as a real business? By tracing their trajectory, we get to the core of the upcoming '7th National Institute of Technology Deep Learning Contest 2026 (DCON 2026)' (Organized by: Japan Deep Learning Association (JDLA)), where students compete on AI technology and business viability based on corporate valuation.

The Tokyo Metropolitan College of Industrial Technology team that won the grand prize at DCON 2024 and founded ToI Nexus Inc. © National Institute of Technology Deep Learning Contest (DCON)

■ What is 'Sagi-dome Taro' by ToI Nexus, challenging the severe issue of scam call damages?

In 2025, special fraud damages in Japan reached a record worst of 141.4 billion JPY (*1). Amidst the urgent need for radical solutions against increasingly sophisticated methods, 'Sagi-dome Taro', an AI-powered scam call detection system developed by 'ToI Nexus' primarily to prevent such damages, is gathering attention.

This system acts as a preventive measure especially against 'fake police scams' targeting the elderly, utilizing AI to detect potentially fraudulent calls in real-time. Furthermore, it was selected for Hyogo Prefecture's 'Hyogo TECH Innovation Project', conducting demonstrations in fiscal 2025 in cooperation with the Prefectural Citizens' Life Department and Police Headquarters. This initiative continues today, and its deployment towards social implementation is expanding, such as being adopted in hands-on events hosted by local governments.

(*1) Source: 2025 Special Fraud Occurrence Status (Metropolitan Police Department)

Judging at DCON 2024 © National Institute of Technology Deep Learning Contest (DCON) Judging at DCON 2024 © National Institute of Technology Deep Learning Contest (DCON)

■ What is the National Institute of Technology Deep Learning Contest (DCON) they first challenged?

In 2023, Mr. Nishitani (currently Representative Director and CEO of ToI Nexus Inc.) and others, who were second-year students in the AI Smart Engineering Course at the Shinagawa Campus of the Tokyo Metropolitan College of Industrial Technology, entered 'DCON 2024' as their starting point. DCON is a business creation-type contest where technical college students utilize manufacturing and AI (deep learning) technologies to devise works and services that lead to solving social issues and creating new value, competing through prototype creation. Its greatest feature is evaluating business viability through 'corporate valuation' as investment value. Active venture capitalists (VCs) serving as final round judges assess the business, and the team with the highest 'corporate valuation' wins the grand prize.

Providing educational programs through this contest, offering business plan and presentation guidance by active entrepreneurs and managers, and comprehensive support extending to post-contest startup and commercialization support programs are unique features of DCON.

Backed by funding from JDLA's 'DCON Startup Support 100 Million Yen Fund', startup back-office support, and business mentoring, 14 DCON-originated startups including 'ToI Nexus' have been born to date.

■ The Fusion of Technology and 'Market Entry Strategy' Valued at 400 Million Yen by Investors!

The Tokyo Metropolitan College of Industrial Technology team led by CEO Nishitani in 2024 presented an extremely effective solution using deep learning technology throughout the preliminaries and finals of the 'DCON 2024' tournament. Their prototype and business plan, which became the prototype of the 'Sagi-dome Taro' they currently develop, earned an extremely high investment evaluation of 400 million JPY in corporate valuation from the investor judges at 'DCON 2024', brilliantly winning the grand prize and becoming champions.

The AI solution to prevent scam calls entered by the team was a groundbreaking work that answered the urgent social issue of elderly protection by having edge AI analyze call audio in real-time and alert potential scam signs on the spot. However, from the judges