Kanagawa Prefecture x AUBA: eiicon Awarded Management Contract for 'BAK' and 'YAK' Programs for 6th Consecutive Year
eiicon has been selected to manage Kanagawa Prefecture's open innovation programs, BAK and YAK, for FY2026. This marks their 6th year of continuous management, during which they have supported 146 co-creation projects.
📋 Article Processing Timeline
- 📰 Published: April 28, 2026 at 23:00
- 🔍 Collected: April 28, 2026 at 14:31
- 🤖 AI Analyzed: April 28, 2026 at 14:42 (10 min after Collected)
eiicon Co., Ltd. (Headquarters: Toranomon, Minato-ku, Tokyo; President: Ayuko Nakamura), operator of AUBA, Japan's largest open innovation platform, has been awarded the management contract for FY2026 for "Business Accelerator Kanagawa (BAK)," which aims to create business collaboration projects between major corporations and venture companies, and "Yell 'Government x Venture' Alliance Kanagawa (YAK)," which aims to solve administrative and social issues through collaboration between Kanagawa Prefecture/municipalities and venture companies.
eiicon will continue to support the overall management of this program, from planning, design, and operation to PR strategy, in order to realize new projects through co-creation and achieve early commercialization.
### Record of BAK/YAK by Kanagawa Prefecture and eiicon (FY2021-2025)
eiicon has managed the Kanagawa Prefecture "BAK" operations for six terms since FY2021 and the "YAK" operations since its inception in FY2025. To date, a total of 146 co-creation projects have been selected, and hands-on support for commercialization is ongoing.
In this sixth year, in addition to previous experience and achievements, collaboration with the eiicon Kanagawa base (located in WeWork Ocean Gate Minatomirai), which opened last year, will be accelerated. We will strongly support the overall operation and further realization and commercialization of co-creation through open innovation.
### Comments from Representatives
**Tetsuya Ueno (Group Leader, Venture Support Group, Industry Promotion Division, Industry and Labor Bureau, Kanagawa Prefecture):**
"In FY2019, the prefecture launched the 'HATSU-SHIN KANAGAWA' model to support the creation and growth of venture companies. At 'SHIN Minatomirai' in Yokohama, we are promoting BAK to support open innovation through collaboration between startups and major companies in the prefecture. We have supported 146 projects so far, leading to successful commercialization cases and even M&As. Last year, we launched YAK for administrative challenges, and cases aiming for national expansion are already emerging. We will continue to transmit advanced venture support and open innovation initiatives from Kanagawa to the rest of the country."
**Iori Sugimura (Account Executive, Consulting Division 1, eiicon Co., Ltd.):**
"Entering the sixth year of managing BAK and YAK, we have seen numerous projects emerge through the collaboration of large corporations, municipalities, and startups. This year, we aim to create even larger-scale projects by maximizing the Kanagawa ecosystem we have cultivated. We look forward to everyone's participation."
### Reference: Business Accelerator Kanagawa (BAK)
The program aims to create business collaboration projects between large/medium-sized companies based in Kanagawa and high-quality venture companies, building an open innovation community through a council that includes research and support institutions.
eiicon will continue to support the overall management of this program, from planning, design, and operation to PR strategy, in order to realize new projects through co-creation and achieve early commercialization.
### Record of BAK/YAK by Kanagawa Prefecture and eiicon (FY2021-2025)
eiicon has managed the Kanagawa Prefecture "BAK" operations for six terms since FY2021 and the "YAK" operations since its inception in FY2025. To date, a total of 146 co-creation projects have been selected, and hands-on support for commercialization is ongoing.
In this sixth year, in addition to previous experience and achievements, collaboration with the eiicon Kanagawa base (located in WeWork Ocean Gate Minatomirai), which opened last year, will be accelerated. We will strongly support the overall operation and further realization and commercialization of co-creation through open innovation.
### Comments from Representatives
**Tetsuya Ueno (Group Leader, Venture Support Group, Industry Promotion Division, Industry and Labor Bureau, Kanagawa Prefecture):**
"In FY2019, the prefecture launched the 'HATSU-SHIN KANAGAWA' model to support the creation and growth of venture companies. At 'SHIN Minatomirai' in Yokohama, we are promoting BAK to support open innovation through collaboration between startups and major companies in the prefecture. We have supported 146 projects so far, leading to successful commercialization cases and even M&As. Last year, we launched YAK for administrative challenges, and cases aiming for national expansion are already emerging. We will continue to transmit advanced venture support and open innovation initiatives from Kanagawa to the rest of the country."
**Iori Sugimura (Account Executive, Consulting Division 1, eiicon Co., Ltd.):**
"Entering the sixth year of managing BAK and YAK, we have seen numerous projects emerge through the collaboration of large corporations, municipalities, and startups. This year, we aim to create even larger-scale projects by maximizing the Kanagawa ecosystem we have cultivated. We look forward to everyone's participation."
### Reference: Business Accelerator Kanagawa (BAK)
The program aims to create business collaboration projects between large/medium-sized companies based in Kanagawa and high-quality venture companies, building an open innovation community through a council that includes research and support institutions.