"Gogin Startup Fest 2026" Great Success
On March 27th, Gogin held its second "Gogin Startup Fest 2026" to foster open innovation in the San'in region, attracting over 650 attendees including venture capitalists, startups, and local business leaders. The event culminated in a pitch contest where NAGARA Corporation, with its AI-SaaS "Nagara Kaigo" for nursing care, was awarded the grand prize. The festival aims to drive regional economic development through entrepreneurship and innovation.
📋 Article Processing Timeline
- 📰 Published: March 31, 2026 at 00:31
- 🔍 Collected: March 30, 2026 at 22:56
- 🤖 AI Analyzed: April 15, 2026 at 22:30 (383h 34m after Collected)
On March 27th, Gogin held the "Gogin Startup Fest 2026" (Gogin Fest) for the second consecutive year, with the aim of creating open innovation in the San'in region.
Over 650 people attended, including major venture capital firms, startup companies, and local business owners. Many sessions and networking events unfolded, making it a great success.
(※) Session: A forum for entrepreneurs, investors, and experts to discuss industry trends, fundraising, growth strategies, and more through talks and lectures.
Networking: A place for individual discussions with entrepreneurs, investors, and company representatives through post-session interaction.
In the "Pitch Contest (Business Plan Contest)," one of the highlights of this event, 31 startup companies with innovative technologies and unique solutions from across the country participated. After rigorous screening, five companies that passed the preliminary rounds delivered their final presentations, resulting in NAGARA Corporation
represented by CEO Kazuki Okada (a 22-year-old student entrepreneur), brilliantly winning the grand prize.
【About the Pitch Contest Winning Company】
|
Winning Company |
NAGARA Corporation, CEO Kazuki Okada |
|
Idea Overview |
AI-SaaS "Nagara Kaigo" for Nursing Care Sites ・Automatically creates nursing care records and meeting minutes using conversational input and generative AI. ・Significantly reduces the workload at the site, increasing the time caregivers can spend with users, thereby improving the quality of care and retaining nursing staff. |
|
Winner's Comment |
While there is a trend in urban areas where digital technology and AI are commonplace, and various tools are being introduced in nursing care settings, I feel that in rural areas, the latest technologies are often difficult to access, and people tend to feel resistance even when told about digital solutions. That is precisely why this service holds the potential for widespread adoption in rural areas, and we want it to spread there. We want to solve regional nursing care challenges together with everyone. |
Left: Mr. Hiroshi Yoshikawa, Director and President of our bank
Going forward, our bank will continue to accelerate initiatives to promote innovation and explore new business possibilities in the region through various consulting services to support entrepreneurship and new business creation, contributing to the sustainable development of the regional economy.
【Overview of Gogin Fest】
For details, please see the link below.
－ Gogin Startup Fest 2026 Special Site https://goginfes.studio.site/
－ Our Bank News Release 2026.2.20"Gogin Startup Fest 2026" to be Held
(Scenes from the day)
