Decision to Make an LP Investment in "KUC No. 2 Investment Limited Partnership"
UTokyo IPC's ASA Fund has decided to invest in Kobe University Capital's KUC No.2 Fund, aiming to strengthen the deep tech ecosystem in the Kansai region and Japan as a whole.
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- 📰 Published: March 31, 2026 at 23:00
- 🔍 Collected: April 1, 2026 at 13:39 (14h 39m after Published)
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The Academic Startup Acceleration Fund Investment Limited Partnership (hereinafter "ASA Fund"), operated by UTokyo Innovation Platform Co., Ltd. (Location: Bunkyo-ku, Tokyo, President and CEO: Kosuke Ueda, hereinafter "UTokyo IPC"), has decided to make an LP investment in the "KUC No. 2 Investment Limited Partnership" (hereinafter "KUC No. 2 Fund") formed by Kobe University Capital Inc. (Headquarters: Kobe City, Hyogo Prefecture, Representative Director / Managing Partner: Yoshifumi Mizuhara, hereinafter "KUC").
Towards Strengthening the Investment Foundation that Supports Deep Tech Creation Originating from Kobe University and the Kobe Region
To sustainably develop the ecosystem for university-originated startups in Japan, it is essential to have entities that steadily discover excellent research seeds accumulated not only in the Tokyo metropolitan area but also in universities and research institutions in various regions, and connect them to commercialization. With the knowledge and human resources of Kobe University, the research and development environment including the Kobe Biomedical Innovation Cluster, and the network of the international city of Kobe as its background, KUC has built a system that consistently handles everything from searching for research seeds to entrepreneurial support, investment, and growth support, as one of the cores of deep tech creation in the Kansai area.
UTokyo IPC decided on this investment, highly evaluating KUC's promotion of commercialization in collaboration with researchers and specialized personnel, particularly through its company creation function that is deeply involved from around the time of founding.
Comment from Yoshifumi Mizuhara, Representative Director / Managing Partner, Kobe University Capital Inc.
"KUC (Kobe University Capital) is a university VC that consistently supports deep tech startups tackling global and human social issues from the entrepreneurial stage, fully utilizing the research seeds and regional ecosystem possessed by universities and research institutions centered on Kobe University. With the vision of producing unicorn companies from Kobe by taking the lead in supporting entrepreneurship while accompanying researchers to connect outstanding research results to social implementation, we aim to be a catalyst for innovation creation in Kansai and Western Japan. Receiving an LP investment for this fund from UTokyo IPC, a representative university startup support institution in Japan, is a massive boost towards realizing our vision. We are confident that the collaboration between Eastern and Western university ecosystems can contribute to the further development of the deep tech sector across Japan."
Through this investment, the ASA Fund will support the efforts of such regional university VCs and contribute to the expansion of Japan's overall deep tech ecosystem.
ASA Fund Aims to Expand the Ecosystem as a Base for Creating Japan's University-Originated Startups
The ASA Fund aims to address the challenges of Japan's university-originated startup ecosystem, further strengthen collaborations with industry, academia, government, and overseas entities, elevate the ecosystem to top global levels, and contribute to strengthening Japan's industrial competitiveness in the world through the cultivation of unicorn startups that can compete globally. As its specific operation, to discover abundant technological seeds centered around universities, support their commercialization, and nurture globally expandable startups, it primarily makes investments (fund-of-funds) in university VC funds that invest in and support university-originated startups.
About Kobe University Capital Inc.
Overview University/Research
Towards Strengthening the Investment Foundation that Supports Deep Tech Creation Originating from Kobe University and the Kobe Region
To sustainably develop the ecosystem for university-originated startups in Japan, it is essential to have entities that steadily discover excellent research seeds accumulated not only in the Tokyo metropolitan area but also in universities and research institutions in various regions, and connect them to commercialization. With the knowledge and human resources of Kobe University, the research and development environment including the Kobe Biomedical Innovation Cluster, and the network of the international city of Kobe as its background, KUC has built a system that consistently handles everything from searching for research seeds to entrepreneurial support, investment, and growth support, as one of the cores of deep tech creation in the Kansai area.
UTokyo IPC decided on this investment, highly evaluating KUC's promotion of commercialization in collaboration with researchers and specialized personnel, particularly through its company creation function that is deeply involved from around the time of founding.
Comment from Yoshifumi Mizuhara, Representative Director / Managing Partner, Kobe University Capital Inc.
"KUC (Kobe University Capital) is a university VC that consistently supports deep tech startups tackling global and human social issues from the entrepreneurial stage, fully utilizing the research seeds and regional ecosystem possessed by universities and research institutions centered on Kobe University. With the vision of producing unicorn companies from Kobe by taking the lead in supporting entrepreneurship while accompanying researchers to connect outstanding research results to social implementation, we aim to be a catalyst for innovation creation in Kansai and Western Japan. Receiving an LP investment for this fund from UTokyo IPC, a representative university startup support institution in Japan, is a massive boost towards realizing our vision. We are confident that the collaboration between Eastern and Western university ecosystems can contribute to the further development of the deep tech sector across Japan."
Through this investment, the ASA Fund will support the efforts of such regional university VCs and contribute to the expansion of Japan's overall deep tech ecosystem.
ASA Fund Aims to Expand the Ecosystem as a Base for Creating Japan's University-Originated Startups
The ASA Fund aims to address the challenges of Japan's university-originated startup ecosystem, further strengthen collaborations with industry, academia, government, and overseas entities, elevate the ecosystem to top global levels, and contribute to strengthening Japan's industrial competitiveness in the world through the cultivation of unicorn startups that can compete globally. As its specific operation, to discover abundant technological seeds centered around universities, support their commercialization, and nurture globally expandable startups, it primarily makes investments (fund-of-funds) in university VC funds that invest in and support university-originated startups.
About Kobe University Capital Inc.
Overview University/Research