Notice of the 14th '1stRound' Selected Startups and the Participation of Nara Medical University
UTokyo IPC has announced the 8 selected teams for the 14th cohort of '1stRound,' Japan's largest university-affiliated startup support program. Nara Medical University also newly joined as a co-host, strengthening support for regional and global startups.
📋 Article Processing Timeline
- 📰 Published: April 13, 2026 at 19:00
- 🔍 Collected: April 13, 2026 at 16:35
- 🤖 AI Analyzed: April 19, 2026 at 20:38 (148h 2m after Collected)
UTokyo Innovation Platform Co., Ltd. (Headquarters: Hongo, Bunkyo-ku, Tokyo; President and CEO: Kosuke Ueda; hereinafter 'UTokyo IPC') has decided on the 14th cohort of startups to be supported by '1stRound,' Japan's largest academia-co-hosted startup growth support program.
We also announce that the public university corporation Nara Medical University will newly participate in the program. '1stRound' will continue to develop as Japan's largest program co-hosted by national/public and private universities and research institutions, supporting the entrepreneurial growth of academic deep-tech seeds. We aim for growth through support specialized in business expansion to connect various technological seeds born from universities and research institutions to social implementation.
Fundraising success rate for past selected companies is approximately 90%, and support for corporate collaboration and global expansion is also growing.
Over the past 9 years, '1stRound' has selected a cumulative total of 110 teams, supporting the establishment and fundraising of university-launched startups. The fundraising success rate of selected teams is approximately 90%, and the acceptance rate for large-scale grants is over 50%.
We are also working on creating collaborations with major companies, mainly corporate partners, and more than half of the teams in each round have reached collaborations with companies. By connecting diverse players such as selected companies, corporations, and universities, we are advancing the formation of an ecosystem for creating startups originating from technology seeds.
Furthermore, through coordination with entrepreneurship education programs of co-hosting institutions, applications from re-applicants account for 20-25% of the total selections, continuously backing entrepreneurial challenges from academia.
We are also advancing support for global expansion, and there are cases where selected companies have been accepted into overseas academic programs such as StartX and Berkeley SkyDeck. In addition, through partnerships with overseas research institutions and accelerators such as Cyber Valley, the University of Helsinki, and MassChallenge, we are promoting the creation of startups that cross borders.
By mutually advancing support for the overseas expansion of startups originating in Japan and the expansion of startups originating from overseas universities and research institutions into Japan, '1stRound' aims to connect academic technology with global expertise and create startups capable of competing on the world stage.
Nara Medical University newly participates. Selections of teams based in regional areas and overseas are also increasing.
Until now, '1stRound' has collaborated with universities and research institutions across Japan to promote the creation and growth support of startups originating from research results.
In recent years, the selection of startups originating from regional universities, not limited to the Tokyo metropolitan area, has been increasing domestically. In the last three rounds, startups registered or based outside of Tokyo accounted for about half of the selected cases. In addition, the selection of teams based overseas has increased, strengthening connections with global research and entrepreneurial talent. While based on research seeds originating in Japan, the creation of startups aiming for commercialization from an international perspective is progressing.
Aiming to create university-launched startups with diverse backgrounds, '1stRound' will continue to promote the creation and growth support of startups utilizing research results from various regions, based on its network with universities and research institutions.
About the 15th Open Call
This program is held twice a year, and we have started accepting applications for the 15th '1stRound' from April 13, 2026 (Application deadline: May 25, 2026).
For details, please refer to the following URL:
https://www.1stround.jp/
At the 14th '1stRound' screening committee held in December 2025, 8 teams were selected.
MicroCavitics Founder/CEO/Medical Doctor Kazuaki Negishi
https://www.microcavitics.com/
'New myocardial infarction treatment changing the time to reperfusion'
MicroCavitics is a deep-tech company that simultaneously achieves thrombolysis and recovery of microcirculation using inertial cavitation technology employing ultrasound and microbubbles.
Treatments previously initiated after arriving at the hospital can now be started inside an ambulance, minimizing irreversible myocardial necrosis in myocardial infarction.
Hanasaka Bio. Shizuoka University Faculty of Agriculture, Assistant Professor Akiyoshi Tominaga
https://wwp.shizuoka.ac.jp/hortphysio
We also announce that the public university corporation Nara Medical University will newly participate in the program. '1stRound' will continue to develop as Japan's largest program co-hosted by national/public and private universities and research institutions, supporting the entrepreneurial growth of academic deep-tech seeds. We aim for growth through support specialized in business expansion to connect various technological seeds born from universities and research institutions to social implementation.
Fundraising success rate for past selected companies is approximately 90%, and support for corporate collaboration and global expansion is also growing.
Over the past 9 years, '1stRound' has selected a cumulative total of 110 teams, supporting the establishment and fundraising of university-launched startups. The fundraising success rate of selected teams is approximately 90%, and the acceptance rate for large-scale grants is over 50%.
We are also working on creating collaborations with major companies, mainly corporate partners, and more than half of the teams in each round have reached collaborations with companies. By connecting diverse players such as selected companies, corporations, and universities, we are advancing the formation of an ecosystem for creating startups originating from technology seeds.
Furthermore, through coordination with entrepreneurship education programs of co-hosting institutions, applications from re-applicants account for 20-25% of the total selections, continuously backing entrepreneurial challenges from academia.
We are also advancing support for global expansion, and there are cases where selected companies have been accepted into overseas academic programs such as StartX and Berkeley SkyDeck. In addition, through partnerships with overseas research institutions and accelerators such as Cyber Valley, the University of Helsinki, and MassChallenge, we are promoting the creation of startups that cross borders.
By mutually advancing support for the overseas expansion of startups originating in Japan and the expansion of startups originating from overseas universities and research institutions into Japan, '1stRound' aims to connect academic technology with global expertise and create startups capable of competing on the world stage.
Nara Medical University newly participates. Selections of teams based in regional areas and overseas are also increasing.
Until now, '1stRound' has collaborated with universities and research institutions across Japan to promote the creation and growth support of startups originating from research results.
In recent years, the selection of startups originating from regional universities, not limited to the Tokyo metropolitan area, has been increasing domestically. In the last three rounds, startups registered or based outside of Tokyo accounted for about half of the selected cases. In addition, the selection of teams based overseas has increased, strengthening connections with global research and entrepreneurial talent. While based on research seeds originating in Japan, the creation of startups aiming for commercialization from an international perspective is progressing.
Aiming to create university-launched startups with diverse backgrounds, '1stRound' will continue to promote the creation and growth support of startups utilizing research results from various regions, based on its network with universities and research institutions.
About the 15th Open Call
This program is held twice a year, and we have started accepting applications for the 15th '1stRound' from April 13, 2026 (Application deadline: May 25, 2026).
For details, please refer to the following URL:
https://www.1stround.jp/
At the 14th '1stRound' screening committee held in December 2025, 8 teams were selected.
MicroCavitics Founder/CEO/Medical Doctor Kazuaki Negishi
https://www.microcavitics.com/
'New myocardial infarction treatment changing the time to reperfusion'
MicroCavitics is a deep-tech company that simultaneously achieves thrombolysis and recovery of microcirculation using inertial cavitation technology employing ultrasound and microbubbles.
Treatments previously initiated after arriving at the hospital can now be started inside an ambulance, minimizing irreversible myocardial necrosis in myocardial infarction.
Hanasaka Bio. Shizuoka University Faculty of Agriculture, Assistant Professor Akiyoshi Tominaga
https://wwp.shizuoka.ac.jp/hortphysio