Japan's natto exports hit a record 5,248 tons in 2025, up 44% year-over-year. Driven by global health trends and fermented food hype, natto is conquering new markets. But packaging regulations and Korean competitors pose challenges. Plus: how the world eats natto.
Saudi investment firm EGDC has increased its Capcom stake from 5.03% to 6.04%, just three weeks after its initial filing. Combined with PIF's existing holdings, Saudi-linked capital now controls roughly 11% of the Monster Hunter maker amid record-breaking earnings.
UK activist fund Palliser Capital has become a top-25 shareholder of Ajinomoto and is demanding a 30%+ price increase for its ABF semiconductor insulation material. We explore how a food company holds near-100% global market share in chip packaging and what the activist wave means for Japanese corporations.
Matsumoto, a 93-year-old Japanese printing company, announces Japan's first shareholder perks program using Solana (SOL). Learn how Japan's unique kabunushi yutai gift-giving culture is merging with blockchain technology to create new forms of shareholder engagement.
Researchers at Kobe University have achieved the world's first inkjet printing using structural color nanoparticle ink — no dyes, no pigments, just silicon nanoparticles that produce color through light resonance. The result: vivid prints that never fade, with applications from eco-friendly packaging to anti-counterfeit security.
Japan's resignation agency industry is booming — 94% of new graduates know about these services, and 25% would consider using one. Explore why Japanese workers pay someone else to quit for them, and what it reveals about workplace culture, generational shifts, and the collapse of lifetime employment.
Nobel laureate Shinya Yamanaka explained iPS Cell 2.0 on NTV's Bankisha. From next-gen stem cell tech overcoming current limitations to universal blood platelets that bypass blood-type matching, plus Japan's historic first-ever iPSC drug approvals in 2026 — a comprehensive look at where iPS cells stand 20 years after their discovery.
Former BOJ Governor Haruhiko Kuroda has proposed a 'coalition of the willing' among Japan, the EU, and Southeast Asian nations to preserve free trade amid WTO dysfunction and Trump-era tariffs. His proposal calls for expanding frameworks like the CPTPP and strengthening economic security cooperation.
Maya Kawana, eldest daughter of SoftBank's Masayoshi Son, has become CEO of biotech startup Spiber after a private restructuring left roughly ¥36 billion in debt with the old entity. From Goldman Sachs to spider silk, we explore her rebuilding plan, the biomaterials race, and what this means for Japan's deep-tech ecosystem.
NTT Docomo launches 'docomo Starlink Direct' on April 27, 2026, offering free satellite-to-smartphone communication for 22 million subscribers. Using SpaceX's Starlink constellation of 650+ satellites as cell towers in space, the service covers mountains, remote islands, and seas across Japan. We compare it with KDDI's pioneering au service and T-Mobile's U.S. rollout.
An in-depth look at Woven by Toyota, the software subsidiary steering Toyota's transformation. From the Arene platform's debut in the new RAV4 to the $1B Woven City experiment, we analyze how Toyota is fighting Tesla and BYD in the SDV era.