What we’re about
Startup Founder 101 brings together aspiring and experienced tech entrepreneurs to discuss, meet, and collaborate to build great new startups, and to push the local startup ecosystem forward.\
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This group hosts numerous free events throughout the year where you can learn the best practices of starting a company from people who have been there and done that. You’ll have the opportunity to meet local founders and investors, exchange ideas with experts, get feedback on your idea, participate in startup workshops, and more.\
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Typical startup event topics include:\
• Coming up with a strong startup idea\
• Startup legal basics\
• How to pitch your startup\
• Starting a company without quitting your day job\
• How to raise funding for your startup\
• And much more!\
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Join the group to be invited to our next event!
Upcoming events (3)
See all- FI Japan/Korea/Taiwan 2025 Spring Cohort Graduation Party Event (In-Person)CIC Tokyo, Tokyo
Join us for the "FI Japan/Korea/Taiwan 2025 Spring Cohort Graduation Party" where we celebrate the dedication, innovation, and perseverance of the exceptional founders who have successfully completed the Founder Institute Spring Cohort program.
This unforgettable evening of celebration and informal networking will connect you with other like-minded individuals, startup mentors, advisors, investors, VCs, and corporates from the Founder Institute network.
Come be a part of this memorable celebration, and let's raise a toast to the future success of our graduates and to the continued growth and prosperity of the entire Founder Institute Japan community!❯ Organizer: Founder Institute Japan / Openfor.co / Venture Cafe
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❯ Moderators:- Erdinc Ekinci, Co-Founder, and CEO of Openfor.co, Managing Director of Founder Institute Japan/Korea/Taiwan.
- Yu Li Shein, Co-Founder, and CEO of Openfor.co, Co-Director of Founder Institute Japan/Korea/Taiwan.
❯ We proudly announce the following graduates:
- Jamiel Hampton, CEO & Founder at NAKA Industries
- Richard Orman, Founder at Nakatomi
- Del, CEO & Co-Founder at ProdMind AI
- Sydney Seekford, CEO & Co-Founder at Menuwiz
- Timothy, Founder at Lyvios, Inc
- Sandrine Monette, Co-Founder at LemonBoost
- Marie-Solange VOTTERO, Co-Founder at LemonBoost
❯❯ This is an in-person event, so be sure to RSVP at https://fi.co/e/377893/meetup to secure your spot and receive further details.
- ROCKET PITCH NIGHT KANSAI 2025Ritsumeikan University - Osaka Ibaraki Campus (OIC), Osaka
In May 2025, ROCKET PITCH NIGHT hosted 100 startup teams and over 1,000 participants. To date, over 810 teams and 9,700 attendees have joined the event. This year, it returns as a special edition of OIC CONNÉCT—a monthly gathering co-hosted by Ritsumeikan University and Venture Café Tokyo at Ritsumeikan's Osaka Ibaraki Campus (OIC). We are seeking 40 presenters and 500+ participants. Open to all—students, startups, aspiring entrepreneurs, nonprofits, and corporate innovators—this is an opportunity for anyone eager to share their vision in a 3-minute pitch. We invite bold challengers from Kansai, Japan, and beyond.
### Who are the Judges
- Alex ODAJIMA, Japan Representative Start2 Group K.K.
- Yu Li SHEIN, Director Founder Institute Japan-Korea-Taiwan
- Yoshikazu IKEDA, Associate DEEPCORE Inc.
- Shota ISODA, Principle Globis Capital Partners
- Eriko NONAKA, CEO N.FIELD Inc.
- Niklas TAWAST, Principal DG Incubation
- Keita YAZAKI, Senior Associate CyberAgent Capital, Inc.
- Manoka MUTA, Business Development Analyst Incubate Fund
- Anri TOMITA, CEO WORKPARK Inc.
- Yuji HARA, Partner and Director Apollo Capital Inc.
- Koki FUKATSU, Startup Expert Fast Track Initiative, Inc.
- Joshua FLANNERY, CEO Innovation Dojo Japan LLC
For more details- https://venturecafetokyo.org/event/rocket-pitch-night-kansai-2025-oic-37/
- Ask an Investor Anything: Q&A with Rich MaloyLink visible for attendees
Do you want to ask questions to startup investors about fundraising in a friendly, judgment-free environment? Are you looking to raise funding in the future, and want to learn what investors look for and how they evaluate potential investments? Then join us for this live, interactive Q&A event featuring Rich Maloy, Managing Partner at SpringTime Ventures. Don't miss this opportunity to expand your network and ask in-depth questions - Register now!
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❯ What You'll Learn:- Key metrics and pre-requisites for raising funding
- How to make yourself more attractive to investors
- The best ways to source different funding resources such as Angel investors, Venture Capitalists, grants and loans
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❯ Featured Speakers:- Rich Maloy - Managing Partner at SpringTime Ventures - Rich's mission is to rebuild the American dream through entrepreneurship. He works with early stage startups transforming the world, giving all people the opportunity to grow, learn and earn. With prior careers in finance and sales, he's now focused on startups investing through SpringTime Ventures where he is a Managing Partner. He's a father of two young children and loves sci-fi, skiing, and video games.
About the FI Venture Network
The FI Venture Network is an exclusive network of investors actively funding pre-seed and seed-stage startups before anyone else. Learn more by visiting the FI Venture Network page.
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❯❯ This live, interactive online event promises valuable insights! Ensure your participation by RSVPing now at 👉 https://fi.co/startupwebinar/19495 to receive the link to join us live!
