SoftBank Corp. becomes official partner of SPORTS TECH TOKYO

– Relationship bolsters opportunities for members of the largest sports tech community in the world –

Scrum Ventures announces that SoftBank Corp. is participating in SPORTS TECH TOKYO, the largest sports tech community in the world.

SPORTS TECH TOKYO is a global community for best-in-class sports tech startups from around the world to connect and innovate with leading corporations. Hosted by Scrum Ventures, a U.S.-based venture capital firm with extensive experience and networks in Silicon Valley and Japan and Dentsu Inc. (Tokyo:4324), this program supports the growth of sports tech startups and provides leading Japanese corporates a platform for open innovation.

104 cohort startups from around the world attended the kickoff conference held in Tokyo this past April. Program partners and organizations from sports-related industries joined to network and discuss potential collaborations with startup participants.

Corporate partners, including SoftBank Corp. will be mentoring and supporting the startups throughout the program. Additionally, they hope to collaborate with the 12 Finalists to create proof-of-concept innovations that can scale within the sports industry and beyond.

Program owners, Dentsu and Scrum Ventures, developed SPORTS TECH TOKYO to help accelerate high-potential technologies in the sports industry and connect them with well-respected corporate brands. Strategically, SPORTS TECH TOKYO will create meaningful opportunities and positive change within the industry.

<SPORTS TECH TOKYO Partners>
Platinum partners
・ITOCHU Corporation / ITOCHU Techno-Solutions Corporation
Gold partners
・SoftBank Corp.
・Sony Music Entertainment (Japan) Inc.
・Microsoft Japan Co., Ltd.
・CBC Co., Ltd.

SPORTS TECH TOKYO is seeking applications from new partners. We will announce new partners as they join.

<SPORTS TECH TOKYO Overview>
SPORTS TECH TOKYO is a global community for best-in-class sports tech startups from around the world to connect and innovate with leading corporations. Placing an initial emphasis on developing and deploying cutting-edge solutions in Japan, the program unites companies of varying stages, geographies and industry areas of focus — enabling greater cohesion and collaboration while supporting their respective partnership development and fundraising objectives. Learn more at https://sportstech.tokyo/

DIFFERENTIATION:
・Stage Agnostic: The program will be comprised of sports-tech companies representing all funding stages — seed to late-stage — that are endemic to the industry as a whole
・Gateway to Asia: Unique opportunity for North American companies to tap into an underserved (and growing) sports community in Asia
・Virtual Mentoring: Enables companies to benefit from the program without relocating or disrupting existing business plans and priorities
・Opportunity (Not Investment) Driven: While the program offers access to sports tech investors, it does not require companies give-up equity in exchange for participation

・Organizer: Dentsu Inc.
・Program Partner: Scrum Ventures
・Year 1: Jan – Dec 2019
・Venue: Japan (Tokyo), US (San Francisco, etc)
・Official Website: http://www.sportstech.tokyo
・Schedule:

About Scrum Ventures

Scrum Ventures is a seed stage venture firm established in 2013, based in San Francisco and Japan. Scrum Ventures invests in over 50 companies across a range of industries in the U.S. and Asia, including Mobility, Fintech, IoT, VR, commerce, and healthcare.  Scrum Ventures recently launched Scrum Studios, a platform that supports open innovations of Japanese corporates from various fields, connecting startups and Japanese global corporations. Learn more at https://scrum.vc/

【Inquiries on press release】
Scrum Ventures Staff: Yoshioka
Email: contact@scrum.vc
【Inquiries on SPORTS TECH TOKYO】
SPORTS TECH TOKYO Office
Email: momentum@sportstech.tokyo