Keio University established the Office for Open Innovation in November 2018 with the stated aim of “Creating a smart society to support healthy longevity in the era of centenarians” following the adoption of the AY 2018 “Open Innovation Development Project” of the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology (MEXT), to further expand industry-government-academia collaboration. To mark this, a kick-off symposium entitled “Independent, Dispersed, and Cooperative Open Innovation Framework” was held at the North Hall, Mita Campus on Thursday, March 14.
Following the opening address by President Akira Haseyama and a speech by Mr. Kota Murase, director of the Office of University Technology Transfer, University-Industry Collaboration and Regional R&D Division, Science and Technology Policy Bureau, MEXT, Professor Tojiro Aoyama, provost and director of the Office for Open Innovation, gave an overview of the office and conveyed Keio University’s aspirations of swiftly and decisively furthering open innovation by leveraging its many strengths during the first session. Subsequently, overviews were given of medical and healthcare domain projects, smart society domain projects, and the actual management of the Office for Open Innovation.
In the second session, a keynote speech in the form of a dialogue was delivered by Mr. James Kondo, co-chair of the World Economic Forum Centre for the Fourth Industrial Revolution Japan (C4IR Japan). During his talk, Mr. Kondo, expressed his expectations of Keio creating an environment from where many novel ideas will make their way into the world and become a pioneer of open innovation globally. Also, in the third session, under the theme of “Industry Expectations of Universities,” four panelists, including those involved in venture capital, support enterprises for entrepreneurship, corporations, and a venture originating at a university, exchanged opinions from various perspectives.
Many people from industry, academia, and government, with an emphasis on persons from various companies, attended this symposium, and the attendees were intently absorbed in the proceedings.
Reference
Selected for the “Open Innovation Development Project,” Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology (MEXT), and “Program on Open Innovation Platform with Enterprises, Research Institute and Academia (OPERA),” Japan Science and Technology Agency (JST) (October 10, 2018; Japanese language only)
Explanation by Provost Tojiro Aoyama
Overview of the medical and healthcare domain by Professor Masaya Nakamura, School of Medicine
Overview of the smart society domain by Professor Naoaki Yamanaka, Faculty of Science and Technology
Mr. James Kondo (right) and Professor Hiroaki Miyata, School of Medicine (left) in conversation
Scene from panel discussion
Photo: Aki Takematsu