In an effort to spur business startups in Fukuoka, City Hall is preparing to send around 140 potential entrepreneurs to San Francisco and Silicon Valley in three waves. First announced in July, Global Challenge! STARTUP TEAM FUKUOKA is one of the City’s National Strategic Special Zone for Global Startups & Job Creation initiatives. On Oct. 8, 100 people joined a pre-departure lecture at Fukuoka Soft Research Park. The featured speaker, Brandon Katayama Hill, launched his own branding company in Silicon Valley. In his speech he remarked, “Successful companies think about everything from the standpoint of the user.” Each of the three groups of program participants will visit the U.S. for five days where they will meet with leading-edge IT and design professionals. The first batch will be dispatched on Nov. 14. Source: Global Challenge! Startup Team Fukuoka website
