Dear Tech Hubs Incubator And Community,
We've been moving at lightning speed! From celebrating our Demo Day winners to setting off on a key trip to Taiwan, this newsletter is packed with actionable insights and opportunities that directly impact our global network.
🏆 Demo Day Results: Bolzard Takes the Top Prize!
Our recent STARTUPCLUB Demo Day showcased phenomenal talent! After careful evaluation by our distinguished judges, we are excited to announce the top performer:
Congratulation Bolzard! and Yash Founder
Congratulations to Bolzard! 🇮🇳 As recognition of their outstanding performance, Bolzard will receive a return flight ticket from Japan (Osaka or Tokyo) to Brisbane City, Australia! 🇦🇺
We extend our deepest appreciation to all participating startups (AhaLab, Twouring, Kigaru Talks) and to our judges, Stephen and Pablo, for their invaluable support. Thank you to Tourism and Events Queensland (Japan) for sponsoring this exciting flight prize!
(Note: The prize covers only the flight tickets; all other expenses are the responsibility of the winner.)
🇹🇼 Founder on the Move: Connecting Fukuoka to Taiwan
We are thrilled to announce our upcoming trip to Taiwan in October and November 2025! ✈️ Our founder will be traveling from Fukuoka to strengthen connections and co-build with our partners in Taipei and Hualien. We are delighted that our newest Manabu Hubs member, Katrin van Löchtern, will be joining me on this mission!
1. Keynote Session in Hualien (October 25th)
Honoured to be a keynote speaker and connect with the vibrant Hualien tech community.
Topic: "What If Local Wasn’t Just a Starting Point? How Manabu Hubs Connects the World from Fukuoka"
Details & Free Tickets: 🎟️ [Link to Hualien Keynote Tickets]
2. Exclusive Workshop in Taipei: Building Global Bridges (October 29th)
In partnership with TDNA and the Taipei Startup Collective, we are hosting an intensive workshop for founders ready to scale globally.
Title: Building Global Bridges: The Data-Driven Pathway to Softlanding & Scaling in Asia
Ideal for: Taiwanese Founders, VCs, Accelerators, and Government Agencies.
Sign-Up & Program Details: 🔗 [Link to Taipei Workshop]
Exclusive 20% OFF for TDNA Partner and collaborators. Code 20%: TDNA
3. Honored to Judge the 30th InnoServe Awards (November 1st)
Following my sessions, I am deeply honored to be invited as a Judge for the prestigious 30th International ICT Innovative Services Awards (InnoServe Awards). It is a privilege to celebrate the next generation of ICT innovation from students worldwide.
A huge thank you to, Anita Chen, Sherry and Taiwan Digital Nomad Association, and the entire Manabu Hubs team for making this collaboration possible.
💡 Inside the Ecosystem: Why Fukuoka Matters
Last Thursday STARTUPCLUB Demo Day & Ecosystem Showcase at Sancho Panza was electric! The early-stage, pre-seed, and seed startups—including AhaLab (TH), Twouring (TW), KigaruTalks (JP), and Bolzar (IN)—delivered fantastic demos.
We were honored to host Anita Chen, Director of the Digital Gold Card Community, whose presence truly underscored Taiwan's growing pole of innovation.
Hosting the Taiwanese Delegation 🇹🇼 G Camp
We recently had the true honor of hosting a delegation from Taiwan and G Camp Taiwan. I was incredibly impressed by the advanced solutions and sheer passion of these Taiwanese entrepreneurs. This reaffirmed why our incubator matters:
Founder-to-Founder Support: As a foreign founder, I understand the difficulty of growing an ecosystem and launching a business in Japan or abroad. It requires consistency, a long-term vision, cultural understanding, and the right local partners.
Realistic Launchpad: We offer a highly realistic view of what it takes to launch in Japan and Asia, with our headquarters here in Kyushu. We appreciate the growing trend of global startups choosing Manabu Hubs and Fukuoka Startup Collective as a trusted partner to identify paths for collaboration across the Asia Region.
📰 Quick Take: Is Fukuoka the Next Tech Nomad Hub?
After an incredible week at RamenTech x CoLive, I’m sharing my deep dive in the next newsletter. The short answer: Yes, there's a strong case!
CoLive's Vision: I'll be breaking down CoLive's future vision for community building (Workation Week, Craftsman for Impacts).
Sony's Influence: What Sony's involvement means for our ecosystem's growth.
The Trend: Why software developers are increasingly choosing Fukuoka to build their ventures.
Get the full analysis. Subscribe to our APAC’S Founder Collective newsletter here: [Link to your Newsletter Subscription]
New Chapter, New View, New Vibe! The move is Official Manabu Hubs has a new home base in Imajiku - Salt!
Manabu Hubs suscription members can get access to this new hub, plus over 30K in benefits, be part of one of the fastest growing startup hubs in Asia! Learn More
Lets keep in touch and see you until our next newsletter!