SusHi Tech Tokyo, which has established itself as Asia’s largest global innovation conference, keeps on pushing—with AI and robotics among its focus areas. A record 770 startups are lined up for the event’s fourth annual edition with tons of high-tech goodies.
The number of startup exhibitors for SusHi Tech Tokyo 2026 is up from 607 last year, rising steadily from 328 at the first 2023 event. Other attendance figures are also renewing all-time highs with overall participants estimated at 60,000, including 10,000 online.
Official online and remote options are available for ticket holders living outside Japan to participate in the event in real time. The SusHi Tech Tokyo YouTube channel allows international audiences to follow key content before, during, and after the event.
“We will showcase cutting-edge technologies that are transforming society, such as AI and robotics,” Tokyo Governor Koike Yuriko told a recent news conference promoting the event that will take place April 27-29 at the Tokyo Big Sight convention center. “When people from different businesses come together, something new emerges. I hope this will lead to such opportunities.”
Importantly, the number of business meetings within the SusHi Tech framework is expected to top 10,000, a more than 60 percent gain from last year’s 6,136.
SusHi Tech Tokyo 2026 official website (Ticket Sales):
https://sushitech-startup.metro.tokyo.lg.jp/en/info-ticket
Aiming to Build a Tech-Driven ‘Sustainable Cities’
SusHi Tech Tokyo—short for Sustainable High City Tech Tokyo—has set its aim to “realize sustainable cities powered with high technology.” It brings together innovators, entrepreneurs, investors, researchers and aspiring youth from around the globe to the venue in the capital city’s ever-developing waterfront area.
In conjunction with the startup event, the Tokyo Metropolitan Government (TMG) also hosts a meeting of leaders from more than 50 cities. They will discuss the theme of “A New Urban Future Built on Climate and Disaster Resilience.”
The city leaders’ summit is part of the G-NETS (Global City Network for Sustainability) organized by the TMG since 2022 as a multicity forum to discuss how to solve common challenges with a focus now on resilience to urban climate disasters, and the well-being of citizens.
The summit can be observed by general audiences on YouTube in real time and after the event.
G-NETS official website
https://www.g-nets.metro.tokyo.lg.jp/en
G-NETS YouTube Channel
https://www.youtube.com/@G-NETS_TOKYO-SEADS
The first two days of SusHi Tech Tokyo 2026 are each designated a “Business Day” when startups and influencers keep busy at booths, talk sessions and elsewhere. The third day is set aside for a “Public Day” with all exhibits made available to general audiences free of charge, including hands-on experiences with robots in the Future Experience Pavilion.
There are the SR-01 humanoid robot, which converts between robot and vehicle modes, and cushion-style therapy robots, which wag their tails in reaction to touching.
The startup calendar climaxes on April 28 with the seven-way final of the signature pitch contest, SusHi Tech Challenge, which has attracted 820 applicants from 60 countries and regions. On April 27, 18 selected semi-finalists are whittled down to seven for the final on April 28.
“AI”, “Robotics”, “Resilience” and “Entertainment” in Focus
“Right now, there is a strong and urgent call to strengthen resilience against climate change and disasters,” the governor said. “The world is truly in a state of chaos right now, and that is precisely why we want to bring together leaders in innovation and city leaders. We hope to make this a vital venue for shaping our future.”
The 2026 edition focuses on four technological domains: “AI”, “Robotics”, “Resilience” and “Entertainment.”
“AI is evolving at breakneck speed,” Tokyo Vice Governor Miyasaka Manabu, a former Yahoo Japan CEO, told a SusHi Tech promotional event. “All manner of things are being automated through AI, and their real-world adoption is already underway.” He is one of Tokyo’s four vice governor since 2019 and in charge of digital transformation, “smart city” initiatives and startup support.
“We will deepen discussions on how technologies combining AI and robotics can change our lives,” added Miyasaka.
U.S. tech giant Nvidia vice president, Howard Wright, and prominent venture capitalist Eric Benhamou are booked to speak at a session on the infrastructure and social implementation of AI.
Ishiguro Hiroshi, robotics expert and professor at the University of Osaka, is due to speak on how “AI and robots understand people to transform the future of hospitality.”
The world’s first humanoid robot with gesture control functionality and another humanoid robot—equipped with advanced multi-joint control technology and capable of collaborating with humans—are ready for exhibitions and demonstrations.
An infrastructure inspection robot, which can access hazardous locations by adhering to and moving along walls and ceilings, is also on the demonstration program along with autonomous vehicles for test rides on public roads outside the venue.
At SusHi Tech Tokyo 2026, more than 150 talk sessions are scheduled in various forms such as keynote talks, panel discussions and startup pitches. In one featured session, NEC President and CEO Morita Takayuki speaks on the theme: “Who will Build Trustworthy AI?”
Natural disasters and conflicts are threatening people all over the world, Vice Governor Miyasaka said. “This makes it imperative to build resilience to overcome such threats,” he said, noting Japan’s advanced disaster response solutions and climate technologies.
As part of resilience-related exhibits, a construction 3D printer aimed at fully automating the housing industry is to go on display. It has been used in a Ukraine reconstruction support project.
Miyasaka said talks will be held on how to work with people around the world to develop “Japan’s leading content industry, including anime and manga.”
In the entertainment domain, proprietary AI translation support tools for multilingual translation of manga are due to be demonstrated.
Feel the ‘Incredible Energy’: a U.S. Venture Capitalist
“SusHi Tech Tokyo exceeded all my expectations,” said Michael Phillips, the Asia-Pacific executive managing director for Alumni Ventures, recalling past editions. In 2025, Alumni Ventures became the first of the top 20 U.S. venture capital firms to establish a full-scale presence in Japan.
“The quality of the event was outstanding, and the diversity of attendees was remarkable—not just industry professionals, but everyday people wanting to learn about startups and innovation,” Phillips told Vice Governor Miyasaka in an interview posted on the official SusHi Tech Tokyo website.
“The showcase format, with so many different elements happening simultaneously, created this incredible energy,” he said.
Phillips said Japan immediately stood out when he started evaluating where in Asia Alumni should expand. “The fundamentals are compelling—a large, sophisticated economy with exceptional technical capabilities, world-class patent expertise, political stability, and a strong partnership with the U.S.,” he explained.
Participation Made Easy: Online/Remote Options
SusHi Tech TOKYO Remote (GENCHI), a real-time remote attendance service, allows overseas participants to virtually enter the venue at Tokyo Big Sight.
Through live video and audio streamed by on-site assistants acting as their avatars,
participants can view booths, hold conversations, and network with exhibitors and other attendees as the event unfolds. This offers a more immersive experience than a standard livestream.
In addition, overseas participants can use the official business matching system via the SusHi Tech Tokyo website and mobile app to connect directly with startups, corporates, and investors and arrange one-to-one meetings without being onsite.
For broader access to the program, selected sessions, talks, and highlights are also available for international audiences through the official SusHi Tech Tokyo YouTube channel.
Tokyo Innovation Base: a Node for Innovators Worldwide
The SusHi Tech promotional event was held for global innovators, investors, corporate leaders, city officials and journalists at Tokyo Innovation Base (TIB). The Tokyo Metropolitan Government (TMG) launched TIB in late 2023 as a “node” for startups and ecosystem players worldwide to gather and interact.
Located in Tokyo’s main business district, TIB has already welcomed more than 400,000 visitors, Governor Koike said. “By expanding into areas such as entertainment and music, the hub aims to support a wider and more diverse range of participants, including children,” she told online news site Japan Forward.
SusHi Tech Tokyo has been the centerpiece of a startup strategy launched by the TMG in late 2022 with “Tokyo’s 10 × 10 × 10 Innovation Vision.” It sought to increase—by 10-fold in five years—the numbers of startups, unicorns, collaborative public-private projects in Tokyo.
The 2022 strategy enshrines an audacious objective of transforming the megalopolis into “the world’s most startup-friendly city”—further enhancing Tokyo’s global presence.
Last November, the metropolitan government announced the Global Innovation Strategy 2.0. The new plan moves the emphasis from helping startups begin to helping the best ones grow big, go global, and make a real difference, with government, business, and society working together.
To measure how much Tokyo has improved its stature in the landscape of innovation, one may look up the closely watched annual global startup rankings published by the US consulting company Startup Genome.
Tokyo was ranked 11th in Startup Genome’s Global Startup Ecosystem Report 2025 published last June. Other Asian cities Singapore, Beijing, Seoul and Shanghai were ranked higher.
The data-driven report noted that projects like SusHi Tech Tokyo and Tokyo Innovation Base are “strengthening connections between local and international ecosystem players.”
“Tokyo is home to over 140 universities, providing a wealth of young talent for large corporations and startups seeking top-tier professionals,” it said. “Nineteen university-based startups have been created and three internal GAP (bridge-the-gap) funds have been established as a result of TMG’s university support.”
SusHi Tech Tokyo 2026 official website
https://sushitech-startup.metro.tokyo.lg.jp/en
G-NETS official website