On November 15th, the Consumer Technology Association (CTA) announced the honorees of the CES 2024 Innovation Awards. The Japan External Trade Organization (JETRO) will once again sponsor the Japan (J-Startup) Pavilion at CES’ startup arena Eureka Park from January 9-12 in Las Vegas, and this year six of the Japan (J-Startup) Pavilion exhibitors have been designated CES Innovation Award honorees.
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JETRO to showcase 30 Japanese startups at Japan (J-Startup) Pavilion at CES 2024 (Graphic: Business Wire)
Among the six honorees, inQs and WILLTEX were also named recipients of this year’s “Best of Innovation” award, which is awarded to “the highest-rated products across all categories,” according to the CTA. inQs developed an advanced energy-harvesting solar glass, while WILLTEX – developers of an innovative smart textile – produced the world’s first portable fabric microwave bag.
This year, JETRO welcomed Mr. Kei Shimada – a former CES Innovation Award honoree – as an advisor to help provide award support and pitch training to the exhibitors, centered around the slogan: “World-first, region-first, industry-first.”
The Japan (J-Startup) Pavilion will be located at Tech West Venetian Expo 1F Hall G Booth 62801. Many of the exhibitors will also participate in media-focused events during CES week, such as CES Unveiled, ShowStoppers, and “Launch.IT” – a pitch event featuring only Japanese startups.
Japan (J-Startup) Pavilion Exhibitor List
CES 2024 “Best of Innovation” Honorees List
inQs Co., Ltd. – “SQPV GLASS”
Category: Smart home / Smart cities / Sustainability, Eco-Design & Smart Energy
inQs has pioneered the world’s most advanced and efficient energy-harvesting clear solar glass, known as SQPV glass. This groundbreaking innovation not only generates electricity from sunlight but also harnesses energy from imperceptible light sources, thriving even in dimly lit interiors or overcast conditions. The SQPV glass effectively transforms light into electricity through a strategic arrangement of nanomaterials within a structure sandwiched between two conductive glass sheets. Impressively, it captures light from both glass surfaces. This technology surpasses all other current solutions, yielding superior power output per unit.
WILLTEX Corporation – “WILLCOOK”
Category: Home Appliances
WILLCOOK is a lightweight, portable cooking bag designed with HOTOPIA, a fabric heater that serves as both textile and electrical device. The integrated mobile battery generates heat within each fiber, enabling cooking on-the-go. When not cooking, the bag doubles as a cooling bag and can even function as a heat-generating blanket when unfolded. This versatile product serves multiple purposes, providing warmth and convenience in various scenarios.
CES 2024 “Innovation Awards” Honorees List
Pixie Dust Technologies, Inc. – “iwasemi™ RC-α”
Category: Home Appliances
‘iwasemi RC-α’ is a transparent acoustic panel developed using acoustic meta-material technology. Due to its transparency, it can be installed on commonly used glass walls in meeting rooms. It is designed to primarily absorb frequencies ranging from 500Hz to 1000Hz, which encompass the human voice’s frequency. Our transparent acoustic panels offer improved acoustic performance within meeting rooms while also capitalizing on the aesthetic benefits of glass features in their design.
TechMagic, Inc. – “I-Robo”
Category: Robotics
I-Robo, the world’s first innovative cooking robot, addresses labor shortages in restaurants and aids busy dual-income homes. With features like automatic seasoning, cooking automation, and a self-cleaning frypan, it connects to the cloud for a vast digital recipe library. Users can replicate expert flavors without culinary training. It offers fresh, health-conscious meals, and its smart algorithms create unique dishes. Customizable recipes, both user and expert-curated, further enhance dining experiences, addressing contemporary culinary demands.
Uzabase, Inc. – “SPEEDA Edge”
Category: Artificial Intelligence (AI)
Experience the transformational power of SPEEDA Edge, a ground-breaking innovation research hub that redefines efficiency and cost-effectiveness. Combining expert analysts, robust data engineering, and global operations in the US, Japan, and Sri Lanka, SPEEDA Edge empowers exploration across 1000+ emerging industries. Seamlessly connecting 1000 industries to a comprehensive 2M-company database, it crafts personalized monthly reports and weekly newsletters using AI/ML and analyst insights. Elevate research with trend analysis, competitive benchmarking, and tailor-made reporting. SPEEDA Edge accelerates innovation research, revolutionizing how you uncover trends, competitors, and insights in a single dynamic platform.
WOTA Corp. – “WOTA BOX”
Category: Sustainability, Eco-Design & Smart Energy
The WOTA BOX is the world’s first portable water recycling plant that can recycle greywater (from showers and handwashing) to be used for the same purpose again, on-site. It is powered by WOTA’s autonomous control technology for water treatment. Because the system can recycle over 98 percent of used water, users only need a small amount of water to shower multiple times (25 gallons can provide up to 100 showers). The WOTA BOX is useful during times of emergency and in settings where water is not abundantly available, such as camping sites, sporting events, and festivals in remote locations.
About JETRO
The Japan External Trade Organization (JETRO) is a Japanese government-affiliated agency that supports Japanese businesses expanding globally and international businesses entering Japan. JETRO’s Startup Division assists innovative Japanese startups in entering the global market. JETRO has organized the CES Japan (J-Startup) Pavilion since 2019.
About J-Startup
J-Startup is a startup support program launched by the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry (METI) in 2018 to boost innovation activities and help promising startups compete globally. Operated collaboratively by JETRO, METI and other public agencies, the program provides 140 startups chosen through a rigorous selection process with various resources and support.
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