Goyal proposes India-Japan 'Shark Tank' to boost investment, business ties

Tokyo: Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal introduced a proposal on Wednesday for an India-Japan startup pitching series, modeled after the popular Shark Tank format, to connect young startups from the two nations with investors and potential partners. Speaking at a roundtable on startups, Goyal suggested organizing these pitching sessions virtually, making use of digital connectivity to foster greater interaction between Indian and Japanese startups.

He proposed that such a series, similar to Shark Tank, could help young startups pitch their ideas to Japanese investors, while Japanese startups could seek business partners in India.

Goyal emphasized that in the era of global connectivity, these pitching sessions could be held through Zoom calls and the internet, allowing for more frequent engagement between startups from both countries. He believed that this initiative could deepen commercial ties between India and Japan, moving beyond initial pitches to actual business collaboration, such as "pilots, investment, and scaling up".

Furthermore, Goyal invited Japanese businesses and startups to explore opportunities in India, highlighting the potential for stronger economic cooperation to create broader opportunities for prosperity. He suggested forming a "Japan-India deeptech capital corridor" to facilitate increased funding for startups, particularly in the early stages, by leveraging patient capital and precision engineering from Japan.

Goyal also proposed enhancing cooperation between universities, incubators, and venture funds to support this initiative.