Pitch your ideas to top-tier investors without an appointment. Introducing IVS Meetup, held inside the IVS2026 venue.
Hello. I'm Sunagare, in charge of PR for IVS2026.
At IVS2026, we have set up a new space in the networking area called "IVS Meetup." This is a themed networking event held on the 3rd floor of Miyako Messe. Now that details are taking shape, we would like to introduce two of them in particular: a special meetup where you can pitch to investors for feedback, and a regional-focused meetup.
An official mockup/meetup held right inside the venue
Many side events are held around IVS every year. However, "IVS Meetup" is the only official one held inside the venue (Miyako Messe) during the daytime.
The IVS Meetup area is located on the 3rd floor of Miyako Messe. It is positioned as a place where you can drop by between sessions or at your own convenience. The goal is to create a setting where people can "connect with the right people for their goals on the spot without having to step outside the venue."
Special Meetup: Get direct mentoring from investors
The Special Meetup is a project where startups can receive direct mentoring from top-tier investors. You can consult with multiple investors in succession about funding and business within a short timeframe.
Opportunities to speak directly with decision-making level investors at conferences are surprisingly rare. Since the Special Meetup gathers proven investors, we hope it becomes a space for concrete discussions that lead to investment.
This will be run in two parts depending on the target. "No. 1" is for seed-stage companies, and "No. 2" is for early-stage and beyond.
Special Meetup No. 1 (For Seed Stage)
Date & Time: Wednesday, July 1, 2026, from 14:45
Venue: Miyako Messe, 3rd Floor
Target: Seed Stage
Here are the participating investors who will listen to your pitches:
Kika Ko (ANRI Co., Ltd. - Senior Associate)
Akifumi Obata (United, Inc. - Capitalist/Manager, Investment Business Division)
Gen Iwata (Kiraboshi Consulting Co., Ltd. - Partner)
Koki Mizutani (Genesia Ventures, Inc. - Investment Manager)
Tetsujiro Nakagaki (Theta Times Ventures - General Partner)
Naoki Sato (W fund - Director)
Kosuke Nakayama (ON & BOARD - General Partner)
Kohei Okubo (New Commerce Ventures - Representative Partner)
Hiroki Oda (ANOBAKA - Capitalist)
Special Meetup No. 2 (For Early Stage & Beyond)
Date & Time: Wednesday, July 1, 2026, from 16:00
Venue: Miyako Messe, 3rd Floor
Target: Early, Middle, Later Stage
Here are the participating investors who will listen to your pitches:
Yutaro Saka (JAFCO - Partner)
Masaki Yuda (Z Venture Capital - Partner)
Kyohei Mukaigawa (Archetype Ventures - Partner)
Shotaro Yamanaka (Salesforce Ventures - Principal)
Shoichiro Suzuki (Rakuten Capital - Partner)
Hyoma Seki (Shiho Investment Works Co., Ltd. - Representative Director)
Koki Ono (SMBC Edge - Vice President)
Shunsuke Ushioda (Mitsubishi UFJ Capital - Assistant General Manager, Investment Department II)
Kenzo Kimura (Ant Innovations Co., Ltd. - Director)
Regional Meetup: Talk with regional VCs about local venture opportunities
The Regional Meetup is a casual networking event focused on regional bank-affiliated VCs. We plan to start with brief self-introductions by each VC, followed by free networking.
With this meetup, we want to strongly support connections between startups and VCs operating outside of Tokyo and Osaka. For this reason, we ask that residents of Tokyo and Osaka refrain from joining. We hope to make this a place where VCs who are truly working hard in local regions can assemble and discuss unique regional challenges and topics.
Date & Time: Thursday, July 2, 2026, from 13:30
Venue: Miyako Messe, 3rd Floor
Summary
Both the Special Meetups and the Regional Meetup introduced here are part of the IVS2026 Networking Area. We aim to make it a place where you can take concrete, actionable steps with the right people on the spot. In particular, the Special Meetups are a rare opportunity to pitch directly to active, front-line investors for real-time feedback.
Also, if you want to know about the networking area as a whole, please check out this column article.
And with that, as the PR representative, I have introduced the meetups for IVS2026. Please feel free to reach out if you have any questions.
