IVS2026 introduces Japan’s first "Referral Ticket" system, allowing you to invite people you’d like to go with! A free campaign for the first 3,000 people is also being offered.
IVS2026, the largest startup conference in Japan, will be held over three days from Wednesday, July 1 to Friday, July 3, 2026, with Miyakomesse, Hotel Okura Kyoto, and other venues as the main locations.
Starting this year, we will fully introduce Japan's first (*) 'referral ticket' system as a domestic conference. To commemorate the launch, we will run a campaign offering IVS PASS (normally ¥39,800, tax included) for free to the first 3,000 people who register via a referral ticket.
* As the introduction of a referral-based ticket system at a domestic conference on the scale of 10,000 attendees (based on IVS research, as of April 2026)
Invite people you want to go to IVS with for free, and make IVS even more meaningful.
IVS PASS uses the 'referral ticket' system on the ticket platform '4S (Force).' People who receive a referral code can obtain a PASS for free until the limit of 3,000 people is reached, and will also receive referral codes for two more people.
Receive a referral → Attend → Introduce someone else too
That is the 'referral ticket' system.
How referral codes are delivered
Referral codes will arrive in one of the following ways.
Referral from IVS STAFF：
Distribution from IVS STAFF will begin
TEAM IVS2026 list is here
Referral from speakers：
Speakers will distribute them to their respective contacts
Referral codes will arrive in one of the following ways.
After receiving it, please obtain a PASS and send the referral code issued to you to someone you want to attend with
Each person can refer up to two people. These 'two tickets' ensure the quality of referrals. Rather than inviting anyone without limit, you think of the people you truly want to go with and send them a referral code. That is why we believe it creates a chain of trust.
In addition, information about who referred whom is expected to be viewable by participants on 4S. By making referral connections visible, it will also serve as a starting point for networking at the venue. Those without a referral code can still purchase a PASS through general sales.
About the 4S platform
The 'referral ticket' system operates on IVS's official participant platform '4S.' In addition to issuing and managing referral tickets, 4S is scheduled to support matching between participants, searching for and registering for side events, and check-ins across multiple venues.
From sending referral codes to visualizing referral connections, everything is completed on 4S.
First 3,000 people free campaign
To commemorate the introduction of the 'referral ticket' system, we will offer IVS PASS (normally ¥39,800, tax included) for free to the first 3,000 people who obtain a PASS via referral. Students will also be free for the first 1,000 people via referral (normally ¥4,800, tax included).
PASS | Referral price | General sale price |
|---|---|---|
IVS PASS | Free (first 3,000 people) | ¥39,800 (tax included) |
IVS PASS Student | Free (first 1,000 people) | ¥4,800 (tax included) |
* Free tickets are first come, first served, and will end once the limit is reached
* The number of people eligible for the free tickets may change
After the first 3,000 free campaign ends, if you purchase a PASS via a referral code, you can buy the normally priced IVS PASS for ¥9,800 (tax included) until June 14. From June 15 onward, it will be ¥19,800, and from July 1 onward, you can purchase IVS PASS for ¥29,800.
Making Networking a Science
Since its founding in 2007, IVS operated as a fully invitation-only closed conference until 2022. There were only a few hundred participants. Because it was a gathering of only trusted people, the quality of the encounters was naturally ensured.
With the 2023 Kyoto edition, we moved to a ticketed system. This was a decision to further expand the community cultivated under the invitation-only model and increase the number of people connected to startups. Participation quickly grew to around 10,000 people. IVS2024 attracted more than 12,000 attendees, and IVS2025 recorded a new high of 13,000. Thanks to your support, we have grown into Japan's largest startup conference, but at the same time, a new question emerged: how can we create high-quality encounters among 10,000 people?
Over the past three years, IVS has continued to face that question. IVS is not an event for organizers alone, but a community created together by participants. A culture has taken root in which participants spontaneously launch side events, and the number has expanded from 150 events in 2023 to more than 300 in 2024 and more than 500 in 2025. The 'referral ticket' system extends this idea of 'participants themselves creating the space' to the ticketing mechanism itself.
At a conference of 10,000 people, it is not easy to approach strangers on your own. But if a friend invites you by saying, 'Let's go together,' the barrier to participation is lowered. If it's a connection through a friend's friend, conversations naturally arise.
Also, there may be many people who are not comfortable reaching out themselves but can talk if someone introduces them. The 'referral ticket' system is a mechanism for such people as well.
From the moment you get a ticket, you start thinking about whom to invite and imagining who you will connect with. IVS2026 begins before you even step into the venue.
Notes
The number of people you can refer is limited to two per person.
People who purchase a PASS through general sales will not be granted referral rights.
Even if you obtain a referral code after purchasing a PASS, you cannot convert it to a referral ticket.
Once the issuance limit for referral tickets is reached, sales will switch to paid-only.
The general sale price will be the price on the day of IVS and will be higher than the paid price after the referral ticket limit is reached.
The 'referral ticket' system applies to IVS PASS. CORE PASS is fully invitation-only, so it is not eligible for referral tickets.
Overview of IVS2026
IVS is a startup conference founded in 2007 and one of the largest in Japan. Startups, investors, major companies, creators, and others from Japan and abroad gather together, and in 2026 it will be held in Kyoto under the theme 'Japan is Back.'
This year, we are introducing two areas: the evolved culmination of the IVS2023, IVS2024, and IVS2025 editions held in Kyoto, the 'IVS' area (Kyoto City Kangyo Hall 'Miyakomesse,' and 'ROHM Theatre Kyoto'), and the newly established, fully invitation-only Reiwa-era IVS, the 'IVS CORE' area (Hotel Okura Kyoto). The event will be held across these two areas.
【IVS ('Miyakomesse' and 'ROHM Theatre Kyoto')】
An area open to everyone who helps create the next generation: startup professionals, business companies, investors, aspiring entrepreneurs, supporters, government, research institutions, and students. We will host stage sessions, the startup exhibition 'Startup Market,' and IVS's signature pitch event 'IVS LAUNCHPAD.'
【IVS CORE (Hotel Okura Kyoto)】※Newly established / fully invitation-only
A fully invitation-only area where only decision-makers participate, including startup executives, institutional investors, senior executives of major companies, and government/policy stakeholders. It provides a place where concrete decisions move forward, with all sessions off the record, power matching among decision-makers, and M&A matching.
Participation in IVS2026 requires an access pass. There are two types: the 'IVS PASS' that grants access to the IVS area, and the fully invitation-only 'CORE PASS' that grants access to the IVS CORE area. CORE PASS is a screened pass and can only be purchased by invited guests.
Name: IVS2026
Theme: Japan is Back
Dates: Wednesday, July 1 to Friday, July 3, 2026
Location: Kyoto City Kangyo Hall 'Miyakomesse,' ROHM Theatre Kyoto, Hotel Okura Kyoto, and more
Organizer: IVS KYOTO Executive Committee (Headline Japan / Kyoto Prefecture / Kyoto City)
Official website: https://www.ivs.events/
Official X: https://x.com/IVS_Official
■ About the IVS KYOTO Executive Committee
With the Kyoto edition of IVS, Headline Japan Co., Ltd., Kyoto Prefecture, and Kyoto City jointly established this committee with the aim of further developing the startup ecosystem and promoting local industries even more. By promoting collaboration between companies, universities/research institutions, and cultural resources concentrated in Kyoto, and startups, we will lead to the creation of new industries and the emergence of startups that can compete globally.
<Constituent organizations>
Headline Japan Co., Ltd., Kyoto Prefecture, Kyoto City