The country's largest startup conference, "IVS2026", will be held for three days from Wednesday, July 1 to Friday, July 3, 2026, with Miyako Messe, ROHM Theatre Kyoto, and Hotel Okura Kyoto as the main venues.

With the theme of "Japan is Back", IVS2026 will completely redesign the "Networking Area" (Miyako Messe, ROHM Theatre Kyoto) that supports encounters between participants.

Revisiting networking, which has often been treated as an "extra" at conferences, as a "main-character-level experience" on par with sessions and pitches, we will address the issue of "missing the people you want to meet" that has occurred on a scale of over 13,000 people, using mechanisms including "Yami-Ichi" (Black Market), a new barter-style matching project.

The Increase in "Missed Encounters" Due to Scale Expansion

As the scale of IVS expands, we have received comments such as:
"The venue was too large, and I missed the people I really wanted to meet."
"We couldn't have deep conversations in the short time between sessions."
"We exchanged business cards, but didn't go any further than that."

Since the scale surpassed 13,000 participants, these voices have become particularly prominent.

Networking is originally the moment when participants most feel "im glad I came." However, in many conferences, stages and pitches are the main focus, and networking has remained a "blank space" in between. IVS2026 will invest time, space, and mechanisms directly into this networking, redesigning it as a main-character-class experience.

Two Concepts in the Redesign

1. Delivering "Fruitful Encounters" to All Participants

Designed as a place where all participants can fulfill at least one "reason they came to IVS" and take home practical benefits. We aim to deliver "fruitful encounters" to everyone, whether they are first-timers or regulars, good at communication or not, attending alone or in a group.

2. Maximizing Serendipitous and Inevitable Encounters

We will co-locate the "inevitable" lines of sight, where you can reliably meet the people you want to meet, and the "serendipitous" blank spaces, where you can meet unexpected people, in the same area.

The following four projects materialize these two axes.

List of Networking Area Projects

① IVS AMA (Ask Me Anything)

▲Scene from IVS2025

This is a participant matching project themed around "clarifying needs to increase serendipitous encounters." We offer two approaches: "AMA" and the new AMA "Yami-Ichi" (Black Market), tailored to the resolution of the participant's objectives.

AMA (Matching Explicit Needs - Continued from Last Year)

A sharper mechanism for those with clear objectives. Write specific needs on a dedicated sheet, and people with mutual interests match directly at a high table. Four genres are available: "Investment," "Recruit," "Alliance," and "Others."

For both, you can participate simply by showing up at the venue on the day.

Featured New Project: AMA "Yami-Ichi" (Matching Awareness to Interest - Newly Established This Year)

The new project "Yami-Ichi" (Black Market) symbolizes this redesign.

Write your GIVE (what you can offer) and TAKE (what you want offered) on a dedicated sheet and post it on a high table. For example, to a post saying "I can talk about the latest AI trends from an entrepreneur's perspective (GIVE)," an interested person might respond, "I'll talk about recruitment or fundraising instead." This creates casual, barter-style encounters.

Those whose goals are still vague and who are "vaguely looking for interesting connections" are the main characters here. You can participate simply by showing up at the venue on the day. The goal is to push attendees who are at the stage before "going to meet someone" but can say "I can provide this" into serendipitous encounters.

② Session-Specific Networking Area

An area where speakers and participants can engage in deep dialogue after a session ends. This is designed to optimize quality rather than maximize quantity.

After each session (60 minutes), networking time (30 minutes) is secured in advance. Both speakers and participants can join the networking on the spot while the excitement of the session is still fresh.

In previous conferences, we observed cases where some participants monopolized speakers for a long time after a session, or participants who wanted to discuss more ended up just exchanging business cards. By designing the session (60 minutes) + networking (30 minutes) as a single framework, we create a structure where both speakers and participants can converse comfortably.

③ IVS Meetup (Newly Established This Year)

A 1-to-3-hour themed meetup held on the 3rd floor of Miyako Messe. Positioned like an official side event held inside the venue, it lowers the psychological barrier as a place where people with shared interests gather, leading to next actions such as business negotiations and recruitment. Themes and schedules will be announced as soon as they are finalized.

④ IVS Matching Wall & Side Event Bulletin Board

▲Scene from IVS2025

The "IVS Matching Wall" continuing from last year's IVS2025, and the "Side Event Bulletin Board" next to it. This is a physical bulletin board where you can freely post objectives like "Looking for investors" or "Our job openings are here." A side event information desk and photo spots will also be placed nearby, functioning as a place to take a breather.

Since it can be posted constantly, you can connect with people interested in your post even after the session or the next day. You can bring your posters with you on the day.

Sensing the Lines of Encounters Using the Referral Ticket "IVS Family Tree"

For those who want to make better use of the networking area, we recommend using the "IVS Family Tree" feature of the referral ticket.

The referral ticket is a system where IVS participants can invite up to 2 people using a dedicated code. Who invited whom is visualized for participants as the "IVS Family Tree."

For example, you can use it in the following ways:

Looking at the IVS Family Tree, use it as a conversation starter at Yami-Ichi.
If you find "someone you want to meet" in the Family Tree, arrange to meet them at Yami-Ichi or the IVS Meetup.

Referral ticket invitation slots are limited and available on a first-come, first-served basis. If you are considering participating, please make use of invitations via referrals.