Related

The Kyoto City government fosters industry-academia-government partnerships by integrating Kyoto’s unique traditional industries with technologies and skills in advanced industries. It has also built a system for stimulating technological innovation under the leadership of universities or other research institutes with the participation of companies inside and outside Kyoto. By doing so, the Kyoto City government aims to promote manufacturing industries unique to Kyoto and revitalize the local economy.

Despite disadvantages such as the difficulty in constructing large production facilities due to its location being enclosed by mountains in three directions, Kyoto City has been an incubator of many world-class high-tech companies. This has happened thanks to a favourable environment for collaboration between industry, academia and government, created by sharing universities’ intellectual resources with local companies and the municipality, as well as owing to a favourable environment for combining long-established techniques in traditional industries, such as ceramics, and advanced industries.

On one hand, as a city full of universities, Kyoto has always been a leader in education and research. There are as many as 36 four-year universities and two-year colleges currently based in Kyoto City. Due to a massive accumulation of research achievements with considerable future potential, the city has developed and produced outstanding academic talent, including many Nobel Prize Laureates.

On the other hand, the industrial structure of Kyoto comprises a wide range of industries, from long-standing traditional industries to advanced industries based on technologies created by universities and companies. From generation to generation since the early Meiji era (1868-1912), many venture companies with original technologies have been born in Kyoto. Therefore, Kyoto has been called “the city of Venture companies”.

Kyoto has long served as an arena for beneficial combinations of tradition and novel ideas, which has created various innovations together with harmony and integration between diverse cultures.

To know more, contact the City of Kyoto Business Attraction Promotion Office at: kigyoyc@city.kyoto.lg.jp

Source: City of Kyoto Business Attraction Promotion Office

Published: December 2023

EU-Japan Centre's News

More
The Centre quarterly newsletter, June 2026 issue, is now available. In this issue:   Last chance…
The Belgian-Luxembourg Chamber of Commerce in Japan (BLCCJ) is organizing the 13th edition of the…
Call for Applications: WCM October 2026 – 56th edition Applications are now open for the 56th…
The EU Japan Centre is releasing a weekly press review covering Japan's economic and business…

Events

More
Japan
16/03/2026 - 19/03/2026
  The next mission will take place from 23-26 March, 2027 Planned application period: September - early November 2026   Please note that this page is still under construction; content relating to…
07/07/2026
EU-Japan Centre for Industrial Cooperation Minerva Policy SeminarChallenges Confronting the Hydrogen Strategies of the EU and Japan and Efforts to Strengthen the Japan–EU Partnership Tuesday 7…
Time in Brussels
-
Time in Tokyo
-
Exchange rate
1€ = 183,999 JPY