AgeTech × Regional Revitalization
Turning Akita, where population aging advances faster than anywhere in the world, into a global innovation hub for age-technology. This is our most important initiative today.
What is AgeTech
What is AgeTech?
AgeTech is technology designed to support the health, daily life, and social participation of older adults. With advances in AI, IoT, and robotics, aging is being reframed: from a social cost into an engine of growth known as the Longevity Economy. Older adults are not only people to be supported; they can be drivers of the economy. That is the idea behind AgeTech.
Health
Preventive care, telemedicine, dementia support: wearables and AI health guidance that protect body and mind.
Daily Living
Smart homes, mobility, food tech: technology that sustains independent living.
Participation
Reskilling, job matching, social connection: preventing isolation and creating purpose.
Family & Community
Care support, community transport, remote monitoring: environments that are easier to support and safer to live in.
The Numbers
AgeTech today, in numbers
40.3%
Akita’s aging rate, the highest in Japan (2025)
~$120B
Projected US AgeTech-related market by 2030
33%
Share of world population aged 50+ by 2050
Sources: Cabinet Office of Japan; AARP & Consumer Technology Association, State of AgeTech Report; AARP, The Longevity Economy Outlook
Why Akita
Why Akita?
Akita has Japan’s highest aging rate. The latest projection from Japan’s National Institute of Population and Social Security Research (2023 estimate) puts it at 49.9% by 2050. It is a preview of the future that much of the world will face, and the place where problems are most acute is where solutions emerge first. Akita has what it takes to become the world’s proving ground for AgeTech.
Ahead of a challenge the whole world will face
Akita is living today the super-aged society the world will face tomorrow. Solutions refined here become exportable social solutions: for Japan, and for the world.
International connectivity
Akita International University teaches entirely in English and partners with 200+ universities in over 50 countries. Meta Akita, too, brings its own network reaching the front lines of Silicon Valley and beyond, together connecting the region directly with the world, bypassing Tokyo.
Ease of real-world validation
Close ties between residents and local government enable small, fast pilot projects, tackling challenges hard to test in cities: mobility, solo living, shopping access, and access to healthcare.
Our Proposal
The Akita AgeTech Hub Initiative
The Akita AgeTech Hub Initiative is a blueprint, formulated by Meta Akita in August 2025, for establishing Akita as a world-class innovation hub for age-technology. We have been advocating it to Akita Prefecture since. Drawing on leading overseas ecosystems, we are designing the mechanism that brings AgeTech players from Japan and abroad together in Akita, built on the three functions below.
01
International conference & media
An annual stage where AgeTech companies pitch to universities and enterprises. Just as the Davos forum made a small alpine town a global brand, we will establish “Akita means AgeTech.”
02
Real-world testbed (sandbox)
Pilot opportunities with care facilities and local companies for promising AgeTech, with regulatory coordination, making Akita the world’s easiest field for validation.
03
Funding (public–private VC)
Growth capital for companies whose pilots prove utility and demand. Not subsidies, but a pipeline: validate → commercialize → invest.
Roadmap
Creating regional-born unicorns
The goal is not a one-off event but an ecosystem where startups keep emerging in Akita. Our 20-year moonshot: an Akita-born company valued at over ¥100 billion.
STEP 1
Establish the Hub
Regular conferences and pilots with local companies to validate the model
STEP 2
First fund
Form a public–private VC and begin investing in validated AgeTech companies
STEP 3
Growth fund
Scale the fund and grow companies to valuations in the tens to hundreds of billions of yen
STEP 4
Moonshot
Create an Akita-born company valued at over ¥100B and a self-sustaining ecosystem
Our Activities
What we have done so far
Formulated and proposed the Akita AgeTech Hub Initiative
Began advocacy to Akita Prefecture, based on analysis of leading overseas ecosystems and global precedents.
Read the news article: Formulated and proposed the Akita AgeTech Hub Initiative
Held the 1st AgeTech Hub study session
Shared global AgeTech trends, analysis of leading overseas hubs, and the Akita blueprint with stakeholders, including a lecture by a Silicon Valley-based AgeTech expert.
Held the 2nd AgeTech Hub study session
Working-level discussion toward implementation, analyzing AgeTech services worldwide and their potential for pilots in Akita.
Proposal selected for Akita Prefecture’s longevity society conference project
Our proposal was selected. We will plan and run the symposium, which is scheduled for January 2027.
Read the news article: Proposal selected for Akita Prefecture’s longevity society conference project
Now
Preparing pilots and startup creation
In continued dialogue with governments, universities, financial institutions, and AgeTech companies to launch the conference and build the testbed.
FAQ
Frequently asked questions about AgeTech and the Akita AgeTech Hub Initiative
What is AgeTech?
AgeTech is technology designed to support the health, daily life, and social participation of older adults. It spans four domains: health, daily living, participation, and family and community. Examples include preventive care, telemedicine, smart homes, job matching, and remote monitoring.
What is the Akita AgeTech Hub Initiative?
The Akita AgeTech Hub Initiative is a blueprint formulated by Meta Akita in August 2025 and proposed to Akita Prefecture, for making Akita a leading global innovation hub for age-technology. It rests on three functions: an international conference, a real-world testbed (sandbox) across Akita, and growth investment through a public-private fund.
Why is Akita suited to be an AgeTech hub?
There are three reasons. First, Akita has Japan’s highest aging rate and is already living the super-aged society the world will face. Second, it has international connectivity, including Akita International University, which teaches entirely in English. Third, close ties between residents and local government enable small, fast pilot projects.
How far has the Akita AgeTech Hub Initiative progressed?
Meta Akita formulated the initiative and began advocacy to Akita Prefecture in August 2025, then held AgeTech Hub study sessions in October 2025 and May 2026. In August 2026, its proposal was selected for Akita Prefecture’s longevity society conference project, and Meta Akita will plan and run the symposium scheduled for January 2027.
What is the long-term goal of the Akita AgeTech Hub Initiative?
The 20-year moonshot is to create an Akita-born company valued at over ¥100 billion. The roadmap has four steps: establishing the Hub, a first fund, a growth fund, and the moonshot, leading to a self-sustaining ecosystem where startups keep emerging in Akita.