Japan Promotes 'Digital Transformation'... KOTRA Supports Entry into IT and AI Markets

Simultaneous Setup of Two Korean Pavilions at IT·AI EXPO from the 26th to 28th

[Asia Economy Reporter Han Yeju] KOTRA supports the entry of Korean companies into Japan's IT and AI markets, where digital transformation (DX) is being promoted as a national agenda.

KOTRA plans to operate a Korean Pavilion at the 'Tokyo Autumn IT Week' exhibition and 'AI Expo,' held for three days from the 26th in Makuhari, Chiba Prefecture near Tokyo.

The 'Japan IT Week' autumn exhibition consists of 11 fields including cloud, information security, and 5G, which have recently attracted attention. The Korean Pavilion, jointly operated with the private organizer K-Fairs, will feature nine companies in the information security sector. Before the COVID-19 outbreak, this exhibition was the largest IT exhibition in Japan, with over 700 companies exhibiting and more than 50,000 visitors worldwide.

'AI EXPO' is a leading AI industry exhibition in Japan. The Korean Pavilion is jointly operated with the Korea Artificial Intelligence Association and will host eight domestic AI technology-related companies. First held in 2020, it is a representative AI exhibition reflecting the rapidly increasing demand for advanced technology in Japan due to COVID-19 and the Olympics.

IDC, a specialized ICT market research firm in Japan, forecasts that the AI system market size in Japan will expand from 277.2 billion yen in 2021 to 812.1 billion yen by 2026. Under the leadership of Japan's government research institute, the New Energy and Industrial Technology Development Organization (NEDO), AI technology strategies covering manufacturing, mobility, education, healthcare, and other industries have been announced, indicating a growing local IT market.

In particular, in August this year, Family Mart, a leading convenience store in Japan, collaborated with the Japanese robot startup Teleexistence to install about 300 AI robots, TX SCARA, in stores, expanding the adoption of AI technology into daily life.

Although KOTRA faced difficulties participating in offline exhibitions due to COVID-19 over the past two years, it has supported Korean companies' entry into Japan through online exhibitions and video consultations. With the Japanese government allowing visa-free entry after 2 years and 7 months and the local IT market expanding, this Korean Pavilion is expected to serve as a foothold for Korean companies that have found it difficult to enter the Japanese market to advance locally.

This time, KOTRA plans to actively support participating companies by inviting major Japanese companies to the Korean Pavilion, arranging consultations, and conducting local promotions. After the offline exhibition ends, additional online consultations will be arranged for key meetings to ensure that Korean Pavilion participants achieve excellent results through follow-up support.

Kim Samsik, head of KOTRA's Japan regional office, stated, "Japan is accelerating digitalization across all industrial sectors under government leadership," adding, "We will strengthen support so that our IT and AI companies' cutting-edge technologies and products can successfully enter the Japanese market, which is expected to continue expanding."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.