Innovative Culture

Since the opening of its port in 1859, Yokohama has developed its identity as a diverse and vibrant city open to new peoples, cultures and ideas. Now, Yokohama is a flourishing hub of companies, universities and research institutes specialized in life science, IT, mobility and manufacturing technologies. Recently, Apple, LG and other major companies have chosen to open their R&D centers in Yokohama.

Yokohama has platforms for industry-government-academia collaboration such as the LIP. Yokohama (life science) and the ITOP Yokohama (IT). These platforms offer collaborative opportunities to promote the development of ground-breaking technologies and products. Match-up events, seminars and exchange meetings are just a few of the ways the platforms facilitate networking and support startups’ R&D and commercialization efforts. LIP Yokohama is an international partner of BIOCOM, an advocacy organization for California’s life science sector.

Yokohama offers a great variety of venues for meetings, incentives, conferences and exhibitions (MICE) and co-working spaces. There is no shortage of networking events, exhibits, workshops and seminars held in Yokohama. Most notably, Pacifico Yokohama, a large-scale convention center in the Minato Mirai district, hosts the largest number of international conferences and MICE participants in the nation. WeWork has opened a location in Ocean Gate Minato Mirai and many newly developed office buildings have incorporated open-concept floor plans.

Yokohama has been long recognized as a leading city in public-private collaboration. Since 2008, it has conducted over 310 public-private pilot projects. In light of this success, Yokohama hopes to become a leading city in achieving Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) in a similar fashion.