The Japan semifinal for the Global EdTech Startups Awards (GESA) was held online

EduLab, Inc. (Headquartered in Shibuya-ku, Tokyo; President and Chief Executive Officer Junichi Takamura; “EduLab”), an educational service provider, announces that the Japan semifinal for the Global EdTech Startups Awards (GESA) was held online on Thu, November 5, 2020. GESA is the world’s largest competition for recognizing outstanding EdTech startups. GESA 2020 Japan semifinal was hosted by The Global EdTech Acceleration Committee, whose administrative arm is served by EduLab.

Overview of the Initiative

GESA is the world’s largest EdTech startups competition, and EdTech startups around the world who won the regional semifinals held in 16 countries and regions participate.

The London Final will be held online this year at Bett 2021, a global Education Trade Expo that gathers educators, education service providers, government officials and investors. Select qualified EdTech startups will come together from all over the world to present in front of judges and investors, to determine the best startup of the year.

As part of the competition, the Global EdTech Acceleration Committee, whose administrative arm is served by EduLab, organized the Japan semifinal which was held online. Six selected startups competed in the semifinal. Norihisa Wada, the Executive Vice-President & Co-COO at EduLab, will also participate at the London Final as a final judge. (Click here to see Mr. Wada’s profile)

Japan semifinal Judges

• Toru Fujimoto, Lecturer, Graduate School of Interdisciplinary Information Studies, University of Tokyo
• Naohiko Kohtake, Professor, Graduate School of System Design and Management, Keio University
• Hiromu Nishiuchi, Representative Director & CTO, Data Vehicle, Inc.
• Hideki Kumekawa, Director, Obunsha Co., Ltd.
• Teruyuki Honda, Representative Director, Obunsha Ventures, Inc.
• Norihisa Wada, Chairman, Global EdTech Acceleration Committee (Executive Vice-President & Co-COO at EduLab)

The Winner

After a careful examination by the judges, RUN.EDGE Limited, which provides the TAGURU platform, was selected as the best EdTech startup in the Japan semifinal. The winner of the semifinal is qualified to participate in the global final, which will be held online at Bett 2021. In addition to their qualification for the final and a trophy, RUN.EDGE Limited was approved to participate in the online business negotiation and matching event at Bett 2021 by the Japan External Trade Organization (JETRO), which supported this event.

 
2nd and 3rd Place Winners

The 2nd and 3rd place startups are listed below.

Second place: Hylable Inc.
Providing a service that quantifies discussions that were otherwise difficult to evaluate objectively, to allow evidence-based guidance and review for better deep learning and collaborative learning.

Third Place: I’m beside you Inc.
Online video communication analysis system provider. Established in 2020, Hylable has applied for 13 international patents.

EduLab will continue discovering and supporting promising EdTech startups as well as partnering with and investing in them to help advance global education and the EdTech market.

◆EduLab, Inc.

EduLab, Inc. realizes educational solutions for the next generation based on the latest learning science, which includes building new businesses and investment in the field of Edtech, providing IT solutions and platforms for the education industry, and supporting next generation education and school management systems. We have offices in Tokyo, Seattle, Boston, New York, Dublin, Singapore, Hong Kong, Beijing, Shanghai, and Pune.