Source: Peatix

There are interesting challenges in the region that haven't yet been addressed by many people.

The Yatsugatake-Chino area is also known as a summer resort.
This region boasts a diverse range of industries, including manufacturing that inherits the technology of the precision machinery industry once known as the "Switzerland of the East," agriculture that takes advantage of the high-altitude environment, medical care that supports local life, and tourism that utilizes its rich nature and culture.

On the other hand, amidst significant changes in population structure and social environment, each sector is facing challenges for the next era, such as securing manpower, passing on skills, creating new sales channels and customer touchpoints, ensuring the sustainability of local services, and further utilizing local resources.

Some of these regional challenges are difficult to solve if considered only within the local context. However, by encountering experiences cultivated in different regions and industries, new technologies, and unprecedented perspectives, these challenges can be transformed into opportunities to generate new businesses and projects.

In this event, we will explore the possibilities of new co-creation projects by combining AI with the experience, skills, and perspectives that each participant has cultivated through their work and activities, using real-world themes from the Yatsugatake and Chino areas as case studies.

Local businesses, companies, government officials, and diverse participants gather at Shibuya QWS to view local issues not simply as things to be solved, but as seeds for creating new value and a better future.
Why not start a new challenge connecting Yatsugatake/Chino with the city, based on the encounters and conversations you have here?
No specialized knowledge of regional revitalization, agriculture, manufacturing, healthcare, or tourism is required.
Your unique experiences and perspectives may lead to new possibilities for the community.

Please join us in this forum to think together about the future of Yatsugatake and Chino.

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This is recommended for people like this

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・Those who want to utilize the skills and experience they have gained through their work in areas outside the company or in their local community.
・Those seeking connections with local communities from the perspective of new business development or open innovation.
・Those who want to use AI not only to improve operational efficiency, but also to create new businesses and value.
・Engineers, designers, marketers, planners, etc., who want to combine their area of expertise with local themes.
・Those interested in workation or living in two locations and who want to build concrete relationships with local communities.
・Those interested in solving local issues and local businesses
・People who have a connection to or interest in the Suwa/Yatsugatake area
・Those who want to explore the possibilities of new projects through dialogue with people from different fields.

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program

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Registration starts at 13:30
14:00 Opening and Introduction to the Background of the Event
14:10 Introduction to Chino City and the overall project
The current situation surrounding the four sectors of agriculture, manufacturing, healthcare, and tourism,
Here are some themes that have emerged from local community activities.
14:30 Session 1: The Reality of Yatsugatake and Chino
Speaker: Kohei Suzuki, CEO of Yamafarm (online)
Initiatives being carried out in the field of agriculture,
We'd like to hear about the challenges ahead and what you expect from people and companies outside the region.
14:40 Session 2: A Comfortable Distance Between AI and Locals
How can AI be involved in local work and daily life?
Rather than unilaterally introducing technology,
We will consider how AI can coexist with people and communities.
14:55 Session 3: Co-creation Workshop
It is divided into four themes: agriculture, manufacturing, healthcare, and tourism.
By combining local issues with the experiences and perspectives of each participant,
We will consider the possibilities for new businesses and collaborative projects.
16:00 Exchange meeting
Speakers and participants are free to interact with each other.
*Please note that snacks and catering will not be provided.
16:30 End
*Programs and times are subject to change.
*We are considering an informal get-together after the event. Details will be announced to those who have registered as soon as they are finalized.

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Outline

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Date and time: Monday, August 24, 2026, 14:00-16:30
*Registration starts at 13:30
Location: SHIBUYA QWS CROSS PARK, SHIBUYA SCRAMBLE SQUARE, 15th Floor
*Entry procedures are required at the reception desk.
Participation fee: Free
Capacity: 30 people
Implementation format: Offline only
*There will be no online streaming.
To register, please register via the Peatix event page.
Organizer: Kuujit Co., Ltd.
Cooperation: Chino City, Kotobito Co., Ltd., NTT DX Partner Corporation, Yamafarm

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About the organizing and supporting groups and speakers

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■ Kujit Co., Ltd. (Organizer)
With a vision to connect "the sky" and "the reality," we are a technology company that explores how AI and humans can have a comfortable relationship.
Based on technologies such as location information technology, AI, and data analysis, we promote projects with diverse partners including companies, local governments, and universities. We are also working to create a collaborative space centered on AI, based at Shibuya QWS.

【Speakers】
Takahiko Sueyoshi, President and Representative Director
We lead technology development centered on location information technology, AI, and data analysis. We have worked on numerous co-creation projects involving diverse players such as companies, local governments, and universities, including Shibuya QWS.
As the representative of Kuujit Inc., under the vision of connecting "sky" and "reality," I pursue and practice a way of life in which technology, people, and communities coexist harmoniously.
・Director and CMO: Hiromi Futamoto
Originally from Hokkaido, she graduated from the Graphic Design Department of Musashino Art University Junior College. After working at a design office and the CG production company Polygon Pictures, she became independent at the age of 24.
I have been involved in advertising design and recruitment branding, including package design for Shiseido's "Tissera J" and Sapporo Beer's "Spring Has Come" and "Winter Story." At Nissin Foods, I also participate in the development of women's brands as a designer.
Afterward, aiming to bridge the gap between management and design, she enrolled in Globis University Graduate School of Management and obtained an MBA. In her research project, she developed a workshop that applies art thinking to business, which has been adopted for corporate training at companies such as Nissan Motor, Mizuho Securities, and Suntory.
Currently, I am active as a management member of Kuujit Co., Ltd., and in 2025 I established Sansanto LLC and started an agricultural business in Hokkaido.

■ Chino City
It is a regional city located almost in the center of Nagano Prefecture, at the western foot of the Yatsugatake Mountains.
Blessed with a rich natural environment encompassing the Yatsugatake Mountains and Tateshina Plateau, the area boasts a diverse range of industries, including agriculture, manufacturing, and tourism. Taking advantage of its convenient location, approximately two hours from central Tokyo, the area is also promoting initiatives to create new flows of people and businesses, such as encouraging relocation, dual-residency lifestyles, and collaborations with companies.

■ Kotobito Co., Ltd.
We are a production company that stands alongside people who are trying to create something new in their communities, and we work together with them from the conception to the implementation of their businesses and projects.
We were selected as the best proposer for Chino City's "Project to Promote Regional Industrial Revitalization through Collaboration with Companies in the Tokyo Metropolitan Area," and we support the creation of lasting relationships between companies in the Tokyo metropolitan area and local businesses, as well as the creation of new jobs and businesses.
【Speakers】
- Representative Director and CEO: Tomo Ishijima
At Sony Corporation, I was involved in overseas marketing and launching new businesses in the medical and technology fields. Since then, I have continued to build a career in new business development and business management for over 10 years.
At CMIC Group, a major provider of pharmaceutical development support, I served as the representative of a group company responsible for the business inherited from Sony, managing it for approximately three years.
Currently based in Chino City, Nagano Prefecture, I have established Kotobito Co., Ltd., and am developing a production business that creates new businesses and projects across various fields such as regional development, culture, tourism, and healthcare.

■ NTT DX Partner Corporation
This company is responsible for promoting DX (Digital Transformation) within the NTT Group, and supports companies and local governments in solving their challenges, creating new businesses, and revitalizing local communities.
We promote open innovation with a variety of companies and research institutions, including operating "ZAKONE," a co-creation community focused on sleep.
This project leverages our network with companies in the Tokyo metropolitan area and our expertise in community management to support initiatives that foster connections between local businesses and companies, and generate new co-creations from regional challenges.
【Speakers】
Teppei Ogata, Director of ZAKONE
Originally from Yamagata Prefecture, I joined NTT East in 2012 and launched the sleep tech business as a new venture. Currently, at NTT DX Partner, I am promoting business development and co-creation projects centered on sleep.
I preside over "ZAKONE," a sleep community with approximately 320 participating companies, local governments, and research institutions, and I am working to create new businesses that transcend industry and corporate boundaries.
Meanwhile, he also runs the vintage leather shoe store "JUST LIKE HERE." His strength lies in business development that creates something from nothing, and he continues to create new markets and cultures by working across different fields.

■ Yama Farm
This farm, located in Chino City, Nagano Prefecture, at the foot of the Yatsugatake Mountains at an altitude of approximately 1,000 meters, produces chrysanthemums and mums.
Taking advantage of the climate unique to high-altitude regions, we cultivate vibrant and fresh flowers, while also working on agricultural management incorporating data and technology, training future farmers, and solving regional agricultural challenges.
【Speakers】
Representative: Kohei Suzuki
I am from Nagoya City, Aichi Prefecture. After graduating from university, I gained experience as an engineer, corporate sales representative, and new business development specialist at IT companies, building a career in the IT and business fields for approximately 15 years.
At the age of 37, the death of a relative prompted me to re-evaluate my life, and I decided to move to Chino City, Nagano Prefecture, and start farming. After two years of training as a mentor for new farmers, I became independent in 2019.
By incorporating data analysis and logical thinking skills honed in the IT industry into agricultural management, he grew his farm to become the fourth largest in the region in just three years since starting his farm.
Currently, I am working at the non-profit organization "Shinshu Chino Farming LABO," where I am dedicated to nurturing the next generation of agricultural talent and addressing regional issues in cooperation with the local government.

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