16 March 2014
Last updated at 17:18 ET
Tokyo technology start-ups offer devices and gadgets
Tokyo's start-up scene is beginning to take off
Tokyo's technology start-up scene is beginning to take off. But can the Japanese capital rival California's Silicon Valley?
How about using your finger to draw a currency symbol in the air and write out a sum to transfer, then heading home, safe in the knowledge you've paid for your meal.
This futuristic-sounding technique is the premise of Japanese start-up Logbar, which has manufactured the "Ring".
Ring connects via Bluetooth to a user's smartphone
It will be able to control any device linked to the internet, potentially letting someone switch on a TV or a light simply by pointing, and mass production will begin next month.
The idea followed the success of a Tokyo bar set up by Logbar chief executive Takuro Yoshida, which enabled customers to order via iPads, design their own drinks, see other orders and receive recommendations.
"We noticed that people were looking for a new way to communicate, so we created Ring," he says.
Users of the "Ring" can control apps by drawing a specific action
And, inspired by the importance placed on fashion locally, he made the device as "cool and fashionable" as possible.
Yet firms such as Logbar remain unusual in Japan. The conservative culture means graduates aspire to so called "salarymen" jobs, which more or less provide guaranteed employment until retirement.
Necomimi claims to track your brain waves and move based on what you're thinking
For example Necomimi - a pair of wearable cat-like ears that claim to track your brain waves and move based on your thoughts - originated here.
Invented by the Tokyo-based Neurowear team, the ears come on a headband that contains a microchip, and made Time magazine's list of 50 best inventions in 2011.
A software engineer, Mr Akiba, says this kind of tech is typical in Japan, which even has a saying that if it's "kawaii" - or cute - then its existence is justified, and it doesn't need any other purpose.
Japanese people "kind of appreciate" having a lot of "really sophisticated technology" that serves no real purpose, he says.
In contrast, Japanese start-up Telepathy has a serious purpose, making a headset that connects to the user's smartphone by wireless and distributes live images of what they see or hear.
Founded by software engineer Takahito Iguchi in January 2013, it aims to help communications evolve.
Graduates compete for "salarymen" jobs, which generally offer security throughout their careers
Secured to the head via earphones which deliver sound, users can also receive images or check messages on social networks.
It also has a "cute" element, where users can select a "manga" (cartoon) character as their profile picture.
Mr Iguchi believes the product, which is intended to be sold in the US this year and globally in 2015, will be like a new type of phone.
Both Logbar and Telepathy credit Japan's skilled engineers for their ability to design and manufacture highly functional products.
Telepathy says its headset will be like a new type of phone
Mr Iguchi says he has been able to "utilise the best parts from Japan and the US".
However, in Japan few engineers are willing to commit to new ideas, and the Japanese hardware industry overall "tends to lack creativity and edginess", he adds.
Fashion forward
The Japanese start-up scene is not just about devices, though,
as mobile app iQon lets people browse a wide variety of clothes from
different stores to create looks.
"Stylists" can then share their combinations with the network.
If someone likes an item, they can click and buy it, taking them directly to the retailer's website. IQon then earns a commission from the sale.
Founder Yuki Kanayama used to run Yahoo Japan's fashion and lifestyle section, but left to "live my own life".
However, he's had trouble attracting staff to join him.
"Japanese people don't want to be different from others; they want to work for Sony, Toyota and Google, instead of start-ups.
"The number of entrepreneurs is too small in Japan," he says.
"Stylists" can then share their combinations with the network.
If someone likes an item, they can click and buy it, taking them directly to the retailer's website. IQon then earns a commission from the sale.
Founder Yuki Kanayama used to run Yahoo Japan's fashion and lifestyle section, but left to "live my own life".
However, he's had trouble attracting staff to join him.
"Japanese people don't want to be different from others; they want to work for Sony, Toyota and Google, instead of start-ups.
"The number of entrepreneurs is too small in Japan," he says.
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