Latest with an English summary
Sponsored byALPHA
One robot, many jobs: “Armo,” born on the retail floor, is changing how stores look
- Yasutaka Kasagi, Founder & CEO, MUSE Inc.
- Keisuke Tatsuoka, General Partner, ALPHA
Video Podcast
Founders’ stories,
in their own voices.
Funding news rarely tells you who the founder is. Startup Now is a long-form interview show from a studio in Shibuya, Tokyo, tracing each founder’s path from formative experiences to starting up and what comes next.
Most episodes are in Japanese. A growing number are recorded in English or have English subtitles on YouTube.
- Episodes
- 237
- Guests
- 171
- Hours
- 116
Episodes
Episodes with English summaries
How US VCs see Japan’s growth strategy: the 17 strategic sectors and the strengths of Japanese founders
Chris Yeh, Blitzscaling Ventures and others
Sponsored byDG Daiwa Ventures
30 billion yen invested in Japan and abroad, including 40 Y Combinator companies (with a report from SF Tech Week)
Yamato Watanabe, DG Daiwa Ventures and others
Sponsored byDG Daiwa Ventures
Turning the voice of the customer into value: an AI contact center for better customer experience
Yuichi Takarabe, Flyle, Inc. and others
Sponsored byALPHA
A “living home” with a two-armed robot: taking on a giant industry with a 3 billion yen seed round
Shuzo Narita, MW Inc. and others
Sponsored byALPHA
More than ten years as a founder in the US, and what he wants to leave behind
Satoru Naito, Anyplace, Inc.
Renting mourning wear, to leave room for saying goodbye
Yusuke Goto, Mofuku Rescue, Corp. and others
Sponsored byALPHA
Sozo Ventures: the Japan–US venture firm that helped Twitter enter Japan
Rob Freelen, Sozo Ventures
Tie-up
Tie-up episodes, made together with companies and investors.
Some episodes are planned and produced with a partner: a startup or company talking about its own work, or an investor appearing alongside a portfolio founder. Tie-up episodes are always disclosed, both in the show and on this site.
- ALPHA
- DG Daiwa Ventures
- Genesia Ventures
- Check Inn
- ファイナンスプロデュース
- InsightX
- 90 English
- miive
Sponsored byALPHA
One robot, many jobs: “Armo,” born on the retail floor, is changing how stores look
Yasutaka Kasagi, MUSE Inc. and others ·
Sponsored byDG Daiwa Ventures
How US VCs see Japan’s growth strategy: the 17 strategic sectors and the strengths of Japanese founders
EventChris Yeh, Blitzscaling Ventures and others ·
Sponsored byDG Daiwa Ventures
30 billion yen invested in Japan and abroad, including 40 Y Combinator companies (with a report from SF Tech Week)
Yamato Watanabe, DG Daiwa Ventures and others ·
Sponsored byALPHA
Turning the voice of the customer into value: an AI contact center for better customer experience
Yuichi Takarabe, Flyle, Inc. and others ·
Guests
Companies that have appeared on the show
Select a logo to play that episode. Most are in Japanese.
Studio
Recorded in our own studio in Shibuya, in video and sound.
In November 2025 we opened StartPods Studio in Shibuya, Tokyo, with the support of 249 crowdfunding backers. Startup Now is recorded there and released as a video podcast.
Events
Beyond the studio, in person.
We host public recordings and meetups, and take part in conferences, together with founders, investors and fellow podcasters.
Host
120 founders and more than 110 hours of conversation, across the microphone.
The host is Inari (Kazuya Inarida), founder and CEO of JobTales, Inc. He fell for startups while working at Sansan, his first job after university, moved to an early-stage startup, and started his own company in 2023. He asks not only about the business but goes back to childhood and formative experiences, to hear the story of the person.
Appear on the show, or partner with us
If you are a founder preparing a funding announcement, please get in touch about a month in advance. We also welcome tie-up and sponsorship inquiries.