Curations and Conecuri Join Forces to Launch Growth Business Guild Initiative

Curations and Conecuri Establish Growth Business Guild

Curations Inc., based in Tokyo and led by CEO Takayuki Nemoto, has announced a groundbreaking initiative in partnership with Conecuri LLC, also located in Tokyo and led by Ryu Takahashi. This collaboration aims to create a 'Growth Business Guild' that will harness the practical knowledge and expertise from alumni of major corporations, particularly from the Sony Group's alumni community, alongside a network of over 20 corporate alumni operators. The first focus areas are 'Physical AI' and 'Healthspan AI.'

Background: Reconnecting Practical Knowledge

In today’s AI-driven landscape, the demand for practical knowledge is more significant than ever. Japanese corporations possess a wealth of technical expertise, experiential knowledge, and customer bases that have been cultivated through years of international competition. Unfortunately, much of this knowledge remains scattered within organizations or exists externally as the insights of former employees whose expertise is underutilized in business development processes.

To compete effectively in the AI era, it's not just about the capability to leverage AI technology; it's also essential to connect with inquiries, field knowledge, industrial insights, and practical wisdom. By combining Curations' AI collaboratory business development methods with Conecuri's expertise in alumni community management, they aim to facilitate the transformation of latent knowledge into viable growth business opportunities.

Overview of the Growth Business Guild

The Guild serves as an interdisciplinary community connecting the experiential knowledge and networks of corporate alumni with Curations’ AI collaborative business development framework. Rather than just a gathering of alumni or a recruitment service, this initiative aims to link professionals involved in business development, technology innovation, sales, and international expansion with companies looking to enhance new business development, transform existing operations, utilize AI effectively, and devise practical business strategies.

The Guild will not be exclusive to alumni; active employees engaged in side jobs or other ventures will also be included, allowing for the formation of specialized groups focused on various industry themes.

Initial Focus Areas

1. Physical AI: This aspect focuses on using data from the physical world, including field data, sensor information, and insights from manufacturing environments to solve real-world issues and drive industrial transformation. It particularly underscores supporting business growth in sectors where Japanese companies excel, such as manufacturing, robotics, medical devices, and logistics.
2. Healthspan AI: This area addresses extending periods of active and healthy living across various sectors including healthcare, nursing care, food, insurance, and wearables by analyzing health data and AI to promote wellness and preventive care.

In both themes, the community will leverage knowledge in IP, engineering, culture, and gamification to sustain operational engagement.

Unique Characteristics of the Guild

1. Treating Alumni as Resources: Alumni are viewed not merely as staffing resources but as repositories of practical knowledge.
2. AI Collaborative Business Development: Focused on integrating alumni expertise with key business processes such as exploratory research, hypothesis development, customer validation, and proof of concept (PoC) design.
3. Thematic Community Expansion: The guild will develop into specialized practical communities focused on selected themes.
4. Two-Tier Structure: The structure includes a mentor layer that operates under a spirit of giving, supporting project participants.
5. Scientific Team Composition: Utilizing competency analyses and aptitude evaluations to ensure optimal team assembly.

Value for Companies

The Guild offers several deliverables to companies, including explorations of growth themes associated with internal resources, co-creation in Physical and Healthspan AI domains, formation of business development teams comprised of alumni and external experts, collaborative hypothesis crafting, market exploration, customer validation, PoC design, and business roadmap development.

Participation Opportunities for Alumni

Alumni with experience in business development, technology, manufacturing, product development, sales/alliances, international business, and healthcare/entertainment are encouraged to participate. Former executives and individuals wishing to mentor younger professionals are specifically invited to join. Participation can occur in the form of project involvement, mentoring, corporate introductions, or knowledge sharing.

Roles of the Two Companies

- Curations: Provides methodologies for AI collaborative business development, maintains the Curations Club (a talent database), manages business development projects, and connects with client businesses.
- Conecuri: Responsible for building alumni networks, community management, conducting workshops for talent development, and discovering and fostering relationships with participants.

Comments from Leadership

Takayuki Nemoto, CEO of Curations, stated, “Japanese companies have vast technological capabilities and business insights waiting to be utilized. To transform this into growth in the AI era, we require an innovative framework to connect internal and external practical knowledge. Through our partnership with Conecuri, we aim to accelerate the creation of new growth businesses originating from Japanese corporations.”

Ryu Takahashi, representative of Conecuri, added, “Alumni possess invaluable experience and networks yet often these are underused. This initiative transcends mere networking or recruitment; we are committed to establishing a human capital cycle that harnesses alumni practical knowledge for business growth.”

Future Directions

The Guild is set to evolve by refining its focus areas of Physical AI and Healthspan AI while expanding connections between alumni, companies, and potential mentors, ultimately forming a cross-industry network of practical knowledge.