#20: Gen Isayama on How WiL is Unlocking Japan’s Corporate Powerhouse to Build and Scale Global Companies

Welcome to another episode of The Coral Capital Podcast, a show where we bring on guests from tech, business, politics, and culture to talk about all things Japan.

In this episode, we’re joined by Gen Isayama, General Partner & CEO of WiL—a venture capital firm that’s redefining how innovation happens in Japan. Unlike traditional VCs, WiL doesn’t just invest—they educate, incubate, and leverage the power of their corporate-based LP network to accelerate the growth of their companies as they expand globally, with a particular focus on Japan.

Before launching WiL in 2013, Gen spent a decade investing at DCM. But when he looked at Japan, he saw a broken system—where startups struggled to scale, corporates hesitated to embrace change, and innovation lagged behind. Instead of copying the Silicon Valley model, he built something new: a VC firm designed to unlock Japan’s vast corporate resources—capital, talent, and technology—by pushing enterprises toward entrepreneurship.

WiL has since backed startups in Japan like Mercari, Raksul, and Retty, as well as Wise, Asana, and Canva in the US, with a team operating across Tokyo and Silicon Valley.

Below are highlights from this episode:

• WiL operates on three pillars:
  • Business Creation: Helping large Japanese corporations spin out or incubate startups internally.
  • Education: Training corporates to adopt a startup mindset and providing connectivity between startups and the corporate ecosystem.
  • Investment: Backing startups at various stages, with a focus on Japanese startups and global startups expanding into the Japan market.
• Ten years ago, Japanese corporates were hesitant to engage with startups, but today they have become increasingly open to partnering with and acquiring them.
• Large corporations compete with one another in adopting new technologies, creating a domino effect in innovation.
• The success of a corporate spinout depends on its leadership, not just the technology.
• WiL leverages its U.S. investments for faster scaling and greater liquidity, while Japan is still evolving toward a more liquid market with larger, multi-billion-dollar exits.
• Instead of competing for early-stage deals, WiL co-invests with leading global firms at the mid- to growth-stage, offering support for expansion into Japan.
• WiL conducts market testing through corporate pitch events for global startups, identifying strong local demand before committing to an investment.
• Emerging Opportunities in Japan: The aging society is driving demand for healthtech and elderly care, while AI integration in manufacturing and robotics presents a major growth area. Additionally, Japan’s rich IP assets (anime, manga, food) offer untapped potential for global monetization beyond traditional licensing.

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