Physical AI Node Salon #1: Collective Ecosystem Design Across Borders
Tokyo has no regular home for people building physical AI in English.
This series is one: four evenings at CIC Tokyo, October to February, for founders, investors, engineers and researchers working on machines that move, whether you arrived last month or ten years ago.
Session 1 asks a question no single country can answer alone. Physical AI is an interdependent system. The motion data sits in one place, the compute in another, the regulatory sandbox in a third, manufacturing depth somewhere else, and the customers in yet another country.
So the real question is not who wins. It is who designs the rules that connect all of this, who gets included in that design, and who ends up as someone else's subcontractor.
No success-story showcase and no polished positioning. Just honest friction from people who have tried to build across borders.
THE PANEL
Moderator: Shino Tsuchiya, Global Partner, CIC (Catalyst APAC)
Chiamin Lai, Managing Partner, FIRSTLIGHT Capital
Kakuya Nishikawa, Senior Partner, Kearney
Guest panellist: to be announced
THE EVENING
Panel (60 min): two dilemmas on the table. Regional self-reliance versus becoming a subcontractor to global platforms. And 10-year industrial timelines versus 3-year venture money.
Unconference (50 min): small-group discussions on the questions the panel opens. Not a Q&A. You leave with a sharper question of your own, and people you didn't know before.
Networking (30 min): food and drinks.
WHO'S IN THE ROOM
100 to 150 people, about half international. Registration is reviewed to keep the conversations useful: tell us honestly what you work on, and you're very likely in.
INFO
Date: Thursday 15 October 2026
Time: 18:00 to 20:30 (Tokyo time). Doors open at 17:45 and the panel starts at 18:00 sharp.
Venue: CIC Tokyo, Toranomon Hills Business Tower 15F
We'll email you an entrance reminder closer to the date.
Language: English
Live streaming: none. This is an in-person event only.
Price: Free
Food and drinks: provided during networking.
Questions: physical-ai-node@cic.com
Registration: We review every application, and you'll get an email once you're approved. Places are limited, so if your plans change, please cancel your registration so someone on the waitlist can take your spot.