Japanese-Hungarian Biotech Business Seminar
Join us for an exclusive “Hungary Life Science Night” business seminar and networking reception bridging cutting-edge biotech innovation between Hungary and Japan on October 5, 2026, held on the sidelines of BioJapan 2026 / Regenerative Medicine JAPAN 2026 / healthTECH JAPAN 2026.
This high-level life sciences forum brings together innovative Hungarian biotech startups, Japanese corporate leaders, venture capitalists, research institutions and digital health stakeholders to foster technological collaboration, forge cluster agreements, create strategic pathways for Japanese companies entering the Hungarian market, and build a medium- to long-term channel for life science collaboration between Japan and Hungary.
Why Hungary
Rooted in Tradition, Driven by Science: Hungary boasts a strong academic tradition in medicine, pharmacy, chemistry, biology, and mathematics. Despite its modest population, the country consistently produces world-class researchers, engineers, and entrepreneurs, maintaining a distinct leadership in life sciences.
Japan & Hungary — A Shared Medical Heritage: Strong medical and academic ties unite Japan and Hungary. Numerous Japanese students graduate from Hungarian medical universities and practice in Japan, demonstrating deep institutional trust and creating a strong bridge between the two nations.
Advanced Tech, Ready for Market: Hungarian basic research fuels market-ready innovations in AI drug discovery, simulation technologies, miniprotein therapeutics, bioinformatics, and digital health. Local companies offer concrete, high-value opportunities for Japanese partners in data analysis and drug discovery support.
Home of World-Changing Discoveries: Hungary’s life science roots run deep, Hungarian engineer Károly Ereky invented the term 'biotechnology' in 1919, and the nation boasts multiple Nobel Laureates in medicine and chemistry — including Prof. Katalin Karikó, whose foundational research enabled the rapid development of mRNA COVID-19 vaccines in 2020.
What to Expect
Biotech Startup Pitches: Experience presentations from high-growth Hungarian startups showcasing advanced technologies across life sciences and biotechnology.
EU Gateway Insights: Learn how Japanese startups and enterprises can leverage Hungary’s competitive business environment as a strategic launchpad into the European Union market.
B2B Matchmaking & Cluster Development: Engage in high-value 1-on-1 meetings designed to accelerate cross-border technology transfers, joint ventures, and institutional cluster ties.
Networking Reception: Build relationships with key diplomatic officials, executives, and founders while enjoying authentic Hungarian culinary specialties and drinks.
Participating Hungarian Companies
Hungarian Biotech Association (HBA): Key advocacy and networking organization representing Hungary’s growing biotechnology and life sciences ecosystem. The Association unites innovative biotech enterprises, academic research institutions, and industry stakeholders to drive scientific advancement, foster commercialization, and stimulate international collaborations. HBA actively promotes Hungarian biotech capabilities globally while supporting local talent, startups, and regulatory development to build a competitive and sustainable knowledge-based bioeconomy (https://hungarianbiotech.org/).
Neo-Antigen Biotechnology (NEO-AG): Emerging biotechnology company focused on transforming immunisation strategies through advanced epitope-based vaccine technologies. The company’s core innovation lies in its proprietary TFR123 platform, which represents a novel approach to addressing one of the most fundamental challenges in immunology: the invisibility of pathogens and cancer cells to the human immune system. By leveraging targeted epitopes, NEO-AG aims to create a new generation of vaccines and immunotherapies capable of improving both prevention and treatment outcomes (https://neoag.eu/).
SigmaDrugs: Budapest-based, Semmelweis University spin-out biotech company, founded in 2015 and dedicated to developing novel Sigma-1 receptor (S1R) agonist therapies for chronic fibrotic and degenerative diseases. Its lead programs include SigmaDrops, a topical S1R agonist eye drop for glaucoma (with completed in vivo efficacy and GLP tolerability studies, with Phase I starting this year) and dry eye disease, and SigmAir, an inhaled S1R agonist for idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis. The company also holds intellectual property in organ preservation solutions. SigmaDrugs' science is grounded in over a decade of preclinical research and peer-reviewed publications, with patents granted in the US, Europe, China, Japan and Canada. It is led by CEO/CSO Dr. Andrea Fekete alongside a dedicated senior research team (https://www.sigmadrugs.com/).
ThalesNano: Develops and manufactures innovative bench-top and continuous flow chemistry solutions for pharmaceutical, biotechnology and chemical R&D. Founded in Hungary in 2002, ThalesNano has over two decades of experience, with instruments used by customers in more than 50 countries worldwide. Our portfolio ranges from compact bench-top systems to modular FlowChemFleet™ platforms, supporting hydrogenation, photochemistry, deuteration, nuclear medicine applications, high-temperature and high-pressure chemistry, catalyst screening and scale-up. ThalesNano solutions can also be integrated with automation, AI-assisted reaction optimization and in-line analytical technologies. Three ThalesNano technologies – H-Cube®, H-Genie® and PhotoCube™ – have received the prestigious R&D 100 Award(https://thalesnano.com/).
Turbine: Turbine's Virtual Lab lets scientists simulate biology at scale — without the constraints of time, cost, or lab capacity. Experiments are translated into Virtual Assays built on Turbine's Virtual Cell model, running millions of conditions in parallel and predicting lab-like outputs from cellular phenotypes to molecular states. At that scale, the challenge is no longer generating data — it's identifying what matters. Integrated analysis and agentic workflows let scientists prioritize the experiments most likely to succeed, based on predictive evidence rather than intuition. Working with leading pharmaceutical companies, Turbine has compressed 12–18 month decisions into as little as 2 months of in silico analysis, while cutting required wet lab experiments by over 50% (https://turbine.ai/).
VRG Therapeutics: Technology-driven biotech company with a drug discovery platform that integrates AI with wet lab processes to develop next-generation miniprotein therapeutics. Our vision is to transform the treatment of systemic and neuroinflammatory diseases by targeting previously undruggable targets and inaccessible mechanisms of action (https://www.vrgtherapeutics.com/).
Event Timeline
15:30 – 16:00 Registration
Please come to the registration desk at the 2nd floor of Tokyo Innovation Base (TIB) ROOM 2F (〒100-0005 東京都千代田区丸の内3-8-3)
16:00 – 16:20 Opening Remarks
H.E. Anna AULNER-BÁLINT, Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of Hungary to Japan
Kosei SAKUMA, Director General of the Startup Strategy Promotion Headquarters, Tokyo Metropolitan Government (TBC)
Satoshi TERAO, Director for global promotion, Startup Strategy Promotion Headquarters, Tokyo Metropolitan Government
16:20 – 16:30 Overview of the Hungarian life science ecosystem & Doing Business in Hungary
Overview of the Hungarian life sciences ecosystem and presentation of business opportunities and strategic pathways for Japanese companies entering the Hungarian market
16:30 – 18:00 Hungarian Startup Pitches
Introduction of the Hungarian companies (15-minute presentations)
Hungarian Biotech Association (MBSZ)
Neo-Antigen Biotechnology (NEO-AG)
SigmaDrugs
ThalesNano
Turbine
VRG Therapeutics
18:00 – 20:00 Networking Reception
1-on-1 business meetings, cooperation talks, and networking featuring traditional Hungarian foods and drinks
Who Should Join
Biotech, pharmaceutical, medtech and healthcare corporate executives
Venture capital (VC) funds, CVCs, and private equity investors
Startup accelerators, incubators, and economic development agencies
University researchers, tech transfer officers, biotech and digital health cluster leaders
Japanese startups and scale-ups evaluating European market expansion
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アプリ名 ：Tokyo Innovation Base
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Main Host
Embassy of Hungary in Tokyo (https://tokio.mfa.gov.hu/ja)
Co-Host
Sűdy & Co. (https://sudy.co.hu/ja/)
In Special Cooperation With
Tokyo Innovation Base (TIB) (https://tib.metro.tokyo.lg.jp/)