Biocat strengthens ties between BioRegion and Japan through new agreement with Osaka Bio Headquarters

A week of meetings, presentations, visits to cutting-edge facilities and business connections allowed the BioRegion of Catalonia to strengthen its position in one of Asia’s most important health innovation ecosystems. Biocat and the Catalan Ministry of Research and Universities led a Catalan delegation that also included the Women’s Health Innovation Network (XWHIN), the TECSAM Network for new technologies in mental health, the Xartec Salut R&D&I network in healthcare technologies, and XarSMART, a valorization and transfer network specializing in precision personalized medicine, medical devices, digital technologies and data science. Participating BioRegion companies included Reveal Genomics, AIMA, Causal Foundry, Gate2Brain, Loop Diagnostics and Neuroelectrics, which showcased Catalan innovation to partners, investors and stakeholders from the Japanese ecosystem on an institutional mission to Nagoya, Kobe, Osaka, Kyoto and Keihanna that allowed for the signing of a new alliance between Biocat and Osaka Bio Headquarters.

Biocat, the BioRegion’s gateway to Japan

Throughout the mission, Biocat worked to connect Catalan capabilities and the main Japanese stakeholders in health innovation. At HealthX Connect Osaka, the international partnering event promoted by Osaka Prefecture, Biocat presented the BioRegion to international companies, institutions and clusters, highlighting its strengths in biotechnology, digital health, personalized medicine, technology transfer and business innovation.

During World Health Expo Osaka 2026, Biocat had its own space in the Osaka Bio Headquarters pavilion, which became a meeting point for companies, universities, research centers and institutions interested in learning about the Catalan ecosystem. Núria Martí, representing Biocat, also took part in the Global Alliance Session on the role clusters and long term partnerships play in accelerating health innovation.

At the same time, Biocat and the Catalan delegation took advantage of the congress to open talks on new ways to collaborate with the universities of Osaka and Kobe, and their GP-ONE startup internationalization program, as well as the EU-Japan Center for Industrial Cooperation and Nakanoshima Qross. With the latter, one of Osaka’s leading biomedical innovation centers, discussions focused on promoting joint activities, establishing business exchanges and driving new collaborations in advanced therapies, digital health and clinical trials, among other areas.

The mission also helped forge contacts at the Pharmaceutical and Medical Devices Agency (PMDA), the Japanese regulatory authority for drugs and medical devices. This connection can help BioRegion companies better understand Japanese regulatory requirements and the pathways to bring new technologies to market.

An agreement to turn connections into projects

The highlight of the mission was the signing of a memorandum of understanding between Biocat and Osaka Bio Headquarters, the organization that coordinates Osaka’s life sciences ecosystem with participation from the prefecture government, universities, research centers and industry.

Formally established at World Health Expo Osaka 2026, the new agreement continues the collaboration that began in 2016 under the European bioXclusters alliance and reinforces the shared commitment to knowledge exchange, innovation and international cooperation. The ceremony also brought together representatives of Lyonbiopôle, Health Campus Limburg DC, Montréal InVivo and Québec, ecosystems Osaka has strategic relationships with. 

The memorandum establishes a more stable framework to facilitate connections among companies and institutions, promote joint activities and foster projects involving the BioRegion of Catalonia and Japan. So, the agreement is a step forward in transforming a relationship built over the past years into concrete opportunities for the stakeholders in both ecosystems.

Catalan business innovation gains visibility

Catalan presence in this program was particularly significant, including the Catalan Ministry of Research and Universities, four research and innovation networks and the five Spanish companies selected among the 50 innovative European startups and SMEs. These were AIMA, Causal Foundry, Gate2Brain, Loop Diagnostics and Neuroelectrics, a selection that highlights the BioRegion’s ability to generate competitive projects in digital health, biotechnology and medical technologies with the potential for international expansion.

Reveal Genomics presented its precision medicine technology to the Japanese and international ecosystem in several sessions organized with the support of JETRO. The company took part in activities at Nakanoshima Qross, World Health Expo Osaka and the Life Science Startup Event in Kyoto, boosting its visibility among Japanese investors, companies and institutions.

The other participating companies held strategic meetings with Japanese stakeholders as part of the EU Business Hub program, an initiative of the European Commission to facilitate business development for European companies in Japan and South Korea.
 

A schedule featuring Japan’s main innovation hubs

Beyond participating in the conferences, the delegation visited some of the country’s main innovation hubs. The first stop was Station AI in Nagoya, where Biocat and the Catalan networks presented their capabilities and explored possible collaborations with the Aichi Prefecture ecosystem and Nagoya University.

In Kobe, the delegation visited the Kobe Biomedical Innovation Cluster, which brings together research centers, hospitals, companies and facilities that specialize in regenerative medicine, medical devices and biomanufacturing. The visit to Air Water and the tour of Doshomachi and Nakanoshima Qross gave participants a firsthand look at Japanese models for technology transfer and clinical application of innovation.

At Keihanna Science City, the delegation visited Advanced Telecommunications Research Institute International, which specializes in artificial intelligence, robotics, computational neuroscience and assisted technologies. The meeting identified potential synergies between the Japanese acceleration program KGAP+ and BioRegion initiatives like CRAASH Barcelona, with a proposal to hold joint activities and facilitate the exchange of startups.