Renaissance Philanthropy and Japan Science and Technology Agency (JST) Partner to Launch ASCENT Program
This is Renaissance Philanthropy's third partnership with a government to support ambitious R&D programs. Renaissance Philanthropy will work to train visionary science leaders, design and deliver a coordinated research program, and launch a fellowship to develop the next generation of research leaders in Japan.
We are excited to announce a new partnership with the Japan Science and Technology Agency (JST), as part of the Global Start Up Campus Initiative. Renaissance Philanthropy will launch the Accelerating Science and Commercialization for Entrepreneurial Talent (ASCENT) program to support JST to launch ARPA-style programs to enable breakthroughs and commercialization of research in Japan.
This work builds on Renaissance Philanthropy’s track record of training science leaders to design and deliver ambitious R&D programs through the “Big If True Science Accelerator” program which has partnered with two global R&D agencies, The Advanced Research + Invention Agency (ARIA) in the UK and Germany's Federal Agency for Breakthrough Innovation, SPRIND. The BiTS program builds on the team’s career track record of overseeing nearly $1Bn in DARPA programming.
The ASCENT program will include: deploying the Renaissance Philanthropy’s BiTS program to train Venture Directors in Japan, science leaders capable of designing and implementing ambitious R&D programs; designing and implementing an ambitious research program focused on climate technology; and training a pipeline of next generation science leaders through the BRIDGE fellowship program.
This initiative will help strengthen Japan's translational research capabilities and unlock new commercial opportunities in climate technology and train the next generation of visionary research leaders. This will help Japan to translate its strong foundations in science (3.7% of Japan’s GDP is invested in R&D) into globally significant industries, companies, and commercial impact.
The ASCENT Program
ASCENT will deploy two complementary strategies to strengthen Japan's innovation ecosystem:
Coordinated Research Programs
The program will train a pipeline of visionary scientists through the BiTS program and support them to develop ambitious R&D programs. Renaissance Philanthropy will recruit one visionary scientist as a Venture Director, who will design, implement, and deliver an ambitious research program to deliver breakthroughs focused on climate technology. This program will use multiple mechanisms to help unlock new fields and clusters of commercial activity, focused on climate technology including prizes competitions and challenges, coordinated research programs, and Frontier Research Contractors.
2. BRIDGE Fellowship for Early-Career Researchers
Inspired by the DARPA Innovation Fellowship, and building on the EMBER program, the BRIDGE program will train early-career researchers (Japanese and International) to explore "big-if-true" ideas through a 12-month program. Fellows will receive:
A competitive salary and flexible funding to advance their ideas
Immersion experiences with ARPA-style agencies and partners in the US, UK, and Germany
Mentorship from experienced program managers and commercialization experts
Structured pathways to translate their ideas into startups, Focused Research Organizations, or future research programs
International fellows will be embedded in Japanese institutions while Japanese fellows will be embedded abroad, creating a global network of entrepreneurial researchers.
Building on this partnership, Renaissance Philanthropy will open its first-ever Japan office, establishing local team members and networks critical for deep collaboration with Japanese stakeholders and long-term success in the region.
Find out more here and follow us for more updates on the program delivery.