THE NEW CONTEXT CONFERENCE 2017 TOKYO on July 25-26 The Event will Focus on Biotechnology and Blockchain

〜Hosted by DG Lab core partners, DG, Kakaku.com, and Credit Saison〜

DG Lab, an open innovation-based R&D organization jointly established with Digital Garage, Inc. (TSE first section: 4819, HQ: Tokyo, Representative Director, President Executive Officer and Group CEO: Kaoru Hayashi, DG), Kakaku.com, Inc. (TSE first section: 2371, HQ: Tokyo, President and Representative Director: Shonosuke Hata), and Credit Saison Co., Ltd. (TSE first section: 8253, HQ: Tokyo, President and CEO: Hiroshi Rinno) will organize THE NEW CONTEXT CONFERENCE 2017 TOKYO on July 25 and 26, 2017. The conference will be hosted by DG co-founder and director of the MIT Media Lab, Joi Ito. It has been held since 2005 and is aimed at those interested in the cutting edge of Internet technology as well as the businesses that emerge from it. The conference has been held twice annually in Tokyo and San Francisco since 2011.

For the fifteenth edition of this conference, DG Lab has chosen the topics of Biotechnology (Day 1) and Blockchain (Day 2), two of its five focus areas, with the other three being Artificial Intelligence, VR/AR, and Security. Researchers, entrepreneurs, and experts who are the leading figures in their field will be invited from around the world to discuss cutting edge trends in detail. The first day, devoted to biotechnology, will be entitled “Intersections Between IT and Biotechnology and the Future They Foretell.” Based on the development of AI and sensor technology in recent years, discussions on the future of biotechnology will be held through the perspectives of coming innovations in the field, the environment in the US, where ecosystems focused on incubation centers specialized in the biotechnology field are evolving, trends in Japan, and the latest news from startup corporations who are leading the technological revolution through innovative approaches. The second day, devoted to blockchain, will be entitled “Real Power and Evolution of Blockchain.” Speakers will clarify misconceptions associated with blockchain technology arising from blockchain-related trends in the past few years. At the same time, they will look towards the future brought about from the value of blockchain while also introducing the cutting edge technological trends for 2017, which is said to be the year in which blockchain technology will see a full-fledged transition from early adoption to the establishment of an ecosystem. Speakers will discuss the roadmap which sets out a path for blockchain leading to it becoming a part of the social infrastructure.

■Speakers (partial list)
Day 1: July 25, 2017(Tues) 9:30 a.m. – 6:00 p.m.:
・Bharatt Chowrira, Ph.D., J.D., President and Chief of Business and Strategy for PureTech Health, a next generation pharmaceutical company with over 20 pipelines.
・Douglas Crawford, Ph.D., General Manager of QB3@953, an American Bay Area biotechnology startup incubation center.
・Ron Shigeta, Ph.D., Chief Science Officer for IndieBio, one of the world’s largest biotechnology startup accelerators.
・Patrick Boyle, Head of Design of Ginkgo Bioworks, a synthetic biology company that makes engineered organisms, which has secured over 154 million dollars.

Day 2: July 26, 2017(Wed) 9:30 a.m. – 6:00 p.m.:
・Kanta Matsuura, a Professor at Institute of Industrial Science, The University of Tokyo, has been involved in a wide range of information security research from cryptography to economics. He serves as an editorial board member of Designs, Codes and Cryptography, and is the first Asian member of a leading conference in security economics.
・Atsushi Santo, Head of Fintech Laboratory and New Business Development of Japan Exchange Group, has been working for JPX and its group companies for over 20 years and has led the PoC on DLT/blockchain.
・Nat Sakimura specializes on the international standardization of digital identity and privacy technologies. He is an author of JWT, JWS, OAuth PKCE and OpenID Connect that are used by over 2 billion people worldwide. He is currently a senior researcher at NRI and the chairman of the board of the Open ID Foundation.

■Event outline
Dates and times: July 25, 2017(Tues) 9:30 a.m. – 6:00 p.m. “Intersections Between IT and Biotechnology and the Future They Foretell”; July 26, 2017(Wed) 9:30 a.m. – 6:00 p.m. “Real Power and Evolution of Blockchain”
Location: Toranomon Hills
Themes: Biotechnology and Blockchain
Co-hosts: Digital Garage, Inc.; Kakaku.com, Inc.; Credit Saison Co., Ltd.
Co-sponsors: Daiwa Securities Group Inc.; TIS Inc.
Admission (ticket fee): Two-day ticket: 50,000 yen, One-day ticket: 30,000 yen
Tickets purchased between 5/31(Wed) and 6/23 (Fri): Two-day ticket: 35,000 yen, One-day ticket: 20,000 yen
Capacity: 500 guests
NCC official website: http://ncc.garage.co.jp
How to purchase tickets: Participants are able to purchase tickets through the NCC official website.

* Media representatives who wish to participate should send their publication name, name(s) of the participant(s), contact information, and the day they wish to participate to the following email address.
Email: dg4819.pr@garage.co.jp


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