We operate under three core principles:

1. Do not stop at PoC — focus only on domains that can grow into New Core Assets (NCA).
We design initiatives by working backward from whether they can become the nucleus of a future business.

2. Combine technology, IP, data, manufacturing, and customers into shared, compounding assets.
Rather than one-off collaboration, we architect a structure in which value strengthens over time.

3. Prioritize speed and transparency.
Agile decision-making, weekly alignment, and co-design of pilot programs within 6–8 weeks.

Niterra Ventures is not simply an investor — we seek technology partners to co-build the pillars of the next 100 years.


Challenges we want to solve through co-creation：
Niterra (NGK Spark Plug Co., Ltd.) aims to build the core businesses for the next 100 years. To achieve this, we seek partners who can collaborate with us to accelerate the acquisition of advanced external technologies and the development of new markets, and who can jointly build New Core Assets (NCA) that do not end at PoC, but scale into real businesses.

Niterra is shifting its focus from being “a spark plug company” to a technology company that will shape the next 100 years.
However, there are multiple high-growth domains that cannot be reached through the existing businesses alone—particularly in (1) decarbonization, (2) distributed energy, (3) software-defined mobility, (4) medical and healthcare, and (5) industrial digital transformation, where social and industrial structures are undergoing rapid change.

Simply conducting PoCs in these domains does not generate meaningful value.

The core challenges can be summarized as follows:

The mechanism to rapidly acquire and integrate core technologies from outside is not yet strong enough.

Access points to new markets—beyond existing customers and supply chains—are limited.

Many initiatives stop at short-term PoC and fail to scale into real business.

To solve this, Niterra Ventures is seeking partners who can co-build New Core Assets  (NCA) for the entire Niterra Group, by combining strategic collaboration with investment.

The Technology We Seek in Startups

・Industrial IoT / Advanced Manufacturing: Technologies for factory visualization, predictive maintenance, robotics, automation, and OT–cloud integration.
・Software-Defined Mobility: In-vehicle operating systems, data pipelines, V2X, EV battery control, and sensor fusion technologies.
・Energy Transition / Non-Chemical Storage: Power/thermal storage control, high-efficiency thermal management, MOF-based materials, and novel energy storage devices.
・Medical / Bio-Diagnostics: Biosensing, minimally invasive diagnostic devices, wound-healing technologies, and bioreactors.

Examples of Co-Creation Ideas

・Industrial IoT / Advanced Manufacturing: Co-develop and validate smart factory solutions by leveraging plant equipment and process data. Outcomes are not limited to internal deployment—our goal is to evolve them into DX products that can be commercialized externally.
・Software-Defined Mobility: Collaborate from proof-of-concept to modularization, and ultimately OEM integration of vehicle software and data platforms. Combine Niterra components with startup technologies to create new in-vehicle value.
・Energy Transition / Non-Chemical Storage: Co-design next-generation energy solutions by integrating power/thermal storage and materials technologies. Share evaluation data and IP to build a long-term, compounding asset base.
・Medical / Bio-Diagnostics: Jointly drive mass-production readiness and quality assurance of compact sensing and minimally invasive diagnostic devices/materials. Explore regulatory pathways and industrial scaling toward medical device commercialization.

Available resources

・Global manufacturing network: Manufacturing, quality, and materials engineering assets with presence in North America, Europe, Japan, and Asia.
・Mass-production and reliability expertise: Deep know-how and qualification capabilities built through decades of sensor, materials, and electronic component manufacturing.
・Established OEM and Tier-1 network: A strong customer base across Mobility, Energy, Medical, and Industrial domains—enabling accelerated B2B market entry.
・Investment + co-creation via Niterra Ventures: Beyond capital—we can design and execute JV structures, co-development, IP utilization, and scale-up to mass production.
・Bridge into the Japanese market: Support for overseas startups expanding into Japan—including sales, go-to-market, regulatory pathways, and connection to production lines.