Tokyo Institute Of Technology: Tokyo Tech Student Wins Yokohama Business Grand Prix With Proposed Dietary Guidance Service

First-year master’s student in Life Science and Technology Nodoka Chiba has won the student category of Yokohama Business Grand Prix 2021 with her proposed dietary guidance service based on gut bacteria types.Chiba (right) receiving awardChiba (right) receiving awardThe 23rd Yokohama Business Grand Prix, sponsored by the Yokohama Industrial Development Corporation (IDEC), was held on February 20. According to IDEC, the contest aims to discover entrepreneurs and startup companies striving to provide products and services that create new value in Yokohama. IDEC offers a broad range of support to entrepreneurs and innovators in the city.This year, 98 applications for the contest were received from across Japan — 54 in the general category and 44 in the student category. Seven general category finalists and three students who passed the document and oral screening joined the female entrepreneur of the year at the Yokohama venue to give presentations on the final day. Finalists were judged based on five criteria — business novelty, growth potential, feasibility, impact on the Yokohama economy, and entrepreneurial potential of the applicant. IDEC has promised to support the commercialization of the plans presented by the winners.The business plan presented by Chiba is a proposed dietary guidance service based on gut bacteria type of the user. The Tokyo Tech student applied for the contest because she wanted to commercialize the research on human intestinal bacteria that she is working on in the laboratory. While basic research and technological improvements are still required before practical use, she was selected as the student winner due to the immense potential of her plan and the research she has already completed while at Tokyo Tech.