I have been selected for the Silicon Valley trip in the J-StarX AI Go-To-Market Program.

Recently, Cascade Co., Ltd. was accepted into the "J-StarX AI Go-To-Market (GTM) Program" hosted by the Japan External Trade Organization (JETRO) for a travel program to North America and Silicon Valley.

What is the J-StarX AI GTM Program?

The J-StarX AI Go-To-Market Program is a JETRO initiative that supports Japanese AI startups aiming for global expansion by helping them formulate and implement their Go-To-Market (GTM) strategies.

The program consists of three major phases.

Domestic Bootcamp (Tokyo, 5 days) will invite AI investors and experts, including Blitzscaling Ventures, to conduct workshops and mentoring aimed at entering global markets. It will focus intensively on everything from the fundamental design of GTM strategies to pitching for overseas funding.

Individual Mentoring (up to 20 hours) allows participants to refine their business models and overseas expansion roadmaps through one-on-one sessions with assigned mentors. The practical content will center around concretizing GTM strategies, listing potential customers and investors, and obtaining warm introductions.

Domestic Demo Day will host a demo day in Tokyo with North American AI-focused VCs in attendance. Only the top five companies selected here will advance to the Silicon Valley travel program.

What I Learned Through the Program

Participating in this program allowed me to significantly update my perspective on global expansion.

What particularly impressed me was the part about approaches to customers. I systematically learned how to approach potential customers using Cold Email, which is less familiar in the Japanese market. From crafting subject lines to structuring the content and designing follow-ups, I was able to learn an approach that leads to tangible results.

Additionally, I reaffirmed the importance of increasing the resolution of GTM strategies. The process of redefining "who to deliver, what to deliver, and how to deliver" from a global perspective provided very valuable insights for domestic strategy as well.

Furthermore, through discussions with the mentors from Blitzscaling Ventures, I had the opportunity to confront the fundamental question of what constitutes a scalable business model.

Looking Ahead

I will continue to accelerate efforts aimed at overseas expansion while leveraging the insights on GTM strategies gained from this program and feedback from the global mentors in our product and business strategies.

About Cascade

Cascade is a service that optimizes digital advertising using AI. We provide all necessary functions for ad operations, such as budget optimization, keyword optimization, funnel analysis, and ad image generation, on one platform, aiming for the "democratization of marketing."

You can view more details about our services here.

Cascade Co., Ltd.
1-1-3 Shibuya, Shibuya Ward, Tokyo