The Small and Medium Enterprise Agency and the Organization for Small & Medium Enterprises and Regional Innovation have announced the exhibition content for the experiential display "Future Voyage - The Journey of Small and Medium Enterprises Aiming for 20XX" to be held during the 2025 Osaka-Kansai Expo from October 3-7. This exhibition aims to showcase to the world the efforts of small and medium enterprises challenging social issues toward realizing a "society where life shines."
The exhibition consists of three areas. The main "Future-oriented Enterprise Exhibition Area [Voyage of Challenges]" features 84 small and medium enterprises from across the nation displaying and allowing visitors to experience "products, technologies, and services that shape the future." These companies are organized into five themed islands: (1) Traditional Inheritance and Innovation (15 companies), (2) Precision Manufacturing Technology (22 companies), (3) Cutting-edge Digital Technology (17 companies), (4) Ideas Utilizing Natural Resources (17 companies), and (5) Inclusive Ideas (13 companies).
Notable exhibition examples include traditional Nishijin textile tapestries by Okamoto Textile, hands-on operation experience with the lunar rover "YAOKI," immersive spatial technology "uralaa" by Forest Digital, tour costumes for Utada Hikaru made with Spiber's protein fiber material "Brewed Protein Fiber," and the visual impairment support device "SYNCREO" representing inclusive innovation.
The "270° Video Theater Area [Voyage to the Future]" allows visitors to experience "the future of 20XX" realized by future-oriented products and technologies through immersive video. The "Wrap-up Area [Future Port]" introduces "challenge messages for the future" from approximately 1,800 small and medium enterprises nationwide, allowing visitors to feel the aspirations of many companies toward the future. Through this exhibition, it demonstrates to the world how Japanese small and medium enterprises' challenges to solve social issues contribute to realizing a society where life shines.