FOUNDER / CEO - KAI SUGIHARA MEETS WITH MAYOR YUTAKA KUROKAWA OF TAIKI TOWN, HOKKAIDO

Advancing Regional Revitalization Through Space × Entertainment

Kai Sugihara met with Mayor Yutaka Kurokawa in Taiki Town, Hokkaido, a region widely recognized as one of Japan’s leading private-sector space development hubs, to exchange views on the future of space-driven regional growth.

Taiki Town is home to Interstellar Technologies Inc. (IST), a private rocket development company at the forefront of Japan’s commercial space efforts. With the town’s “space-oriented community building” vision, Taiki has been integrating education, tourism, and industry—emerging as a national model for public–private collaboration in creating new industrial ecosystems.

In the meeting, the discussion centered on Bedrock Space’s guiding principle: “Turning Space into Culture.” Rather than treating space as a purely technical domain, Bedrock Space aims to connect space development with human emotion and creativity through music, film, art, and education—building the cultural infrastructure that allows a spacefaring era to become part of everyday life.

Mayor Kurokawa shared insights from the town’s long-standing community collaboration frameworks and its commitment to nurturing the next generation through space education. Kai Sugihara presented Bedrock Space’s initiatives, including a space × music festival concept anchored around rocket launches, new branding approaches through stratospheric and space advertising, and education and media strategies designed to establish space as a living culture.

They also explored concrete collaboration pathways, such as co-designing “learn and experience space” curricula with local educational institutions and launching youth development programs that leverage Taiki Town’s research facilities and observational environment.

Bedrock Space will continue strengthening collaboration with local governments to realize a long-term vision—embedding space industry into regional culture—and advancing a “space × culture industry model” with Taiki Town as a key starting point.