The  Japan Society of Northern California in cooperation with the Stanford University US-Asia Technology Management Center will award virtualization company VMware and carbon fibre manufacturer Toray Industries as the 2012 SunBridge Corporation “World Changers” this coming 29 June.

The awards program, known also as the Japan – U.S. Innovation Awards, each year recognizes one Japanese and one U.S. company in each of three award categories: Emerging Leader, Intrapreneur, and World Changer. The “World Changer” Awards go to large, dynamically successful companies whose innovations have had a significant, lasting impact of such magnitude that they can genuinely be said to have “changed the world.”

United States World Changer

The organizers see VMware Inc. as a US World Changer because of its contribution to the development of cloud computing and virtualization. This technology enables companies and businesses to run applications and processes on virtual machines, which in turn foster new industries, creating jobs and changing the way people live and work.

The ability to run applications and processes on virtual machines in the cloud has been an essential enabler for the growth of major new industries, such as social media, mobile applications, location-based services, and Internet television. Virtualization has also greatly reduced the cost of IT infrastructure, thereby playing a major role in promoting the creation of new companies across many domains.

Japan World Changer

Toray Industries is the Japan World Changer due to its foray into carbon fiber production — the 21st-century building material that’s revolutionizing aerospace, civil engineering, military, motorsports and competition sports among countless other fields.

Its development and commercialization of carbon fiber materials that are revolutionizing industries from transportation to sporting equipment. Toray’s lightweight and extremely strong carbon fiber composites are the main materials used for the primary structures (main wing and fuselage, etc.) of the new Boeing 787 “Dreamliner,” yielding significant energy savings over previous generation aircraft. Other expanding markets for Toray’s carbon fiber materials range from new generation automobile parts and sporting goods to fuel cells, advanced power cables, deep sea oil platforms, and windmills, to name just a few. Toray holds the largest share of the world market for carbon fiber material production.

The awards will be presented at the Japan – U.S. Innovation Awards Day Symposium on Friday, June 29, 2012, from 1:30 – 6:30 pm at Stanford University. Click here to register or get additional information.

Japan – US Awards Day Symposium

VMware Co-President (Application Platform) Tod Nielsen expressed his gratitude at the recognition given to his company.

Since VMware was founded in 1998, virtualization and cloud computing have fundamentally changed the way businesses build, deliver and consume IT resources. We are honored to accept this award and to be recognized for the global impact of virtualization and cloud computing technology.

Chiaki Tanaka, Chief Technology Officer of Toray Industries likewise delivered his positive sentiments at the honor.

Since 41 years ago, when Toray was the first in the world to begin carbon fiber manufacturing, Toray’s top management has supported continuous R&D to change the world through the miracle of materials. The close collaboration between Boeing and Toray on the Dreamliner aircraft represents the true spirit of ‘mono-zukuri’ (‘making things’ in a unique Japanese way). We are honored and delighted to accept this award.

Both Tanaka and Nielsen will talk about their respective companies’ continued involvement in changing the world through technological advances in carbon fiber development and virtual computing at the Awards Day Symposium. Futurist Paul Saffo, Managing Director of Foresight at Discern Analytics will deliver the keynote address (Global Innovation and the Coming Creator Economy), while U.S. Ambassador to Japan John H. Roos will also be delivering a speech.

The Organizers

The Japan – U.S. Innovation Awards program and the Awards Day Symposium are organized by the Japan Society of Northern California in cooperation with the Stanford University US-Asia Technology Management Center. The selection process is carried out by a distinguished 40-person Innovation Advisory Council (IAC) composed of venture capitalists, academic experts and business persons in Japan and the U.S. The 2012 “World Changer” Awards are sponsored by SunBridge Corporation, a U.S. – Japan venture incubator and accelerator that provides venture capital, global reach, and hands-on support to technology startups.

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