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Redefining Subsidies as an 'Infrastructure for Challenge': Using AI to Eliminate Information Gaps and Support the First Step Towards Solving Social Issues【2025 ICT Startup League Member Interview: Transtep Inc.】
For small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) aiming for growth, the effective use of subsidies can be a major force supporting their business. However, Japan's subsidy system is deeply rooted in the problem of "information asymmetry," and the enormous effort required just to apply makes it difficult for many companies to access them.
Transtep Inc. is tackling this structural challenge with a system that utilizes AI technology. The subsidy DX solution "Toreteru" was born from the firsthand experience of CEO Rei Okajima as a business manager.
"Toreteru" comprehensively collects and databases over 10,000 subsidy records published by national and local governments. Its unique AI assistant allows users to narrow down desired information conversationally, instantly summarizes application guidelines, and automatically generates an action list for application. We asked Mr. Okajima, who aims to build a society where anyone at a company can utilize subsidies and take on challenges, about his entrepreneurial drive and the details of the service.
Rei Okajima, CEO of Transtep Inc.Wanting to Use Skills Honed Through Management Experience to Improve Japanese Society
Could you tell us about your career path leading up to starting the company?
Okajima: After graduating from university, I joined Johnson & Johnson K.K. in 2016 as a new graduate in a finance role. In my first two years, I spent about half my time in Japan and half abroad, working at the US headquarters and the Singapore office as part of a global leader development program. After moving to Unilever Japan in 2020, I continued to work in corporate planning and finance. In 2022, I was appointed CFO of the cosmetics subsidiary Rafra Japan, becoming the youngest CFO in the Unilever Group worldwide at the time. I believe I built a solid career as a manager there, including achieving a V-shaped recovery for the business, which had been struggling due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
What inspired you to start your own business?
Okajima: In my management experience, I sometimes created business plans that utilized public funds. My formative experience for founding the company was feeling the significant challenges in the process of deciphering vast amounts of information in a limited time to apply for subsidies and meet deadlines.
I felt that although the subsidy system itself is undoubtedly a wonderful redistribution mechanism, Japanese society lacks the environment and infrastructure to actually utilize them.
So you decided to create a system for utilizing subsidies.
Okajima: Yes. Personally, the birth of my child was also a major turning point. I began to feel a strong sense of mission about what I could leave behind for the "future" that the next generation of children will live in.
I wanted to use the skills I've cultivated in my career to help boost Japanese society. As those feelings grew, I encountered the problems with the subsidy system. I came to believe that bridging the gap between private companies and the funds from national and local governments—the largest financial resource in the country—would be an incredibly valuable job for society.
With co-founder Oda at the founding office90% of Companies Can't Utilize Subsidies!?
What are the challenges in the subsidy application process that you yourself experienced?
Okajima: National and local governments set aside money, funded by taxes, to solve social issues. Despite this, there's a structural problem where the "money intended for use" doesn't reach the "people who want to use it." As I see it, 90% of companies in Japan are currently unable to utilize subsidies.
90%! It's not an exaggeration to say they're almost completely unused. Why is the situation that bad?
Okajima: It boils down to two major information-related challenges: "not finding them" and "not being able to use them." The first, "not finding them," is the problem of subsidies not matching company needs.
What does that mean specifically?
Okajima: First, the average application period for a subsidy is short, about two weeks to one month. This means if you don't catch the information on or just after the start date, you can't even begin to consider applying. Also, Japan's administration has a three-tiered structure (national, prefectural, municipal), and there is no centralized platform for subsidies. While it's a "strength" of Japan to have a wide variety of subsidies tailored to different regions and social issues, this very fact makes the content complex and extremely difficult to find one that matches your company's objectives.
In other words, there's a structural problem: if you can't find a subsidy that matches your "objective," is available in "your location," and is within the "set timeframe," you can't even get to the starting line.
The 3 Hurdles of "Not Finding" SubsidiesSo just getting to the information you need is a major struggle.
Okajima: The second challenge, "not being able to use them," is the difficulty of applying even if you do find one. Subsidy application guidelines can be dozens of pages long. For SME managers who aren't used to reading official documents, just deciphering the content is a back-breaking task.
So even if you find the information and try to apply, another wall is standing in your way...
Okajima: The high psychological hurdle is also a big problem. Many people give up on using subsidies due to confusion or past failures, thinking, "I don't know what to do" or "I tried before and it didn't work."
There's also a shortage of experts like administrative scriveners and SME management consultants to consult with during the application process. As a result, a very wasteful situation has arisen where, even after spending time and effort to apply, an overwhelming number of applications are rejected due to simple formal errors or mistakes in the documents.
The 3 Hurdles of "Not Being Able to Use" SubsidiesUsing AI Technology to Find Optimal Information from a High-Quality, Comprehensive Database
Please tell us about the "Toreteru" service, which aims to solve these subsidy-related issues.
Okajima: The "Toreteru" service we're developing focuses on three key things: "gathering," "finding," and "digging deeper" into subsidies. Its biggest strength is using AI to help users find the optimal subsidy information for their initiatives in a timely manner.
We aim for it to be an infrastructure that everyone can access for free, designed so that startups and SMEs can use the subsidy system on an equal footing.
The 3 Features of "Toreteru"How is it different from a general search system or database?
Okajima: We comprehensively collect subsidy information published by about 5,000 subsidy-executing organizations nationwide (administrative bodies, general incorporated associations, etc.) to build a high-quality database. We use AI technology to read materials in various formats like PDFs and documents, and automatically convert them into data. Also, to prevent errors that occur when the system mechanically retrieves information, we ultimately check all information overlaps and differences during updates by human eye. As a result of this steady effort, we are proud to say we have gathered the highest quality and largest volume of subsidy data in Japan.
In a Google search, domain power affects the search due to SEO, so many municipal subsidy pages don't appear at the top of the results, making them hard to find. But with "Toreteru," new subsidy information is incorporated into the system the moment it's released, allowing users to find the optimal, timely subsidy information for their initiatives through natural language search.
A Unique Database and Intuitive Search ExperienceWhat is the "digging deeper" function?
Okajima: Even if you find a subsidy, you hit the next challenge: you can't judge "if your company can use it" without reading the entire application guideline. In "Toreteru," the moment you look at a subsidy's overview page, a summary of the requirements, eligible applicants, etc., is displayed.
Also, if you have questions about the content, you can ask the AI assistant. As an AI specialized in subsidies with a low hallucination rate, it shows exactly where in the guidelines it's quoting from, allowing you to get accurate, detailed answers without consulting an expert.
Furthermore, the AI automatically organizes an action list from application creation to submission, along with necessary items to include and documents to submit. For example, it presents important, easily-overlooked information like the "deadline for booking the initial consultation." In this way, we are creating an environment where even those who have given up due to lack of experience or knowledge, or those who are unfamiliar with the process, can use the subsidy system on an equal footing.
An Overwhelming Understanding-Experience That Makes "Not Knowing" a Thing of the PastHow accurate is "Toreteru's" AI?
Okajima: I can't declare the AI's accuracy is 100%, but I am confident that no other service in the world provides subsidy information with higher accuracy than ours. This is because we have accurately constructed a massive amount of data on subsidies and trained the AI on it.
By quoting only officially published information and suppressing inference to the absolute minimum, we ensure it provides truthful answers. Furthermore, the system detects errors in original documents and differences in updated information, and is structured to always make judgments based on the latest data. Therefore, we believe that, in theory, we can provide the most accurate information available.
Considering Enhancements to Eliminate Even the Need to "Search"
How has the service rollout been since launching the "Toreteru" beta version this July?
Okajima: The basic service, including the "gather," "find," and "dig deep" functions, is provided for free. Since the beta launch, it's currently being used by about 70 companies in industries like medical/nursing care, logistics, manufacturing, and IT. I think we need a jump-start to reach our target of 800 users, but we are increasing our user base mainly by providing accounts to seminar attendees through partnerships with industry associations.
How are you thinking about monetization?
Okajima: While the free version has a low barrier to entry, we also want to aim for acquiring contracts for the paid business system in parallel. The paid version will offer detailed, refined searches by specific regions or fine-grained conditions, deep research across multiple subsidies, and application management functions.
What kind of users are you targeting for the paid version?
Okajima: We are mainly planning to sell it as a sales tool for large enterprises and listed companies. Recently, there are "catalog-order-style" systems, like the "IT Introduction Subsidy" or "Labor-Saving Investment Subsidy," which provide subsidies for implementing products approved by the government. Many large companies use this system to conduct sales activities for their own products. By having them adopt "Toreteru's" business system, we want to promote the use of the subsidy system and, as a result, create a virtuous cycle where the products and solutions the government wants to disseminate permeate society.
Are there any current challenges in system development?
Okajima: System development itself is ahead of schedule, and we are considering accelerating the development of even more value-added features. For example, a function where the moment new subsidy information is released, the AI determines "this subsidy is usable" based on the user's past behavior and company information, and automatically favorites it or sends a notification. Also, visualization of ROI (Return on Investment) for subsidy applications, and sales-funnel-like KPI management functions.
On the other hand, a challenge is that we are lagging in the phase of providing the developed system to more users, getting feedback, and running that improvement cycle. Prioritizing development is crucial. If we just keep adding functions that aren't used, we lose sight of what users really want. Therefore, our top priority is to thoroughly conduct user interviews.
Turning the Subsidy System into an Infrastructure for Solving Social Issues
What have you found beneficial about participating in the ICT Startup League?
Okajima: The hands-on support we're receiving is extremely helpful. The league mentors are genuinely committed, and in our bi-weekly regular meetings, we think about the company's challenges and direction together and have deep discussions. This is a valuable experience you can't get even if you pay for it, and it feels less like "support" and more like "comrades."
Also, being selected for the Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications' ICT Startup League has also helped with company branding. Our opportunities to connect with VCs (venture capitalists) have increased significantly, and I feel the benefits in terms of fundraising as well.
How do you plan to grow the company and business, and what do you want to achieve in the future?
Okajima: As Japan's working population declines and various social issues become more apparent, I want to elevate the subsidy mechanism into an infrastructure capable of solving those social issues. In a span of about three years, I want to realize a society where anyone at a company can easily find and use the necessary subsidy information and take on the challenge of solving problems.
The next mountain to climb is the DX of the administrative side's systems. The shortage of administrative staff is particularly severe in rural areas, and at this rate, we'll hit a problem where subsidies can't be executed even if the funds are there. In parallel with expanding our services for companies, we want to proceed with interviews with local governments and begin developing systems for the administrative side as well.
In countries like the Philippines, Vietnam, and Thailand, where the subsidy system structure is similar to Japan's, the same problems are even more rampant. If we can provide solutions to both the public and private sectors and build the systems that governments use, exporting that overseas also comes into view. Furthermore, by building a globally common system, we could even collaborate with other countries in the subsidy domain. We want to become a global startup that can make such things happen.
Editor's Postscript
The subsidy system often has a negative image, with many finding it "troublesome" or "complicated." However, Mr. Okajima redefines subsidies as "an infrastructure that supports new challenges in Japanese society" and is working to thoroughly break down the "wall of inefficiency" that hinders their use with the power of ICT. The mechanism for solving the two deep-rooted problems of "not finding" and "not being able to use" them through AI-driven comprehensive information gathering and expert-level deep analysis was particularly exciting.
"I want to improve Japan; that's all I think about lately," says Mr. Okajima. His business model—building a social infrastructure where anyone can access subsidies with a free basic service, while aiming for an even larger virtuous cycle with a business system for large corporations—felt like a clear expression of his strong sense of mission to contribute to society while driving his business forward.
■ICT Startup League
This support program was launched in FY2023, originating from the Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications' "Program to Support R&D for Startup Creation."
The ICT Startup League supports startups through four pillars.
①R&D Funding / Hands-on Support
Up to 20 million yen in R&D funding is provided in the form of subsidies. Additionally, through hands-on support, the selection committee members involved in choosing League members continue to work closely with them post-selection to promote growth. For companies that committee members deemed "must-select," a dedicated "cheering"-style support system is in place, where the evaluators themselves provide ongoing advice on business plans and offer growth opportunities.
②Discovery & Development
We provide opportunities for learning and networking to promote the business growth of League members.
We also work to discover individuals who aim to start businesses in the future, aiming to expand the base.
③Competition & Co-creation
It serves as a place for positive competition, much like a sports league, with a system where startups learn together, engage in friendly competition, and win the funding (up to 20 million yen) they truly need. We also provide a platform for co-creation, where League members can collaborate and expand their businesses through various opportunities, such as sessions with selection committee members.
④Promotion
We collaborate with media to publicize the initiatives of League members! By making their business known to many people, we aim to expand opportunities for new matching and chances.
■Related Websites
Transtep Inc.
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Toreteru Account
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Transtep Inc. (LEAGUE MEMBER)
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ICT Startup League
