Season II of Advantaged opens with a deep dive into a major shift we've seen in venture capital: the rise of venture studios within traditional VC funds. For this episode, I sat down with Alloy Partners’ Ryan Larcom and Yuma Tanaka, VP at DNX Ventures, for a candid conversation exploring why VCs are making venture building core to their strategy and launching venture studios.

Why Venture Studios, Why Now?

DNX Ventures has long been a leader in Japan’s B2B SaaS startup ecosystem, but as competition for early-stage deals intensified and the ecosystem matures, DNX is looking to go “earlier”—not just investing, but helping to create new companies from scratch. By launching DNX Studio in partnership with Alloy, they’re able to work closely with founders from day one, offering hands-on support in getting a new company from zero to one.

Key Takeaways

• The Venture Studio Advantage: Our collaboration with DNX leverages shared expertise in venture building. The studio model allows DNX to focus deeply on specific ideas and provide operational support from the outset, rather than waiting for the right batch of entrepreneurs to come along.
• The Japanese Startup Landscape: Japan’s startup scene is maturing, with more funding, government support, and a shift toward entrepreneurship. Most founders are first-timers coming out of corporate roles, and DNX finds talent through its network of portfolio alumni and CEO referrals.
• Community and Founder-Market Fit: DNX has built a physical community in Tokyo where seed-stage companies co-locate, accelerating knowledge sharing. The most important trait in founders is a drive to solve real problems—crucial for building credibility in the Japanese market.
• Opportunities and Challenges: Japan’s aging population and labor shortages create real demand for innovation. The market is large enough for unicorns, but scaling further requires launching multiple products and continuous innovation. AI holds promise, but adoption may be slower due to traditional corporate cultures.

We also highlighted DNX Studio’s most recent Sprint Week, where a founder with deep insurance experience developed an AI-powered solution to automate agency customer interactions. This bottom-up, problem-driven approach is what the venture studio model is all about.

As DNX and Alloy look to our next cohort, we’re seeking founders with industry backgrounds and a builder’s mindset, especially those interested in tackling big challenges in Japan. Listen to the full episode below or wherever you get your podcasts for more on how venture studios are reshaping startup creation in Japan.

Be sure to subscribe to Advantaged on Apple, Spotify, or YouTube.