On April 24, 2026, Leave a Nest Co., Ltd. held the first Hyper Interdisciplinary Conference Taiwan 2026 (HIC Taiwan 2026) at the Environmental Research Building, National Taiwan University (NTU) in Taipei, Taiwan.
Event Overview
Schedule: Friday, April 24, 2026, 09:30 AM - 5:00 PM
Location: Taipei, National Taiwan University
Environmental Research Building (No. 71, Fanglan Rd, Da’an District, Taipei City 106, Taiwan)
This tournament is
"Taiwan-Japan Partnership in Science and Technology for a Sustainable Society"
Held under the theme of, researchers, companies, startups, and students, mainly from Japan and Taiwan, gathered across fields and positions, creating new knowledge and collaborations.
Opening
At the opening of the conference, Naomi Akinaga from Leave a Nest Co., Ltd. took the stage. She touched upon the fact that the Hyper Interdisciplinary Conference originated from internal research exchanges within Leave a Nest, and then introduced its development as a venue for fostering connections that transcend fields and organizations. She conveyed that the concept has since been further evolved and reframed as Hyper Interdisciplinary Communication. She then delivered a message about the importance of not limiting the conference to merely a presentation forum, but rather continuously nurturing new collaborations born from it and promoting ongoing communication that crosses boundaries of fields and positions.
Main Partner Greeting
Next, Mr. Atsushi Suzuki, President and CEO of Support Co., Ltd., the main partner of this tournament, gave a greeting. Mr. Suzuki conveyed a message that while they are advancing their business in Japan as a specialized consultant for land readjustment projects, they also hope to incorporate a research perspective in the future and look forward to collaboration between Japan and Taiwan.
keynote speech
In the keynote speech, Dr. Chi-Te Liu, Director of the Institute of Biotechnology at National Taiwan University, will deliver a presentation.
Symbiosis & ME (Microbial Ecology): Connecting Science, People, and Sustainability
A lecture was given on the topic of
The meeting between Leave a Nest and Professor Liu was initiated by the fact that Maru (current Group CEO and Representative Director) and Tsukada (current Executive Officer), who were students at the time, belonged to the same laboratory. In his lecture, Professor Liu looked back on his study abroad experience at Professor Koyanagi's laboratory at the University of Tokyo and recounted episodes of establishing research environments from small, makeshift desks. He also introduced his path as a researcher and the relationship between Japan and Taiwan, starting with inviting Mr. Maru to Taiwan in June 2013.
Furthermore, the speaker touched upon the career paths of continuing research in academia and the possibility of balancing research with business, as done by companies like Leave a Nest. The message conveyed was to encourage individuals to discover their true calling by taking on various challenges. Finally, expectations were expressed for Japan and Taiwan to deepen their collaboration and achieve coexistence and co-creation in the future.
Additionally, a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) was signed between the Graduate Institute of Biochemical Sciences at National Taiwan University and Leave a Nest, aiming for joint research between Japan and Taiwan and the fostering of student entrepreneurship.
HIC Splash (Short Pitch)
On the day, 15 researchers presented, and participants delivered short presentations on their research and business ideas. Through presentations targeted at participants from various fields, new opportunities for collaboration were created.
Poster Presentation
At the poster session, 28 presentations were made, fostering active discussions on research content and technologies. Direct interaction among participants deepened cross-disciplinary understanding and revealed new possibilities for collaborative research and commercialization.
Panel discussion
Two panel discussions were held at this conference.
Session 1
Developing a Resilient Society through Local Communication
(Session Partner: SUPPORT Co., Ltd.)
In this session, we discussed the construction of a resilient society with "communication" as the central theme, taking a cross-sectional approach that encompasses data utilization in urban development, communication derived from biological/microbial sources, and technological/business applications.
Speakers:.
Mr. Devin Wu Zongye (Taipei Harbor Angel Club)
Dr. Takeshi Mizumoto (Hylable Inc.)
Ms. Tzen-Ying Jenny (Tamkang University)
Moderator:
Ms. Nami Akinaga (Leave a Nest Co., Ltd.)
Session 2
Rethinking Education in Taiwan through Biodiversity and Monodzukuri
(Session Partner: Focus Systems Corporation)
In this session, we discussed how current education reflects Taiwan's characteristics, namely its manufacturing competitiveness and rich biodiversity. From the perspectives of biodiversity research, science communication, and manufacturing education, a multifaceted discussion unfolded regarding the connection between education and society/industry.
Speakers:.
Mr. Shang-Nung “Sammy” Chen (Invention Switch)
Ms. Phaedra Fang (National Taiwan Museum / ICOM NATHIST)
Mr. Kuowei Cheng (PanMedia)
Moderator:
Dr. Yevgeny Aster Dulla (Leave a Nest Co., Ltd. / Leave a Nest Philippines, Inc.)
Poster Award Ceremony
Poster awards were given for excellent research among the poster presentations.
P-23
HSU HONG YI (許弘易)
Tamkang University Graduate Student
Living ecosystem – mycelium as a medium in Architecture for Wellbeing
(Development of Mycelium-Based Building Materials)
This research aims to design spaces that consider both people and the environment by utilizing mycelium as a building material, and its highly unique concept and future development potential were recognized.
The winner of this award will also be invited to the ultra-interdisciplinary conference (HIC) held in Japan, providing opportunities for future international research dissemination and collaboration.
Future development
Through this HIC Taiwan 2026, the collaboration of research, technology, and human resources, primarily between Japan and Taiwan, has been further deepened. Leave-a-nest will continue to create new co-creation and contribute to the realization of a sustainable society by bridging knowledge and human resources across fields and borders.