In the agreement, Living Lab would act as the official go-to-market partner for companies participating in the JETRO program, using Sinar Mas Land's BSD City as the start-up hub, according to a company statement released on Thursday.

Sinar Mas Land chief transformation officer Mulyawan Gani pointed out that the collaboration underscored the firm’s willingness to engage with diverse international organizations and demonstrated the firm’s commitment to deploying funds, while significantly expanding its investment network.

“This is our first [international] collaboration. We are exploring [options] with other countries. Soon,” said Mulyawan, as quoted from Media Indonesia.

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JETRO is a Japanese government-related organization that works to promote trade and investment relations between Japan and other countries.

It has 2,000 members across various sectors, including mobility, technology digitalization and healthcare.

Among these members, 20 companies had expressed interest in partnering with Living Lab Ventures, JETRO executive vice president Kawada Mio said in the statement.

Kawada added, the collaboration aims to facilitate global expansion and sustainable development of the private sector in Japan and Indonesia.

This one-year partnership would allow startups in the mobility, waste and water management sectors to obtain grants of US$140,000, as quoted by DealStreetAsia.

Living Lab Ventures partner Bayu Seto said on Thursday that the partnership aimed to streamline investments flowing from Japan into Indonesia's digital economy ecosystem.

“LLV and JETRO’s partnership would open new opportunities, strengthen the global network and create valuable solutions in order to support the economic development of Indonesia and Japan,” Bayu said in a statement.

Founded in 2022, Living Lab Ventures is an Indonesia-based multi-stage venture capital firm, but was looking to invest in more early-stage deals.

The company portfolio has included investment in several notable entities such as Traveloka, Goto, Dana, Sirclo and recently electric vehicle (EV) infrastructure provider Swap Energy.

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The venture capital firm previously extended support to Alice Style, a Japanese rental marketplace platform, to test the Indonesian market through BSD City, Sinar Mas Land’s planned community located on the outskirts of Greater Jakarta.

Indonesia is home to 2,492 start-ups, making it the sixth largest start-up market in the world, according to Startup Ranking data as of mid-June.

By the end of 2022, JETRO's survey showed that approximately 73 percent of Japanese enterprises operating in Indonesia anticipated profits in 2023.

The figures for both Thailand and Vietnam surpassed JETRO’s forecasts, and therefore serve as compelling motivation for Japanese companies to channel their investments into Indonesia.