JGC Holdings Corporation(Representative Director, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer: Masayuki Sato) and JGC Japan Corporation (Representative Director and President: Shoji Yamada) announce that they have used their jointly managed corporate venture capital fund (CVC) called the "JGC MIRAI Innovation Fund" to invest in LIFESCAPES Inc., a Keio University start-up company that is working on the development of rehabilitation equipment based on a brain-machine interface (BMI) ^*1 system for the treatment of severe post-stroke motor disabilities.

Cerebral stroke is designated as one of the five major diseases by the Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare (MHLW). It is considered to be a disease with high unmet medical needs^*2 for patients who suffer from severe paralysis after the onset of symptoms, as there is currently no effective treatment for these conditions.

LIFESCAPES aims to help stroke victims with severe motor disabilities to regain the ability to control the movement of their paralyzed fingers. Based on the BMI technology that has been cultivated over many years at the Keio University Faculty of Science and Technology, they are developing and manufacturing rehabilitation equipment for this purpose. Specifically, during the patient's repeated rehabilitation using BMI, the nerve circuits that were damaged by the stroke are examined and the circuits that connect the brain to the paralyzed fingers are reconstructed. This state-of-the-art technology has been attracting attention in recent years as it is expected to improve the quality of life (QOL) of patients.

Making use of the CVC Fund, the JGC Group plans to invest in domestic and foreign start-ups with innovative technologies and business models that will contribute to building a safe, secure, and sustainable social system. The themes to be targeted for investment are "realizing a carbon neutral economy," "building sustainable and resilient infrastructure," "enhancing lifestyle quality while looking ahead to the 100-year-life society," and "making industries smart."

Through this investment, the JGC Group will promote the use of this rehabilitation equipment by collaborating with domestic and international hospitals for whom they have provided EPC (engineering, procurement, and construction) services.

From now on, the JGC Group will invest in start-ups with innovative technologies and business models that are expected to contribute to building a safe, secure, and sustainable social system.

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  ※1：BMI refers to the technology that connects the brain and machines, such as brain wave detection and electrical stimulation of the brain.
  
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  ※2：Unmet medical needs refer to medical needs to cope with the effects of five major diseases such as stroke, cancer and other conditions such as insomnia, migraine headaches that may not be life-saving in themselves, but whose alleviation is strongly desired by patients to improve their quality of life.
  
  

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