Japan Science and Technology Agency

Runs Japan's science and innovation technology systems, managing national programs and connecting research organizations with industry.

Japan Science and Technology Agency (JST) is Japan's national research and development agency under the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology. It is the country's central public funder for research that moves from basic science into applied development, technology transfer, and international collaboration, and it also serves as a designated implementing agency for the Science, Technology and Innovation Basic Plan.

Its portfolio spans CREST for team R&D, PRESTO for individual researchers, ACT-X for early-career work, A-STEP for technology transfer, and GteX for green transformation. JST also runs international joint-research tracks such as ASPIRE, SATREPS, SICORP, and NEXUS, and the record links part of the Moonshot R&D Program to JST across goals 1, 2, 3, 5, 6, 7, and 9. The agency backs universities, research institutes, and companies rather than operating intramural labs, and it uses those programs to channel public money into projects that can move into industry use.

JST's positioning is broad but disciplined: it combines domestic research funding with tech transfer and overseas cooperation, and it keeps an English-language application presence for international and bilateral work. The agency also maintains overseas offices in Paris, Beijing, Washington, D.C., and Singapore, which supports its collaboration-heavy model and helps it stay visible to foreign partners looking for Japanese research links.