Key Takeaways
- Shintaro Matsumoto, President & CEO of NEC X, highlights how the company’s Elev X! Ignite program supports agri-tech innovation through startups like AgriAssure.
- NEC X leverages NEC’s expertise in AI, machine learning, and data analytics to enhance agricultural sustainability and traceability.
- AI is positioned as a foundation for “trust and safety” in food production and trade.
- AgriAssure’s compliance platform aims to simplify cross-border regulation using AI automation and data standardization.
- Through partnerships with THRIVE and others, NEC X is enabling scalable, data-secure agricultural transformation.
Shintaro Matsumoto: Aligning AI Innovation with Global Agriculture
Agriculture has become an unexpected frontier for NEC X, the Silicon Valley–based innovation hub of the NEC Group. Under Shintaro Matsumoto’s leadership, the Elev X! Ignite program has received a significant number of applications from agri-food startups, which has led to supporting companies such as AgriAssure – a compliance SaaS startup addressing global traceability and regulatory challenges.
“NEC has already been focusing on the agricultural sector and has supported the advancement of agricultural management through AI and data analytics on a global scale via its digital platform, CropScope,” Matsumoto explained. “We believe these technologies are highly compatible with the agri-food sector.”
With NEC’s core strengths in AI, cloud computing, and data analytics, these technologies are considered highly applicable to agriculture, where they can help improve sustainability, transparency, and global food safety.
Transforming Compliance Through AI Integration
For Shintaro Matsumoto, AgriAssure represents a solution to one of the most persistent challenges in agricultural trade: navigating fragmented regulatory systems. “For small and medium-sized producers in particular, responding to differing regulatory standards across countries and regions is an extremely difficult challenge,” he said.
By leveraging AI, AgriAssure automatically compiles and interprets diverse food safety regulations, enabling exporters and importers to identify compliance gaps within seconds. Matsumoto noted that the platform can also auto-generate country-specific documentation and detect errors in real time, dramatically reducing manual workloads.
“Through automation and data standardization, AI significantly reduces the complexity of international compliance and enables the creation of more transparent and reliable supply chains,” he said.
Responsible Data Use at the Core of Innovation
Beyond technology, Shintaro Matsumoto emphasized NEC X’s dedication to responsible data management. He explained that NEC X incorporates “Privacy by Design” from the early stages of product development, leveraging the NEC Group’s long-standing expertise in data security, digital identity, and encryption technologies.
As agriculture becomes more data-driven, these principles can also be applied across the food value chain to promote safe, trustworthy data sharing and collaboration – supporting greater transparency, sustainability, and efficiency in the industry.
Scaling AgriTech Beyond Pilots
NEC X’s approach extends well beyond technical mentorship. The Elev X! Ignite program gives startups like AgriAssure access to farmers, regulators, and industry stakeholders to validate solutions in real-world conditions.
“Our mission goes beyond simply supporting technology; we are committed to helping build scalable business models,” Matsumoto said. Partnerships with organizations such as SVG Ventures | THRIVE also provide startups with field-testing opportunities and entry points into global networks.
Shintaro Matsumoto on Global Rollout and Future Directions
AgriAssure’s first pilot deployments are expected in North America, where traceability frameworks are well established. But according to Matsumoto, the potential impact is global: “With diverse regulatory requirements across countries and frequent challenges in cross-border trade, it is precisely in such markets that the value of AI-driven automation and a unified compliance platform can truly be realized.”
Looking forward, NEC X plans to continue supporting startups that aim to address social issues through the use of AI and data, with agriculture remaining one of its key focus areas. “By leveraging NEC’s global network and fostering collaboration with startups, research institutions, and investors, we can accelerate the social implementation of these technologies,” Matsumoto concluded.
