When Diplomacy Learns to Speak the Language of Entrepreneurs: Ashida Katsunori's Vision for the Future of India–Japan Relations

The next defining chapter of the India–Japan partnership may have remarkably humble origins. It may begin with a conversation over coffee, a message sent through an AI-powered business platform or an entrepreneur deciding that the sea separating the two nations is no longer a barrier but a bridge. Enduring partnerships are built gradually. Quietly at first, then with enough momentum to reshape the economic geography of the Indo-Pacific.

Grand strategies often sound distant and abstract to most people. They are debated in summit halls, negotiated through communiqués and measured in statistics that rarely stir the imagination. Yet on a humid July morning in Kolkata, the prospect of a modern but profoundly organic India-Japan collaboration suddenly felt remarkably personal.

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The India–Japan Business Conference, held on 10 July 2026, arrived just days after the landmark 16th India–Japan Annual Summit. Many would have assumed it was just another business gathering. But it emerged as an extension of a much larger story, where diplomacy stepped out of government corridors and entered a room filled with entrepreneurs, innovators and investors eager to shape the next chapter of Asia's most trusted partnership.

That transformation began before the first keynote slide appeared. As the national anthems of India and Japan echoed through the hall, delegates watched with quiet admiration as Ashida Katsunori, Japan's Deputy Consul General in Kolkata, sang both anthems with remarkable sincerity, including India's. It was a simple gesture that required no diplomatic script yet dissolved formality within moments.

Ashida shifted effortlessly between English, Hindi and Bengali, drawing smiles, laughter and spontaneous applause. What could have been another carefully calibrated diplomatic address gradually evolved into something far more engaging. The audience stopped listening out of courtesy and started listening out of curiosity.

Beyond another summit

When Ashida began speaking, he did not immediately turn to trade figures or policy announcements. Instead, he recalled receiving an invitation to the conference months earlier.

"I immediately said yes, I will be there. But honestly, I never imagined, not even in my dreams, that I would be standing here at such a truly historical moment."

His reflection carried genuine surprise. When the invitation arrived in December 2025, neither he nor the organisers could have predicted that the conference would take place just days after Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi's first official visit to India. The coincidence gave the gathering unusual significance.

The timing mattered because the 16th India–Japan Annual Summit marked another decisive milestone in a relationship that has steadily expanded beyond its traditional foundations. What began decades ago through development cooperation has evolved into one of the Indo-Pacific's most comprehensive partnerships, shaped as much by shared economic interests as by converging geopolitical realities.

The agreements announced during the summit reflected that growing ambition. India and Japan established new frameworks for cooperation in semiconductors, critical minerals, pharmaceutical supply chains, digital infrastructure, data centres, undersea cable connectivity and energy security. They advanced collaboration on vital petroleum reserves, supported India's participation in the International Energy Agency, launched the Japan–India Compressed Biogas Initiative and witnessed the signing of 129 Memoranda of Understanding spanning multiple sectors.

Reflecting on the summit, Ashida offered a simple observation that captured the moment. 

"Truly a new chapter in India–Japan relations has begun."

He was fairly optimistic that the relationship had crossed an invisible threshold. Governments had already built the architecture. The next phase would depend on how businesses, researchers, innovators and entrepreneurs chose to inhabit it. After all, economic diplomacy succeeds when governments create opportunities and entrepreneurs seize them.

Why Eastern India suddenly matters

Every partnership eventually searches for its next frontier. For Ashida, that frontier lies in India's east. For decades, Japanese investment naturally gravitated towards western and southern India, where manufacturing ecosystems matured earlier, and infrastructure attracted global capital. But geopolitical shifts have a habit of redrawing economic maps. Eastern India is emerging as one of those newly important spaces.

Ashida argued that West Bengal, Odisha, Assam and the broader Northeast possess advantages that deserve far greater international attention. Geography alone explains part of the story. Positioned closer to Southeast Asia, the region offers an opportunity to strengthen maritime connectivity, deepen regional value chains and reinforce India's role within the broader Indo-Pacific architecture.

His vision aligned intricately with Japan's long-standing commitment to a Free and Open Indo-Pacific, an idea that overlaps with India's own maritime outlook.

"I firmly believe that by developing ports, industrial parks, trade corridors and digital infrastructure, Eastern India can truly transform into a major hub for India–Japan cooperation," said Ashida.

As global supply chains continue to diversify after years of geopolitical disruption, companies are proactively searching for manufacturing locations that combine political stability, skilled labour, logistical connectivity and reliable partners. Eastern India possesses many of those ingredients. The missing piece has often been sustained international attention. The 5th India–Japan Business Conference aimed to redirect that focus to the east.

The region's expanding ports, improving logistics, engineering talent and abundant natural resources fairly complement Japanese strengths in precision manufacturing, industrial management and advanced technology. Together, they offer tactical resilience in addition to the investment opportunities.

The quiet revolution no one notices

For decades, conversations about India–Japan economic cooperation have usually revolved around billion-dollar infrastructure projects, high-speed rail, automobile manufacturers and multinational corporations.

Ashida gently challenged that familiar narrative.

"I truly believe that the future of India–Japan relations will be shaped not only by large corporations but by thousands of interconnected SMEs."

It was arguably the most consequential argument of his address. Large companies often dominate headlines because their investments are visible. They build factories, launch industrial corridors and sign agreements alongside prime ministers. But history has categorically proven that durable economic relationships are rarely sustained by giants alone. They depend upon dense networks of smaller firms quietly innovating, supplying specialised components, adapting technologies and building trust across borders. The smartest investment India and Japan can make is in each other's entrepreneurs.

Japan brings decades of experience in advanced manufacturing, quality control, robotics, precision engineering and specialised industrial technologies. India contributes something equally valuable. It offers entrepreneurial dynamism, digital innovation, an expanding manufacturing base, a youthful workforce and one of the world's fastest-growing consumer markets.

These strengths are complementary rather than competitive. Thousands of partnerships between small and medium enterprises could accomplish something that a handful of multinational investments never can. They can spread innovation across sectors, diversify supply chains, create employment beyond metropolitan centres and make bilateral cooperation more resilient during periods of global economic turbulence.

Ashida credibly backed these points with revealing numbers. According to the latest survey conducted jointly by the Embassy of Japan in India and JETRO, more than 1,400 Japanese companies operate across India through over 5,200 business establishments. Yet only around 300 of them are Japanese SMEs. Likewise, only about 500 Indian companies currently operate in Japan.

For two economies of such scale and complementary strengths, those figures suggest not saturation but untapped possibility. The challenge is no longer convincing businesses that opportunities exist, but enabling them to find one another.

Diplomacy in the Age of AI

For all the emphasis on strategic corridors and industrial partnerships, Ashida's most original idea did not concern infrastructure or investment. It concerned introductions. Throughout his interactions in Kolkata, entrepreneurs repeatedly approached him with a familiar request.

"Many people ask me, 'I want to do business in Japan, but I don't have a partner.'"

The problem is hardly unique to India or Japan. Small and medium enterprises often possess the expertise, products and ambition to expand internationally, yet they struggle to identify credible overseas partners. Governments can facilitate trade missions and business forums, but they cannot personally connect every entrepreneur with the right collaborator.

Ashida acknowledged that reality with honesty. The Consulate, he explained, simply does not have the resources to serve as a permanent business matchmaking agency. Instead of accepting that limitation, he proposed a different solution.

"I would like to suggest that we develop something similar, dedicated to India–Japan business matching apps."

The suggestion drew immediate interest because it addressed a practical bottleneck rather than an abstract policy objective. Many believe that the next leap in bilateral cooperation may not require another institution, but just a better algorithm.

Ashida revealed that he had even consulted artificial intelligence about the feasibility of such a platform.

"I actually asked AI whether this was feasible. The answer was, it is not that difficult."

Then came the line that brought laughter across the hall.

"Of course, AI is a hallucination. Sometimes they lie."

His address acknowledged both the promise and the imperfections of the technology. Artificial intelligence is rapidly changing the way businesses discover markets, evaluate suppliers and build professional networks. There is little reason why diplomacy should remain untouched by that transformation.

Imagine a platform capable of matching Indian and Japanese firms according to sector, technological capability, investment appetite, production capacity, regulatory requirements and long-term business objectives. Instead of relying on chance encounters at conferences, entrepreneurs could identify compatible partners in minutes. Entry barriers would fall, trust could be built earlier, and collaboration would become far more accessible, particularly for smaller firms with limited international networks.

The proposal also reflected a broader shift in economic diplomacy. In addition to governments providing the framework, digital platforms now have the ability to connect people, ideas, and businesses at a speed that traditional institutions cannot easily match.

Building Trust Beyond Technology

Ashida was equally careful not to present technology as a substitute for human relationships. As he looked ahead to the networking dinner following the conference, he reminded the audience that business partnerships are still built through conversations, shared experiences and mutual confidence. Digital tools may initiate introductions, but lasting cooperation continues to depend on personal trust.

"In this era, building a smart technology-driven business matching system is not just a good idea. It is the need of the hour."

Across the world, governments are searching for ways to strengthen economic resilience without retreating into protectionism. Companies are redesigning supply chains to reduce risk while preserving efficiency, and AI is reshaping how firms recruit talent, identify investment opportunities and manage production networks. The future of international commerce will depend as much on intelligent connectivity as on physical connectivity.

In that environment, economic diplomacy cannot remain confined to trade delegations and investment summits. It must evolve into an ecosystem where governments, businesses, technology platforms and entrepreneurs continuously reinforce one another.

The Road From Strategy to Innovation

The significance of the conference lay in what it revealed about the evolution of India–Japan relations. For much of the post-war era, Japan was viewed primarily as a development partner, supporting India's infrastructure, industrialisation and economic modernisation. That foundation remains indispensable, but the relationship has expanded tremendously over the years.

Today, India and Japan are jointly shaping conversations around semiconductors, trusted technologies, resilient supply chains, clean energy, digital infrastructure, critical minerals and economic security. Their cooperation predominantly reflects the shared interests in preserving a free, open and inclusive Indo-Pacific governed by international law, secure sea lanes and dependable partnerships.

The business community now occupies a central place within that vision. Governments can indeed negotiate agreements and establish institutional mechanisms while removing policy obstacles. But the real measure of success lies in the number of partnerships created, technologies commercialised, factories established, jobs generated and innovations shared across borders.

Ashida's emphasis on SMEs stands out. Large corporations may anchor bilateral investment, but smaller enterprises often carry innovation into new sectors and new communities. They create economic relationships that are broader, deeper and more resilient because they are woven through thousands of everyday commercial interactions rather than concentrated in a handful of flagship projects.

A Quiet Light That Now Travels Far

As his address drew to a close, Ashida turned to one of Bengal's most enduring voices. Quoting Rabindranath Tagore, he said, "Friendship is a quiet light that burns within the heart."

He paused before adding his own reflection.

"Today, the light of the India–Japan business partnership is no longer a quiet flickering flame. It has grown into a powerful energy that illuminates the entire world."

The imagery was poetic, yet it also captured the trajectory of a relationship that has matured with remarkable consistency. Unlike many partnerships shaped by shifting political winds, India and Japan have built theirs patiently over decades through trust, institutional continuity and a shared willingness to invest in the future rather than merely respond to the present.

That trust is now being tested in a world shaped by technological rivalry and geopolitical uncertainty. From research laboratories and manufacturing clusters to ports, start-up incubators and conference halls like the one in Kolkata, ideas are now travelling just as freely as capital.

The next defining chapter of the India–Japan partnership may have remarkably humble origins. It may begin with a conversation over coffee, a message sent through an AI-powered business platform or an entrepreneur deciding that the sea separating the two nations is no longer a barrier but a bridge. Enduring partnerships are built gradually. Quietly at first, then with enough momentum to reshape the economic geography of the Indo-Pacific.