Chapter 8MegaChips to the World
18．Venturing onto the Global StageTrue Globalization Begins by Challenging Past Success
Beginning in 2014, MegaChips embarked on a bold transformation under Shindo’s belief that “past success is the greatest obstacle to future success.” At a time when many Japanese electronics manufacturers were struggling in global markets, Shindo concluded that there was no longer a future in simply extending the domestic business model. Instead, he shifted the company’s perspective toward Silicon Valley and global standards.
He repeatedly challenged employees to compete head-to-head with the best minds in Silicon Valley and to bring forward original ideas that would impress even the industry’s toughest competitors. This was not merely a matter of mindset. It marked the beginning of a new battle—to experience firsthand what was happening at the forefront of global innovation and to make that knowledge an integral part of the company’s DNA.
19．MegaChips Goes GlobalThe Birth of CVC
What Shindo once again impressed upon all employees was a simple but powerful philosophy: “Our mission is not merely to design chips. We must develop the intelligence (the algorithms) that solve customers’ problems and embed that into silicon.” To accelerate this spirit of innovation, Shindo decided during this period to adopt a corporate venture capital (CVC) approach.
He believed that relying solely on internally developed technologies was no longer sufficient in the fast-moving global marketplace. To remain competitive, MegaChips needed to connect with outstanding talent around the world and embrace transformative ideas originating outside the company. Accordingly, MegaChips accelerated strategic investments in and collaborations with overseas startups possessing technologies and perspectives beyond the company’s own capabilities.
“We are not acquiring startups; we are acquiring the potential of creating the future together.” Acting as both visionary and evaluator, Shindo cultivated relationships with startups in fields that he believed would become the pillars of the next generation.
These CVC activities represented far more than financial investments. They formed a collaborative platform that combined MegaChips’ decades of expertise in mass production with entrepreneurial innovators’ ideas, disruptive enough to create products capable of astonishing the world. Through this open innovation approach, MegaChips transformed itself from a Japanese semiconductor company into a global deep-tech player.
20．The Challenge Never EndsTowards the Future - Remaining as an “Eternal Venture”
Today, more than 36 years after its founding, MegaChips has established a solid position within Japan’s semiconductor industry. Yet there is no room for complacency. The greatest legacy Shindo seeks to leave behind is not a particular product or a record of past successes, but rather a demanding philosophy: that continuous change and the willingness to reinvent oneself are the only sources of lasting stability.
“By doing the same things as everyone else, a smaller company can never defeat a larger one.” That belief has now been passed on to the next generation of leaders. Nevertheless, the journey toward achieving the kind of innovation that can reshape the world remains long and challenging. Amid intense global competition, whether MegaChips’ originality can truly become a value that defines the future is a question still being answered. That competition is unfolding at this very moment.
Looking ahead to 2026 and beyond, Shindo envisions not merely the continuation of the business, but the creation of an intellectual foundation that will support the next century. Success always belongs to the past; what lies ahead is nothing but new challenges. Born in Japan and guided by global standards, MegaChips may not own manufacturing facilities, but in the battle of ideas, creativity, and ambition, it intends to yield to no one.
With an unwavering passion to contribute to society through originality, Shindo will continue to lead MegaChips forward as an “eternal venture,” embracing the uncertainties of the future. Rather than pursuing a completed form of success, he sees the company’s true purpose in the process of continual evolution itself.
This story has no ending.
Even at this very moment, Shindo continues his journey toward the next breakthrough in originality.
