Great science doesn’t change the world on its own. It needs people willing to take it out of the laboratory and build something real with it. That’s exactly what Atomis has done with CubiTan® — and on May 25, 2026, that commitment was recognized at the highest level of the Japanese government.
Mr. Daisuke Asari, CEO of Atomis, was invited to the Prime Minister’s Office in Tokyo for a special exchange with Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi and Minister in Charge of Startups Minoru Kiuchi. Four of the most innovative startups from across Japan were selected for this session — and Atomis was among them.
A Moment Built on Nobel-Level Science
CubiTan® is a next-generation high-pressure gas container powered by MOF (Metal-Organic Framework) technology — a porous material capable of absorbing and storing gas at significantly lower pressure than conventional cylinders. The science behind it traces directly to the pioneering work of Prof. Susumu Kitagawa, whose research on MOFs earned him a Nobel Prize in Chemistry.
But science alone doesn’t deliver real-world impact. What Atomis has done is bridge that gap — taking decades of world-class research and engineering it into a product that can be deployed in the field, in markets where energy access is still a daily challenge.
Prime Minister Takaichi closed the session with words that speak to exactly this:
“Startups that translate Japan’s outstanding research achievements into real-world applications — as exemplified by Prof. Kitagawa Susumu’s Nobel Prize in Chemistry — are critically important. I am reaffirmed in that conviction.”
It was a direct acknowledgment of what Atomis represents: proof that Japan’s most advanced scientific achievements can become tangible solutions for real people, in real places, facing real energy challenges.
The Project That Was Presented: Smart Gas Network
During the session, Mr. Asari presented the Smart Gas Network Project — a decentralized gas infrastructure solution built around CubiTan®. The project is already advancing across the ASEAN region, with active partnership development in Indonesia and Thailand.
The problem it addresses is significant. Millions of people across Southeast Asia still lack access to reliable gas infrastructure. Conventional pipelines require massive capital investment and are only viable in densely populated urban areas. Communities in remote or underserved regions are simply left behind.
CubiTan® offers a different path — one that doesn’t depend on fixed pipelines, that operates at lower storage pressures for improved safety and efficiency, and that scales from small deployments up to regional networks. It works with both natural gas and biogas, making it compatible with the domestic energy resources that countries like Indonesia are actively developing.
For the region, this isn’t just a convenience upgrade. It’s a meaningful step toward energy security — ensuring that communities beyond the reach of city gas networks can access clean, affordable energy.
What Government Backing Actually Means
Being selected as one of Japan’s four most innovative startups and presenting directly to the Prime Minister carries weight that goes beyond recognition. It signals institutional confidence — the kind that opens doors with investors, accelerates regulatory conversations, and strengthens partnerships in target markets.
The Japanese government’s encouragement actively accelerates the deployment of this technology. It validates the direction, amplifies the credibility, and provides a foundation for the Smart Gas Network Project to move faster and further than it could on momentum alone.
And move forward is exactly what comes next.
Moving Forward and What Makes This Different
Most attempts to solve the energy access gap in ASEAN follow the same playbook: build bigger pipelines, extend existing networks, or subsidize LPG distribution. They’re expensive, slow, and still leave the hardest-to-reach communities behind.
CubiTan® solves these challenges all at once. Because MOF technology stores gas at dramatically lower pressure than conventional cylinders, the infrastructure required to distribute it is lighter, safer, and far less capital-intensive. There’s no pipeline dependency. No requirement for centralized storage hubs. It works with the natural gas and biogas resources that Indonesia and Thailand are already developing domestically — meaning it integrates into existing energy strategies rather than competing with them.
That’s the differentiation that made it worth presenting to a Prime Minister. And it’s the same differentiation that makes what comes next worth watching.
With the encouragement of the Japanese Government, the Smart Gas Network Project is moving from planning into deployment. The pilots in Indonesia and Thailand are not distant roadmap items — they are active. The question is no longer whether CubiTan® can work in the field. It’s how fast it can scale to the communities that need it most.
That answer is coming soon.
Follow the journey or reach out to explore how CubiTan® could be part of the energy solution in your region.
