Food. Such a familiar yet digitally untapped frontier.

Cookoo, the mysterious creature born from a famous chef's hat.
Cookoo, whose culinary skills are second to none and whose curiosity about food knows no bounds, interviews people at Dentsu Inc. doing "delicious work"!

Cookoo: Today, I've flown out of Dentsu Inc. in Shiodome and made my way all the way to Tsukiji. I'm here to meet Kentaro Soma from Dentsu Digital Inc. Holdings!

Soma: Welcome to Tsukiji! I'm Kentaro Soma from Dentsu Digital Inc. Holdings.

Cookoo: Dentsu Digital Holdings...! That's such a cool name! What kind of work does your company do?

Soma: We support collaboration among Dentsu Group's digital-related group companies. We also invest in venture companies doing interesting things like services using digital technology, providing advice on management and marketing.

Cookoo: Huh... I heard you work in the food industry, Mr. Soma. Was that a mistake?

Soma: No, no (laughs). While working with cutting-edge technology is indeed our main focus, we also invest in digital companies related to food. One of them is the cooking photo sharing app "miil".

Cookoo: Food photo sharing!? That's the perfect app for me!

Soma: When you make something delicious, you want to show it to everyone, right?

Cookoo: I do! Like a photo of that fond de veau I simmered all night! Though it's hard to find people who truly appreciate the beauty of brown soup...

Soma: miil is an SNS app that lets you take and share photos of food that look delicious. It's a place for people interested in food to exchange information, of course, but it also creates new encounters and communication centered around food – between chefs and customers, moms and their families, and so on.

Cookoo: So it means I could meet someone who gets my fond de veau!? When digital power enters the world of food, it creates all kinds of possibilities!

Soma: Exactly! By combining new technology with the food sector, which was previously distant from tech, new value and services are constantly being created. Especially in the field of food-related communication, compared to food distribution or production sites, it's still very much in its developmental stage. As someone working in the digital field, I see real potential there.

Cookoo: Are there any other areas in food you're keeping an eye on?

Soma: Personally, I'm interested in the agtech field.

Cookoo: Agtech?

Soma: It's short for "Agriculture × Technology," and it's started gaining attention over the past year or so. For example, there are companies using GPS and big data to make farming more efficient, or companies using devices to connect producers and consumers, aiming to enhance the value of food and the act of eating. I believe the growth of these new areas could also be a catalyst for opening up new possibilities in food.

 

Cookoo: Lately, we've seen more produce where you can see the faces of the producers. But if we could actually talk with them and exchange information, that would make the food taste even better and feel even safer!

Soma: Yes! I believe the convergence of digital technology and food creates many possibilities.

Cookoo: But Soma, how did you become interested in the food sector while working at a digital company?

Soma: My interest in food came first. I think it started back in my university days. When I began living alone, my parents gave me a credit card usable only at supermarkets. I didn't have money for eating out, but I could buy as many supermarket ingredients as I wanted. So I was always cooking with them and sharing meals with my club friends. That's when I truly felt the power of food.

Cookoo: The power of food?

Soma: Delicious food naturally brings people together. Food became the catalyst for everyone bonding, and that's how our club and seminar group really started moving forward. I realized nothing moves people quite like food. At the same time, I was also fascinated by the emerging world of the internet and digital technology during my student days. I saw it as another mechanism for moving people, just like food. Whether it was food or the internet, I was interested in the broader mechanisms that drive society.

Cookoo: So you were looking at both food and digital from the same perspective!

Soma: After that, I joined Dentsu Inc. and worked in digital—which I had hoped for—as well as management and sales. Fortunately, I also got to handle accounts for food manufacturers. Now, I want to leverage what I learned there and connect the vast potential created by the intersection of digital and food to business.

Cookoo: Combining all sorts of ingredients within the digital world. You're a digital chef, Soma!

Soma: I'm flattered to hear that from Cookoo. But actually, I'm involved in work beyond digital too. I manage this Tsukiji office, for instance.
Five companies are based here, and I often end up having lunch with people from other companies in our shared break area. This has led to collaborations on work projects and smoother coordination between us. I think that's also the "power of food" (laughs).

The Tsukiji Office of Dentsu Digital Inc. uses its location, "Tsukiji," as a design theme. For example, in the break area, stone-paved flooring inspired by the ground of Tsukiji Market features sofas colored to evoke the fish and beer crates of the market.

A large screen is installed in the entrance.

Various photos of Tsukiji Market are displayed in a slideshow.

 

Cookoo: That's way too broad a field!

Soma: Thank you (laughs). By the way, I'm pretty confident in my cooking too, so next time I'll treat Cookoo to a meal.