horiba actively promoted venture capital investment, particularly in the kyoto area, as an adviser to the advanced software technology and mechatronics research institute of kyoto (astem), one of the largest start-up incubator organizations in japan. he was a representative of the japan association of new business incubation organization (janbo) which was established in 1999 as a nationwide network for the support of new businesses in japan. he served as the chairman of the innovation initiative network japan (innovation-net) established in 2009 to revitalize regional economies by promoting collaboration between industries and universities. masao horiba was also a founder and past president of the association of asian business incubation (aabi) which encourages support of initiatives throughout asia, not just in japan.