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Little known outside of Japan, Astar Network, a blockchain in the Polkadot (DOT) ecosystem, has gotten noticed by one of the world’s largest private enterprises: Toyota Motor Corporation.

A developer hackathon, which starts on Feb. 25, will be held in a metaverse environment on the Astar Network with Toyota as its main sponsor and one of the judges evaluating participating teams.

The amount of Toyota’s sponsorship was not disclosed, but the Astar Foundation and the Polkadot-focused Web3 Foundation are kicking in $75,000 and $25,000, respectively.

Making it in Japan

Shun Ishikawa, chief operating officer at Astar Network, told Blockworks that the Japanese market is “unique” on account of “its inherent language and cultural differences.”

“Entering and doing business in the Japanese market is very different from doing it in other countries,” he said.

Astar’s founder Sota Watanabe hails from the country, and Isikawa said the team works closely with top Japanese brands and Japanese politicians, helping Astar to become a leader in the Japanese blockchain market.

A non-scientific Twitter poll by the Japan Blockchain Association (JBA) in December found that, of 332 respondents, a plurality chose Astar as the chain they would most like to use over alternatives Polygon, Solana and Avalanche.

It was also chosen as “product of the year” for 2022 by the JBA. Watanabe was the JBA’s “person of the year.”

He appeared on the most recent cover of Forbes Japan, and regularly touts his political connections on Twitter.

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