@jarjarbinx I saw that interview with Geoffrey Hamilton, too, I just want to say regarding Japan, I think the they’ve been all talk and no action, in respect to their so-called “fast track”.
Why do I think this? Look how they kept Dr Tsuji in limbo for like 2-1/2 years. Sure, maybe some of that was Tsuji’s fault because he was hyping his technology but it wasn’t really ready for prime time, but I think some of that was the Japanese PMDA agency’s fault. Tsuji was associated with the most prominent, highly respected research organisation in Japan, RIKEN, and he still couldn’t get them to approve starting some kind of clinical trial? How lame is that?
The other problem about Japan is that I think they have a sort of unofficial policy of giving preference to Japanese-owned companies in certain high tech or emerging tech sectors. This may or may not be codified into their laws but I think it’s how the game is actually played in Japan. “You scratch my back, I’ll scratch yours…” (As long as you’re Japanese owned). And the fact that Tsuji, who is actually Japanese, couldn’t even get to clinical trials (or hasn’t reached this milestone yet after more than 3 years of hype) tells me that Japan’s fast track policy isn’t really what it’s touted as. It looks like they still set the bar very high and it’s just as hard to get your foot in the door as it ever was. (And just because Shiseido and Replicel managed to do it doesn’t mean anything, because they likely had a lot more money available to grease the skids. Tsuji was begging for donations from the public just a few months ago.)
I think Stemson might have a better time trying this in Korea, Singapore or Australia if we’re talking about Asia.
But I really suspect they will do it in the UK. My honest opinion about the UK is the that they’re very strict about regulations and the approval process too, just like the US and Japan, but they are giving financial incentives to foreign companies to base in the UK or conduct scientific research there, because of Brexit. Brexit cut them off from many of their formerly lucrative tech and business ties to Europe, so now they’re kind of trying to lure in almost everything good they can get their hands on from abroad. I think they will pay or offer financial incentives to companies just to invest or base their ops in the UK. I think the UK will probably offer one of the better deals to Stemson, possibly the best.
I’m looking at this and I think the Japanese “fast track” is a big fake out, it exists on paper only, it’s not about loosening any regulations at all, their regulatory standards have not changed one bit and I suspect this is also a door open ONLY to Japanese-owned companies, owned and operated by Japanese, NO EXCEPTIONS.