Chief Change Officer
#240 Dominic Carter: Cracking Japan’s Business Code – From Market Research to Aging Tech – Part Two
Mon, 17 Mar 2025
If you think aging tech is just about nursing homes and health monitors, think again. Dominic Carter, CEO of The Carter Group, is uncovering massive, untapped opportunities in the aging population—starting with Japan, one of the most aged countries in the world. From wearable tech that steadies shaky hands to high-tech bedsheets that improve sleep, he’s on a mission to rethink how we age.In Part 2, Dominic breaks down the challenges, cultural barriers, and business opportunities in aging tech. Whether you’re an entrepreneur, investor, or just navigating the realities of aging parents (which, let’s be honest, is most of us), this episode is packed with insights.Key Highlights of Our Interview:The Personal Push – “Watching my parents struggle with aging made me realize how much better it could be.” How a frustrating experience led to a game-changing business idea.The Tech Struggle is Real – “It’s not the technology that’s lacking—it’s the mindset around adopting it.” Why older generations resist helpful tech and what needs to change.The Future of Aging Tech – “We tested 26 products, but only a few stood out.” What works, what doesn’t, and the two innovations that are making a real impact.Japan’s Aging Economy – “30% of Japan’s population is over 65. That’s not a niche—it’s the future.” Why the biggest consumer market is also the most overlooked.Advice for Builders & Investors – “If you don’t listen to users, you’ll fail. It’s that simple.” The do’s and don’ts of launching a product in this space.______________________Connect with us:Host: Vince Chan | Guests: Dominic Carter______________________--Chief Change Officer--Change Ambitiously. Outgrow Yourself.Open a World of Expansive Human Intelligencefor Transformation Gurus, Black Sheep,Unsung Visionaries & Bold Hearts.10 Million+ All-Time Downloads.Reaching 80+ Countries Daily.Global Top 3% Podcast.Top 10 US Business.Top 1 US Careers.130,000+ are outgrowing. Act Today. --Chief Change Officer--Change Ambitiously. Outgrow Yourself.Open a World of Expansive Human Intelligencefor Transformation Gurus, Black Sheep,Unsung Visionaries & Bold Hearts.12 Million+ All-Time Downloads.Reaching 80+ Countries Daily.Global Top 3% Podcast.Top 10 US Business.Top 1 US Careers.>>>140,000+ are outgrowing. Act Today.<<<
Chapter 1: What personal experiences led Dominic Carter to aging tech?
I know there's a personal reason that led you to this next big thing. Can you share that story with us? What made this the right path for you?
Yes, I think a lot of people, and a lot of people my age too, because I just turned 50. And so a lot of people around our age are dealing with their aging parents. And I became, honestly speaking, I became very frustrated dealing with my parents because they
I wanted them to be a lot more proactive about the way that they were managing their situation and the fact that their independence was gradually disappearing. I could see that happening. I think they were in denial, but my brothers and sisters And we were very concerned about it. So I started, I gave, I got dad an Apple Watch, for example.
We tried speakers and we tried the pendant that they wear. If they fall over, they can't. But it was very hard to get their cooperation.
Right. So.
in Australia yeah my brothers and I have four brothers and sisters and they're still in Australia and I'm the only one in Japan I was looking at I just looked at their experience and I thought you've got to be better than this like I wanted to be better than this when I'm the same age as well because when we think about when we think about aging yes we want to help out we want to help our parents but we're also thinking of ourselves as well you've
And I'm thinking like when I'm in my mid-70s, I think these are the types of solutions that would be great to have around. And I certainly hope that I'll be able to access those and I'll have the capacity to help myself in a way.
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Chapter 2: Why is Japan a significant market for aging tech?
But very much looking at my parents' journey and all of the issues that they've had, I thought, yeah, this is an area of business where we can actually really, of course, there's a huge opportunity in a market like Japan. And Japan's not the only aging market, but it is the oldest market. So I'm 50, but the median age in Japan is 50. So half the population is over 50.
30% of the population is over 65. The size of the market is massive and aging people in Japan tend to have more financial resources than younger people, interestingly. So it's a big business opportunity in that sense and there's a lot of interest in it globally.
From the point of view of being able to work on projects that have a genuine positive impact for people, I think it's something that we can also feel very proud of. good about as well, because the products that we're working with really do help improve people's quality of life.
Technology, no doubt, it plays a huge role. And I'll let you talk more about that in a moment. But as I was listening to your personal story, I couldn't help but relate. I'm also over 50. My parents are in the mid-70s, early 80s. And of course, many of my friends have parents around the same age. And yes, generational shifts are something we all see coming.
Chapter 3: What are the challenges in adopting aging technology?
What affects my parents now will eventually affect me. And not just now, but in the years ahead. But don't you think part of the challenge isn't just technology? It's not about having the right tools or even how good they are. A huge part of the problem is mindset and habit. Our parents' generation often isn't mentally prepared to adopt technology deeply.
even when it could make their lives easier, healthier, or better. So when we talk about technology adoption, isn't the biggest barrier sometimes not the tech itself, but the willingness to accept and use it?
Yes, it's very hard and we can't really move faster than the user in that respect. So I think if we project out into the future, I think you and I will be very open to technology and every way that can benefit us as we age. But our parents there, in a sense, it is a little bit too late for them. There are certain, if we look at, When I say too late, I mean too late for them to fully embrace.
There are some people who, there are some people who do, but they're the minority. At the same time, there's a philosophy, I think, especially in Japan, where people think aging is, rightly aging is a natural process. So these deteriorations that we face over time, they're actually natural. We accept them. So anything that's like too extreme of an intervention, I think
Chapter 4: How can mindset impact the adoption of aging tech?
or it's helping too much, is in danger of being rejected because it doesn't really fit in with people's philosophy and their way of thinking. And frankly, people prefer other people to look after them.
Aging people in Japan still have people to look after them because the baby boomers who are the biggest or have been in the past the biggest portion of the population in Japan, they have children and the children, there are enough people to look after.
the baby boomers for people who are our age though gen x you could think of them being there's a generation bulge in there called the baby dunkai the dunkai the baby boomers and the baby dunkai the children of the baby members but the baby dunkai are another big group in the population but they're really Beneath us, there's the people that were for our elders.
I think the opportunity in aging tech is a long-term one. And I think it'll come, it really comes from people in their 50s who, yes, they may be able to gently introduce some solutions to their parents as they become available. So things like sensors and stuff that's fall detection and so forth, as that gets better, yes, that's a no-brainer that we can put that in with our parents.
But that tech has to be very unobtrusive. You really can't be asking aging adults past a certain point to be really learning new technology and stuff. It just doesn't really work. But for us... Yes, as we age, I think, yes, we have almost a responsibility to be very conversant with technology. And especially in Japan, as I say, we don't have enough people who are younger than us to look after us.
If we don't look after ourselves as we can, then we're really causing a problem to other people. And Japanese people understand that very well. They're very aware of their impact on other people and they don't want to cause a problem for other people. And being responsible as a person, being personally responsible is a really key value. I think that thinking, that way of thinking
actually works very well with tech, but I think it's going to take a while and it's really a generational curve that we're on in terms of getting to the point where aging technologies are really fully utilized. So we have to have the technology, but as you say, we have to have the mindset.
And I think that our generation has that mindset, but I think we really need to get in early because hour over time, we become more set in our ways. And I think we just want to be aware that we are aging and that we might want to be thinking about this as we get older.
Sure. So far, I haven't asked about your specific role in this tech space. Are you more of an investor? Are you actually building the technology? Or are you more on the marketing and community building side? What exactly is your role right now? And looking ahead, do you see yourself shifting, doing more of certain things, less of others?
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Chapter 5: What role does Dominic Carter play in the aging tech industry?
I think that the first thing
to bear in mind is I think this is a huge task, like it has many aspects to it and there are many roles within that and many opportunities, but we're coming, we've of course started off as being researchers, which means that we've spent, for example, we've spent a lot of time in the last five years with people in their homes, for example, looking at how they, how do they prepare their meals as they get older?
How do they clean? How do people go shopping? So where can technology come to play a role in those daily tasks? Now, in the last three or four years, we've done about 25 projects just on those sorts of issues on robotics because we have clients that are looking, how do we build really good human-centric robotic solutions that people actually want to work with?
Because people generally don't, just in the area of robots, they don't really know how to interact with them. And the attempts have been put on the market so far, they've had their limitations. So we're starting from a perspective as researchers, because I say we see, as researchers, we see a lot of stuff that doesn't work. We see the issues in people that make tech. They can see problem.
In aging, problems are very easy to see. Sometimes in innovation... You can have the situation that we have a solution, but do we have a problem? That happens a lot, actually. In aging, the problem's really obvious. But what seems like a very reasonable solution from the point of view of the technologist, when you put it in the user's hands, it may not work.
We've got examples of how that can be an issue. So I think that the first thing that I am working on is ensuring that we have a very good fit between user needs and what that technology does. So our first role in the whole area of aging tech is to filter the ideas that have potential from those that are much longer term.
So the people that are producing these solutions, they have very well intended, they want to help people and they theoretically will help people, but we really need to work out what are the ones where we can bring them to market fairly soon. And then when we've identified that there's a really good fit with needs and it seems like a fairly practical solution,
solution, then we still have the job of adapting. Sometimes there'll be some elements of cultural adaptation that you need to do for Japan, selling it into the market here, but also just basic user experience, stuff that needs to be cleared up or worked on. And so when we've got a relevant product, we've optimized user experience. We can use that with our skills that we have in research.
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Chapter 6: How does The Carter Group identify viable aging tech solutions?
then we're facilitating commerce so what we're doing is because we're selecting the companies we then connect them up to distribution so that's the first stage of our project is identifying the companies check it appraising the user experience and then connecting them up to distribution stage one so we've got two companies that we're really advanced in doing that at the moment
Then after that, of course, we spend a lot of time with users, so we understand what the needs are. So if there are no solutions for certain needs, then we may want to develop those solutions and assemble teams to actually create products. So a venture studio is definitely in the works for us. And then in the big picture, too, there's an investment story around that as well.
But really, for me, the key thing is that we can get some success with these early projects so that then we can expand it out to the bigger picture to make sure that the essentially that yes, if there are opportunities to create product. We can do that.
If there are companies that we can facilitate investment for that we think will meet needs that we've validated and that we think that their products will address, then we want to facilitate investment for those businesses as well. So for us, that's a really interesting business. It's a good business. But as I say, it's about making sure that we get the right projects.
I think that's where our focus on the user and that sort of really that active listening and that connection with the user. I think that really enables us to be able to really increase the chances of success of these because I'm concerned if we don't.
really have successful experiences with age tech people will lose interest in the area and they'll say oh okay the mindset of elderly people is too close-minded so therefore we tried it and and we're not going to do that anymore because it's too hard well It's only too hard if you don't listen to your users, right?
It may stop you putting lots of resources into a solution that just isn't something that people really feel that they need or creating a user experience that just doesn't really suit the way that people live and what their priorities are. And then I think the whole area of aging tech will get a lot more credibility and traction. Absolutely.
Because there is skepticism around, I think people are very hopeful that we can improve lives, but I think that there's some justified skepticism around it as well. And as I say, working on the right projects, I think is really important.
You are looking to establish successful use cases, something tangible that can attract more resources, build momentum, and bring more voices to support your vision. That's how real impact happens. So I'm curious about the two projects you are currently working on. What are they, and more specifically, what problems are they solving? Since you mentioned that you carefully selected them,
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Chapter 7: What is the future of investment in aging tech according to Dominic?
to move around and so people can end up being very uncomfortable in bed and your ability to move in bed has a big impact on your sleep quality, which is something that I had no idea about. Like people that have the issue can relate to that idea very easily. We found, I would say much more than I expected, a lot of interest in the products.
And then we took that product in home trials and the people that we worked with really were just raving about it. So we had people, we tracked people for a month, we gave them the product for a month and then at the end asking them how did it work for them and people were saying, well, I'm sleeping so much better now. And they really want to tell other people about it as well.
So it's a really great product. So we're working hard on that with working to attain distribution and the correct adaptation of product at the moment. Another product we're working with is actually another Canadian company.
It just happened that they're Canadian companies, but this company is called Steadywear and they have a mechanical device that you can put on your hand if you have essential tremors.
so have shaky hands essentially you can put you can strap this onto your hand it's not too big especially the latest version is a lot the form factor is a lot easier for people to handle it's not as heavy as the earlier versions but that counteracts your tremors so there's a mechanism inside the device that as you if you tremble one way it counteracts so it can basically cancel out
So people who can't draw a straight line or they can't pick up a cup of tea or just do the basics in their daily routines, they can use this device and obviously it's going to change your whole life if you're able to do those daily tasks again. There are two examples. They're not even digital. They're not even digital tech, but it doesn't have to be digital tech.
And of course, we're looking at things like Alzheimer's, trading apps. So certainly we are looking at digital tech as well. They're two examples of products where they're accessible. They make a very, almost immediate difference to people's lives.
I want to see with the project we're working on, I want to see impact, a very visible impact on people's lives very early on, because I think we need that to get the momentum for all the rest of the projects that we want to take on.
Sure, there's so much to unpack in this topic, and I'd love to dive deeper in future episodes with you. But for now, as we conclude this conversation, after speaking with so many entrepreneurs and creators, and after carefully selecting just two projects to test in Japan, what have you learned?
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