RISING

Three of NASCAR's youngest stars are thrown into the fire as they take on the most famous and dangerous track in America, Daytona Motor Speedway. Go deep inside the lives of Carson Hocevar, Jesse Love and Rajah Caruth as they prepare for the biggest race of the 2025 season.

After Carson Hocevar's disastrous day at Daytona, he changes his tune and dazzles the NASCAR world with his aggression in Atlanta. Learn more about where Rajah Caruth comes from, as well as his philosophy on the peaks and valleys of a NASCAR season. Jesse Love prepares for his NASCAR Cup Series debut on the golf course with fellow driver Connor Zilisch.

Carson Hocevar becomes the talk of the NASCAR world. Relive three of the most impactful weeks in the young driver's life, where he had a shot to win three races in a row.

A groundbreaking meals-on-wheels service provides the sick with bento meals tailored to their individual medical requirements by trained dieticians, who also offer over-the-phone nutritional advice. We meet Kosuke Abe, who came up with this business model that moves dieticians from a supporting role to center stage. Driven by the motto "food comes first", he is committed to demonstrating how nutrition can improve a patient's condition before the need for medical treatment.

Yuya Nakamura is President and CEO of a company currently drawing attention from around the world through the development of compact satellites. The advantage of the firm's microsatellites is their low cost, with the process from design through to launch said to require only one tenth of the budget typically needed for the larger devices familiar in years gone by. Nakamura's company has breathed fresh life into an industry that was once the preserve of state-funded projects.

Hirofumi Seo uses cutting-edge computer graphics to visualize the most complex medical data. After securing the University of Tokyo President's Grand Award for his work as an expert forensic witness, elucidating exact details of victims' wounds, in 2015 he won a category prize at leading CGI conference SICGRAPH, for his digital recreation of the human heart. Seo now seeks to revolutionize clinical practice with a virtual surgery simulator to train physicians to perform tricky liver operations.

Japanese whisky is currently undergoing a boom in popularity around the world, with numerous buyers willing to pay high prices when prime examples come up for auction. In 2008, Ichiro Akuto founded a small distillery in Chichibu, Saitama Prefecture, and the drinks produced there in limited quantities owe their distinctive flavor to the local environment, as well as to Akuto's own experimentation with techniques and materials. We follow an innovator who is taking Japanese whisky global.

Taro Nakamura develops robots based on imaginative imitation of living organisms. His expertise is in great demand from numerous firms and government funded research programs thirsty for innovation, and he currently has over 20 individual projects in progress. We focus on his development of an earthworm robot, the first of its kind, designed to traverse the narrow, twisting tunnels of Japan's aging water infrastructure, and other projects including robots with man-made muscle fibers.

Despite their superior workmanship, recent years have seen Japan's apparel factories losing work to lower-cost ones abroad. Entrepreneur Toshio Yamada has teamed up with those factories to create a new, Japan-based clothing brand. Yamada's innovations include selling directly to consumers online and funneling profits back into factories, allowing them to experiment with new techniques. Yamada's goal is to push Japanese factories to the forefront and create a clothing brand recognized worldwide.

Miyazaki Prefecture's satsumaimo, or sweet potatoes, are selling fast in other parts of Asia thanks to Makoto Ikeda, the CEO of Kushima AoiFarm. Since he started this company with a staff of 4 family members in 2013, exports have been booming. Now the firm has 68 employees and annual sales of 700 million yen. Interestingly, the type of sweet potato that is popular in Hong Kong, Singapore and Taiwan doesn't sell so well in Japan. We explore what Ikeda has done to achieve sweet potato success.

Up to the 1990's, Japan's home electronics giants led the global market. But recently, unwilling to implement key reforms, they have been slow to catch on to the digital revolution, and products without IoT compatibility are considered old hat. Takuma Iwasa is the CEO of one Japanese tech venture winning fans worldwide with unique, web-ready devices. Targeting the global niche market of early adopters has put this firm in the spotlight, as it strives to create unprecedented consumer electronics.

Kyoto is a long-established center of craft excellence. Hiroyasu Koma's 30-person start-up firm brought that power together to make a high-performance electric sports car. Unlike in the case of gasoline cars, parts for electric cars can be sourced from outside the insular supplier networks that serve major car makers, so even small start-ups can make cars. Koma sells the technology in completed cars to other companies, a feature of his business model where various firms share development costs.

In Japan, long-distance express coaches are a fast-expanding sector. Including an increasing number of foreign visitors, annual users now stand at an estimated 120 million. Koji Hirayama runs a coach operator that has helped fuel this growth through an emphasis on safety, comfort, and value, introducing measures like IoT systems to monitor drivers' health and stop them falling asleep at the wheel; specially designed seats; and a system that makes unreserved places available at reduced prices.

Flying cars have long been a staple of science fiction, but recent years have seen a global explosion in projects that aim to make these futuristic vehicles a reality. With the aim of making flight available to all by 2050, one such project is led by Tsubasa Nakamura, whose team of young engineers is working to create a zero-emission road vehicle that can also take to the air via propeller power. Follow their efforts to have their invention light the Olympic Flame at Tokyo 2020.

With over 27% of the population currently aged 65 or over, Japan as a nation is experiencing unprecedented demand for assistive technology. Hideaki Tamada heads one Osaka-based firm that developed walking aids tailored to the smaller physiques of Japanese seniors. A runaway hit, the firm now leads the domestic "walker" market, helping older adults nationwide to maintain their independence. Follow a pioneering business prolonging healthy lifespans for Japan's graying society.

Year round, Japan plays host to an estimated 300 thousand matsuri. But dwindling rural populations and weakened community bonds now place around a quarter of these colorful traditional festivals in jeopardy. Manabu Ohara heads a unique organization that recruits young people from across the country and overseas to help keep these festivals alive, forging ties with locals and giving a much-needed lift to every aspect -- from preparation, to float-bearing, to cleanup.

As Japan prepares for the Tokyo 2020's big events, efforts are underway to prepare for the arrival of international athletes and spectators, but wheelchair users still face various hurdles. To promote accessibility for those with disabilities, wheelchair user Yuriko Oda created a "barrier-free map" app that helps users locate and share info on elevators and accessible toilets while avoiding steps and other obstacles. Follow a mobile venture aiming for a barrier-free society.

In Japan, over 6 million tons of food, much of it perfectly edible, go to waste every year. To combat this, Kazuma Kawagoe developed a web application that aims to rescue food otherwise headed for the dumpster. Users can browse and reserve items for collection at reduced prices at registered restaurants and bakeries. Follow a unique venture using technology to raise awareness of this issue and change the attitudes of both, consumers and producers, while reducing the waste of precious food.

Around the world, the chaos caused by the COVID-19 pandemic has brought calls for a green recovery focused on eco-friendly businesses and renewable energy. Yoshida Hiroko runs an NPO promoting green energy and sustainable food production in rural Japan. By creating virtuous cycles, and organizing events that attract participants from further afield, she leverages local natural resources to revitalize mountain areas hit by depopulation.

With human interaction restricted by the pandemic, robotic communication aids are in the spotlight. Aoki Shunsuke heads a firm that develops such devices, with user-friendly messenger robots aimed at children and seniors uncomfortable with smartphones; home sensors that pair with the robots to let you monitor the wellbeing of isolated relatives; and robotics kits that help kids learn while expressing their creativity. Follow a unique business developing innovative solutions for the new normal.

Food waste is a global issue. And fresh fruit -- easily bruised; rejected for minor deviations in size, shape and color; and prone to price dips due to bumper crops -- is among the most widely discarded items. Kinoshita Masayuki set out to solve this with tailored flash freezing technology that maintains the taste and texture of cut fruit without the need for conventional preservatives. And now his approach is even helping pandemic-hit restaurants deliver their dishes with no loss in quality.

With traditional Japanese carpentry on the decline, young architect Akiyoshi Koki is rejuvenating age-old construction approaches through digital fabrication technology like laser cutting and 3D printing. From award-winning reimaginings of traditional homes, to the promotion of local timber production and consumption cycles using digital equipment, and unique online platforms for ordering pre-cut furniture and even homes, he is breathing new life into both the construction and forestry sectors.

Japan is full of both young people keen to visit new locations but lacking the funds to do so, and provincial towns seeking a fresh influx of younger workers. Nagaoka Rina created a service that tackles both issues by offering young people paid placements with local farms and businesses, also providing free accommodation and enough downtime to explore in exchange for a few hours manual work per day. And as well as labor, the towns gain new ambassadors to showcase their appeal more widely.

In recent years, growth in the global aquaculture market has seen yields overtake traditional fisheries. But conventional aquaculture techniques are a source of pollution, and also susceptible to weather events. Professor Yamamoto Toshimasa of Okayama University of Science has solved these problems and increased yields through a sustainable new approach that enables faster growth at higher stocking densities, also providing a promising solution for poverty and food security in developing nations.

In Japan, rice consumption is falling, over 420,000 hectares of farmland lies unused, and a great volume of rice goes to waste. Kamiya Kazuhito has spent 15 years developing a company that uses it to make biomass resin—a form of plastic. In response to rising demand, Kamiya took advantage of unused farmland in Fukushima Prefecture, and began large-scale production. This created jobs, contributing to the recovery of an area devastated by the 2011 Great Earthquake and Tsunami.

Around the world, cats, dogs, and other pets are an integral part of many families. But while improvements to diet and veterinary care have brought increased lifespans, they have also seen an increase in health conditions that affect elderly pets. Shimada Akio is Japan's first veterinary prosthetist, pioneering custom prosthetics and rehabilitation schemes that preserve quality of life for animals who would once have been beyond help, including pets, wild animals, and zoo residents.

Against the backdrop of societal aging and isolation in Japan, Yata Akiko is a pioneer of community nursing. Rather than direct treatment at healthcare facilities, this approach promotes integration with local people to provide advice and catch potential issues early. Inspired by the early death of her own father, Yata runs a health visit service for seniors, local "busybodies' assemblies," and training schemes whose graduates are now active in various settings across Japan.