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Industry Collaboration Index

Industry Collaboration Index 2026 · University profile

Kobe University

Japan · Asia-Pacific · Gold

#131World rank of 1,038
73.2ICI scoreout of 100
#12National rank, of 52 in Japan
#23Regional rank, of 343 in Asia-Pacific
855Verified industry works, 2021 to 2025
423Company groups worked with (186 on two or more works)

Kobe University is ranked #131 of 1,038, with Gold standing. Its strongest pillar is co-creation (87): 855 verified industry works against about 566 expected for its mix of fields. It is held back most by durability (40): 44 of its company groups are sustained partners (five or more joint works in three or more of the five years).

Research Collaboration Index 2026: #789 of 1,195 · View the RCI profile →

Why this position

Four pillars, as percentiles

Co-creation30% of the score
87

How often it co-authors with companies, compared with what its own mix of research fields would predict; size makes no difference. 855 verified works against about 566 expected for its fields (1.51 times the expected rate).

Durability20% of the score
40

How much of its industry work sits in sustained partnerships with the same company group. 44 sustained partnerships: five or more joint works in three or more of the five years.

Scale30% of the score
80

The size of its industry network: company groups on two or more works, sustained partnerships, and its place in the worldwide network of universities and companies. 186 company groups on two or more joint works; 44 sustained partnerships.

Breadth20% of the score
76

How varied its partners are, judged by each company's main research field. Measured across the main research fields of all the company groups it worked with.

Each pillar is a percentile among the 1,038 ranked universities: a value of 80 means a higher value than about 80 in every 100 of them. The ICI score (73.2) is the weighted average of the four percentiles. Rank 131 of 1,038 overall; 12 of 52 in Japan; 23 of 343 in Asia-Pacific. Standing bands: Platinum for ranks 1 to 100, Gold 101 to 300, Silver 301 to 600. How the index is built →

In numbers

The evidence behind the position

6.0%of its 14,285 research works in 2021 to 2025 were co-authored with a verified company
1.51Industry co-authorship rate: 1.51 times what its mix of research fields would predict (855 verified works; about 566 expected)
44sustained partnerships: the same company group on five or more joint works in three or more of the five years

In Japan

12 of 52 ranked universities in Japan

  1. #10 Tokyo Institute of Technology world #100, score 75.1
  2. #11 Kindai University world #117, score 73.9
  3. #12 Kobe University world #131, score 73.2
  4. #13 Hiroshima University world #134, score 73.2
  5. #14 Kanazawa University world #135, score 73.0

All ranked universities →   Asia-Pacific: 23 of 343 →

Where it works with industry

Sector strengths

Verified industry works by sector, with its position in each sector ranking. A university is ranked in a sector once it has at least 20 verified works there; sectors with fewer than 50 eligible universities are provisional.

Strongest sector positions

#249 of 638Pharmaceuticals and Therapeutics97 verified works in the sector
Pharmaceuticals and Therapeutics
97#249 of 638
Built Environment and Infrastructure
33.5#122 of 215
Medical Technology and Digital Health
29#224 of 323
Advanced Materials and Nanotechnology
24.5#377 of 481
Climate, Environment and Sustainability
23.5#292 of 373
Agriculture and Food Technology
21#169 of 194
Biotechnology and Advanced Therapies
17under 20 works
Chemicals, Process and Resources
15under 20 works
Clean Energy Transition
14under 20 works
Advanced Manufacturing and Industry 4.0
13under 20 works
Artificial Intelligence
11.5under 20 works
Automotive and Mobility
9.5under 20 works
Semiconductors and Microelectronics
7under 20 works
Next-Generation Communications
6.5under 20 works
Software, Cloud and Data
5under 20 works
Robotics and Autonomous Systems
2.5ranking withheld (under 10 eligible)
Quantum Technologies
2under 20 works
Aerospace and Aviation
1under 20 works
Batteries and Energy Storage
1under 20 works
Cybersecurity and Digital Trust
1under 20 works
Space and Satellite Technology
0.5under 20 works
Not in any of the 21 sectors
518.5counted in the overall index

336.5 of its 855 verified industry works fall within the 21 sectors. The rest have research topics that belong to no industry sector (basic science, for example) or are consortium papers with 100 or more authors, which the sector indices leave out; all of them count fully in the overall index.

Who it works with

Company partners, 2021 to 2025

Kobe University co-authored verified work with 423 company groups, consortium papers aside: 186 of them on two or more works, and 44 as sustained partners.

The largest 12 of its 423 company groups, by joint works

Company groupBased inCompany's main research fieldJoint worksYears with a joint work
Kansai Electric PowerJapanEngineering363 of 5
Mitsubishi ElectricJapanEngineering165 of 5
JEOLJapanMaterials Science135 of 5
HitachiJapanEngineering135 of 5
KAN Research InstituteJapanBiochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology115 of 5
KanekaUnited StatesEngineering10.55 of 5
Ono PharmaceuticalJapanMedicine104 of 5
HeartFlowUnited StatesMedicine103 of 5
SysmexJapanMedicine9.55 of 5
CanonJapanEngineering94 of 5
NTTJapanEngineering93 of 5
FujifilmJapanEngineering95 of 5

A company group brings together a company's subsidiaries and research labs under one name. A work counts half when its only company author also holds a post at this university. Consortium papers with 100 or more authors are left out of this table.

Examples of its work with industry

Most-cited verified joint works

Over time

Verified industry works by year

206.52021
1942022
149.52023
143.52024
161.52025

2025 is not yet complete: papers published late in the year are still being added to the open record, and coverage may not be equally complete for every university, so compare years with care. A work counts half when its only company author also holds a post at the university, so some totals end in .5.

Evidence checked

1,151 verified company links

Each counted link (one work, this university and one company) was confirmed against the affiliation text its author wrote; 514 of 1,665 candidate links were set aside.

Why links were set aside
  • 303 company name not written in the author's affiliation
  • 81 a place or common word that failed its stricter rule
  • 60 part of a university or public institute's own unit
  • 29 ordinary-word name without a company suffix
  • 17 part of a street or district address
  • 6 excluded after hand audit: Matched from university rheumatology centres (King's College London)
  • 18 for other reasons: smaller hand-audit findings, and links the current open record no longer supports

If a partner is missing or should not be here, send the evidence; corrections are free and reviewed against the public record.

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GRP Partnership Intelligence Platform

Where Kobe University's collaboration could go next

This profile is free and public, and it stays that way. Beyond it, the GRP Partnership Intelligence Platform, a partner service arranged with each university, sets your record in both GRP indices beside the peers you choose: the universities and companies your peers work with that you do not, live funding calls matched to your strengths, the EU projects your peers have won, and a brief ready for your executive. It opens to partner universities on Monday 19 October 2026: enquire, and the GRP team will confirm availability and pricing for your university.

Request first access →  See what is inside →

The platform cannot move any university's position, band or score.

The other GRP index

Research Collaboration Index

In the Research Collaboration Index 2026, Kobe University ranks #789 of 1,195. It measures the whole research network, not only industry.

View the RCI profile →

Something wrong? Every figure comes from the public record and can be checked. If a partner is missing or should not be there, tell us and we will review it with the evidence. The 2027 edition will be calculated with the same published methodology. The window for universities to submit data for it is open now: submit data for the 2027 edition. The index is free, public and independent. No commercial relationship with any university or company changes any position, and no one can pay to be included, excluded or moved.