Global Brain

Global Brain is a Tokyo-based venture capital firm founded in 1998, specializing in early-stage investments across various sectors, including e-commerce, software, gaming, media, IoT, education, entertainment, and fintech. The firm has expanded its investment activities to the US and Asia, targeting series A-stage technology companies. Since its inception, Global Brain has invested in approximately 30 companies, achieving seven initial public offerings and seven mergers and acquisitions. The firm supports its portfolio companies by providing not only capital but also strategic guidance, partnerships, and team-building resources to help them reach their milestones. Global Brain is particularly adept in e-commerce, operating a platform called EC-PLANET, which encompasses several group companies, including a large online sports goods store and a logistics firm offering comprehensive fulfillment services. This network, along with Global Brain's connections to established Japanese companies, facilitates market entry for US and Asian businesses into Japan.

Kaori Akiba

Principal, Corporate Management Group

Tatsunori Arai

Director, Investment Group

Megumi Asatsuma

Corporate Management Group, Director

Anjani Bansal

Partner, India Office Representative

Brooke Beers

Partner

Takuji Chida

Director, Investment Groups

Hogil Doh

General Partner, Investment Group

Thomas Duong

Principal

Brian Flucht

Partner and Head, US Division

Daisuke Furukawa

Venture Partner

Hajime Furuya

Venture Partner

Kenji Hayashi

Principal, Investment Group

Shohei Hayashi

Partner

Harue Hayashi

Partner and Vice Chief Fund Management Officer

Yosuke Hirai

Director

Joopyo Hong

Partner Investment Group

Naoki Horie

Principal, Investment Group

Jang Hyeokjin

Principal, Investment Group

Shohei Ichimiya

Partner, US Office

Nozomu Ikuta

Principal

Kotona Inaida

Director, Fund Management Group

Tomoaki Ishikure

Investment Group Partner

Yoshinari Ito

Venture Partner

Yuki Ito

Director

Hiroyuki Izumi

Partner, Investment Group

Ken Kajii

General Partner, Investment Group

Naoki Kamimaeda

Partner and Europe Division Head

Masaru Kaneshiro

Principal

Daisuke Kashiro

Partner, Investment Group

Kirin Kato

Principal

Takashi Kato

Partner, San Francisco Office Representative

Masaya Kawakami

Partner

Hiroyuki Kawamoto

Principal

Ko Kawaragi

Director

Maiko Kayata

Principal

ByeongJin Kim

Principal, Fund Management Group

Jungyong Kim

Principal, Investment Group

Riichiro Kimura Ph.D

Director, Investment Group

Kenta Kitsuka

General Partner

Issei Kokubu

Principal, Investment Group

Yoshiomi Kubota

Principal

Jinya Kurita

Director

KyungHun Lee

Partner, South Korea Office Representative

YingQi Liang(Joy)

Principal, Investment Group

Chukaku Lin

Principal

Atsushi Matsuda

Venture Partner

Akira Matsumoto

Principal, Investment Group

Natsumi Matsuoka

Principal

Hiroshi Mihayashi

Principal

Tomoko Minagawa

Director, Investment Group

Ai Minamizaki

Principal, Investment Group

Shigeru Mitarai

Principal

Kazuhiko Miyama

General Partner

Shuhei Mori

Principal

Seiichiro Mukai

Director

Satoko Murata

Principal, Investment Group

Kohtaro Nagawa

Director, Investment Group

Tasuke Nakagawa

Partner / M&A

Mitsutaka Nakao

Principal, Investment Group

Shien Nakayama

Director, Investment Group

Yuya Namiki

Director

Ying Jian Ng

Director, Investment Group

Daisuke Nishida

Partner, Investment Group

Akiko Noguchi

Director, Corporate Management Group

Rina Obi

Investment Director

Sho Ohtani

Principal, Investment Group

Tetsui Okada

Director, Investments Group

Mayu Okamoto

Principal

Akane Okuyama

Director

Shingo Otaki

Partner, Investment Group

Naoki Sadakuni

Venture Partner

Enen Sai

Principal, Fund Management Group

Kazuki Sakuragawa

Partner and Editor in Chief, Corporate Management Group

Masumi Sato

Principal

Naoki Sato

Principal, Investment Group

Tomoki Sekiguchi

Principal

Rie Shibata

Director, Fund Management Group

Takeru Shigemura

Director

Miku Shimamura

Principal

Hiroshi Shimazu

Managing Director

Masamune Shin

General Partner, Investment Group

Ayu Shinoyama

CFO and Board Member

Chisa Shinsakaue

Director

Divyansh Singh

Principal

Hiroto Sorita

Director, Investment Group

Sachiko Sugiura

Principal

Yusuke Suzuki

Partner

Kazumo Tachibana

Director

Mana Takabayashi

Director, Investment Group

Hiroki Takai

Director, Investment Group London Office

Toko Takao

Principal

Hideyuki Tanaka

Principal

Marika Tazaki

Partner

Hirotaka Togashi

Director, Investment Group

Haruka Tsujii

Principal

Atsushi Ueda

Principal, Investment Group

Takuya Ukai

Principal, Investment Group

Tetsuya Urimoto

Director, Investment Group

Noriko Usui

Partner and Chief Fund Management Officer

Keita Washizu

Principal

Hirokazu Watanabe

Partner

Keita Wazhizu

Principal, Investment Group

Masao Yamada

Senior Partner, Investment Groups

Kazunori Yamaguchi

Partner, Investment Group

Ryozo Yamamoto

Partner, Investment Group

Michiko Yamazaki

Principal, Investment Group

Isao Yasuda

Senior Partner

Takuro Yoda

Principal, Investment Group

Sayaka Yoshino

Director

Miku Yoshio

Partner, Investment Group

Yasuhiko Yurimoto

Founder and President and CEO & Board Member

Miyazawa Yusuke

Venture Partner

Lusheng Zou

Director, Investment Group

Past deals in API

WRAY

Series A in 2022
WRAY inc., a women's healthcare D2C company, develops and manufactures PMS countermeasure products, such as PMS countermeasure supplements. The company was founded in 2020 and is based in Minato, Japan.

Aidemy

Series B in 2021
Aidemy Inc. provides online artificial intelligence (AI) programing services for individuals to learn AI technology and a Software as a service product for companies to manipulate AI technology using their accumulated data on their own. The company’s platform is used to learn about block chain through practical applications, such as mining, adding transactions, and consensus algorithms. Its solutions are used by corporations primarily in the manufacturing industry, such as companies listed on the First Section of the Tokyo Stock Exchange and small companies and university laboratories. The company was founded in 2014 and is based in Tokyo, Japan.

JX Press

Series C in 2021
JX Press Corporation, founded in 2008 and based in Tokyo, Japan, operates as a virtual news agency. The company specializes in the development and provision of news article analysis and distribution networks, particularly through its application, Vingow XWire. JX Press offers the FASTALERT service, which delivers breaking news bulletins related to urgent incidents, such as accidents and natural disasters, utilizing artificial intelligence. This service is connected to all major television broadcast stations in Japan, including NHK, and the majority of local stations, making it a key player in the media landscape. Additionally, the company's consumer app, NewsDigest, is the largest news bulletin app in Japan, with over one million downloads. It is recognized for its AI-driven capabilities that automatically detect and disseminate newsworthy information. JX Press also collaborates with significant stakeholders in the media industry, enhancing its role as a provider of computerized news reporting to major media groups in Japan.

Qlue

Series B in 2021
QLUE is a part of initial program for Smart City Jakarta to help report problems to the governor. The head of districts (lurah) will quick-follow up all reports to create a better neighborhood. Download Qlue for Android & start contributing to your community

Fuller

Venture Round in 2021
Fuller, Inc. is a software development company based in Kashiwa-shi, Japan, specializing in mobile application and data analytics services. Founded in 2011, the company offers a range of products including App Ape Analytics, which provides app developers with insights into market trends, user demographics, and application performance. Additionally, Fuller offers App Ape Console, a tool that integrates with Google Analytics to help manage app metrics. Their product lineup also includes various mobile applications such as Joren, which converts websites into native apps; Smahospital, which assesses smartphone addiction; and multiple battery-saving apps. Other notable offerings include games like Ojisan and 2048 Puzzle, as well as utility apps like Mobile Bee for data management and QR Ojisan for scanning QR codes. Fuller's services cater to both individual developers and businesses seeking to enhance their mobile presence and analytics capabilities.

Anyflow

Series A in 2020
Anyflow is a cloud-native integration platform as a service (iPaaS) based in Tokyo, founded in 2016. The company offers an automation platform that enables businesses to optimize and streamline their operations by connecting various cloud-based software applications. Its solution is designed to automate processes across different business departments, ensuring compatibility with a wide range of applications. By providing an all-in-one platform, Anyflow helps organizations efficiently link and manage their daily operations, ultimately enhancing overall productivity and operational effectiveness.

Autify

Seed Round in 2019
Autify, Inc. is a Tokyo-based company that specializes in developing an artificial intelligence-driven software testing automation platform. Founded in 2016, the platform is designed to streamline quality assurance processes by monitoring user interface changes and automatically updating affected test scenarios with each software release. It offers a variety of features, including cross-browser testing, email testing, local replay, service integration, and parallel execution. These functionalities enable quality assurance teams to enhance productivity, save time, and improve accuracy, ultimately helping organizations deliver superior product versions more efficiently.

JX Press

Series C in 2019
JX Press Corporation, founded in 2008 and based in Tokyo, Japan, operates as a virtual news agency. The company specializes in the development and provision of news article analysis and distribution networks, particularly through its application, Vingow XWire. JX Press offers the FASTALERT service, which delivers breaking news bulletins related to urgent incidents, such as accidents and natural disasters, utilizing artificial intelligence. This service is connected to all major television broadcast stations in Japan, including NHK, and the majority of local stations, making it a key player in the media landscape. Additionally, the company's consumer app, NewsDigest, is the largest news bulletin app in Japan, with over one million downloads. It is recognized for its AI-driven capabilities that automatically detect and disseminate newsworthy information. JX Press also collaborates with significant stakeholders in the media industry, enhancing its role as a provider of computerized news reporting to major media groups in Japan.

Alpaca

Venture Round in 2018
Alpaca is a technology company based in San Mateo, California, that operates as a securities broker. It specializes in providing an algorithmic trading platform designed for developers to create, manage, and execute trading and investing algorithms. The Alpaca API enables the development of investing applications and brokerage services that facilitate commission-free trading. The company boasts a team with diverse backgrounds in finance and technology and has garnered support from prominent investors in the industry. By focusing on empowering developers, Alpaca aims to enhance access to financial markets through innovative technology solutions.

Aoi.co

Series B in 2015
Aoi Co. is a Tokyo-based company that provides "Aoi Zemi," a free online lecture service designed for junior high and middle school students. The platform has successfully attracted over 3,000 users and boasts an impressive entrance exam passing rate of 86.3% for students aiming for their preferred universities. Aoi Co. is focused on enhancing its system development capabilities and plans to launch a learning state monitoring app for parents in September.

Nanapi

Series C in 2013
Nanapi Inc. owns and operates website nanapi which let users to introduce and share how-to in categories such as love, work, and hobby. The company, formerly known as Rocketstart Inc., is based in Japan.

Kloudless

Angel Round in 2013
Kloudless, Inc. is a developer of a cloud-based application programming interface (API) integration platform designed to simplify the integration of various business applications. By offering a unified interface, Kloudless allows developers to connect to over 100 software services, including cloud storage, customer relationship management, email, and project management, without the need to integrate each API individually. This approach reduces engineering overhead and accelerates time to market for its clients. The company's offerings include a range of tools such as connectors, file explorers, and real-time notifications, as well as Kloudless Enterprise, which enables secure deployment in private or cloud environments. Kloudless caters to software developers, independent software vendors, and OEM partners across diverse industries, including government, healthcare, and finance. Founded in 2011 and based in Berkeley, California, Kloudless also provides open-source software development kits in multiple programming languages, facilitating easy integration for its users.

Kloudless

Seed Round in 2012
Kloudless, Inc. is a developer of a cloud-based application programming interface (API) integration platform designed to simplify the integration of various business applications. By offering a unified interface, Kloudless allows developers to connect to over 100 software services, including cloud storage, customer relationship management, email, and project management, without the need to integrate each API individually. This approach reduces engineering overhead and accelerates time to market for its clients. The company's offerings include a range of tools such as connectors, file explorers, and real-time notifications, as well as Kloudless Enterprise, which enables secure deployment in private or cloud environments. Kloudless caters to software developers, independent software vendors, and OEM partners across diverse industries, including government, healthcare, and finance. Founded in 2011 and based in Berkeley, California, Kloudless also provides open-source software development kits in multiple programming languages, facilitating easy integration for its users.
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