Top 20 Publishing Startup Investors in Japan in May 2026

Portfolio highlights

• Tohakusha — Tohakusha is a creative agency that offers design, production and sale of digital content and EC websites, and content creation services.
• Ageless — Ageless is a staffing agency that provides human resources-related services primarily to middle-aged and senior citizens.
• Wunderbar — Wunderbar provides intellectual property along with branding and marketing services.

Portfolio highlights

• Redcliff — Redcliff is a drone management company that organizes aerial shows and events for private and public organizations.
• SORA Technology — SORA Technology builds and operates health care and public health infrastructure utilizing drones and their operational management systems.
• Proxima Technology — Proxima Technology is an IT company that provides artificial intelligence and deep learning solutions for the manufacturing industry.

Portfolio highlights

• Ubitus — As cloud gaming enablers, Ubitus' GPU virtualization, Streaming technology and hybrid cloud deployment can serve different kinds of solutions for Telco, Game companies to quick enter cloud gaming market. Moreover, Ubitus provide Global distribution and New Media content solution for new media studio and fashion brand to help them distribute rich media contents worldwide.
• Drivezy — Own the Experience, not the Car
• Address — ADDress is a provider of co-living spaces in both urban and rural areas, enabling people to live in a range of luxurious residences at fixed prices.

Portfolio highlights

• Flosfia — FLOSFIA is a spin-off from a research of Kyoto University, specializing in film-formation by mist chemical vapor deposition (CVD). Making use of physical properties of gallium oxide (Ga2O3), FLOSFIA has devoted to development of low-loss power devices.
• Ashirase — Ashirase is a developer of a walking navigation system for the visually challenged. The company assists visually impaired people in walking independently. This also allows the user to have more attention to spare for audible warnings in their environment. It includes voice input and guidance via a smartphone app. A vibration interface is attachedto their shoes.
• ORENDA WORLD — ORENDA focuses on developing high-definition 3D simulation systems that apply gamification and real-time rendering technology.

Portfolio highlights

• bythen — bythen enables the production of autonomous 3D avatar bots powered by AI.
• Pick You — Pick You offers a marketplace that facilitates seamless purchase of items directly from popular Instagram users.
• CareLink — CareLink is an app that connects people looking for one-time part-time work in nursing and welfare.

Portfolio highlights

• TAQA — TAQA is a utilities and energy company that engages in power, water, and oil and gas operations. It is an international company listed in Abu Dhabi and operates in 11 countries across four continents.The company's interests lie in conventional and alternative power generation, water desalination, oil and gas exploration and production,pipelines, and gas storage. TAQA was founded in 2005 and operates in Canada, Ghana, India, Iraq, Morocco, the Netherlands, Oman, Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, the United Kingdom, and the United States.
• PeaceTecLab — PeaceTecLab is a CtoCsharing service, as its main business.
• Mirfa International Power & Water Company — Mirfa International Power & Water Company is a renewable energy startup that delivers power and water solutions. A combined-cycle gas turbine power plant, a modular reverse osmosis plant, and three multi-stage flash desalination units comprise the company's power and water plant. It has a gross installed power capacity of 1.7 gigatonnes(GW) and a gross water desalination capacity of 53 million imperial gallons per day (MIGD). It aims to deliver a futuristic power generating plant with a net power capacity of 1600 megawatts to address the country's power issues.

Portfolio highlights

• Trustart — Trustart engages in real estate research business and real estate big data provision. The company offers real estate big data and big data subscriptions.
• Upward — UPWARD is highly by linking CRM · schedule map / location information, is a cloud service for the visiting business of field sales easier. Field salespersons who have many customers and who are out of the office feel that it is difficult to grasp all customers to Kampek and measure the timing of visits no matter how memorable they are.
• Surv Biopharma — Surv Biopharma develops a drug discovery platform that facilitates research and development of veterinary drugs and pharmaceutical products.

Portfolio highlights

• UUUO — UUUO is a planning, development, and operation of the UUUO (fish market) connected by smartphone and fresh fish shipment from our own shipping base UUUO Base to each consumption market.
• GooPass — GooPass is a subscription-based camera equipment rental platform that offers users cameras, interchangeable lenses, and drones. It also allows users to buy or rent photography equipment by reserving it online.
• POWERNEXT — POWERNEXT provides electric power supply & demand management, rate calculation, customer management & environmental value trading services.

Portfolio highlights

• ZABoooN — ZABoooN is a shipping company that offers crew labor management, movement management, and ship management services.
• MeetsMore — MeetsMore is a service that matches professionals and users who mainly provide face-to-face services
• Optieum Biotechnologies — Optieum Biotechnologies Inc. is a pre-clinical stage biotechnology company committed to developing innovative scFv antibody-based therapies for the treatment of patients with cancers. Their proprietary platform technology, Eumbody System™, enables to develop and detect a scFv-based product candidates that specifically bind to, and modulate tooptimize the immune-cell function for oncology targets.We are committed to helping patients with severe diseases by bringing life-changing therapies to the patients in need.

Portfolio highlights

• Neith — Neith is a apparel manufacturer, seller and a whoelseller of water absorbing bralette, lingerie and shorts for women.
• WARC — WARC provides hands-on support for business management departments as well as mergers and acquisition advisory services.
• Vitalogue Health — Vitalogue Health offers Canvas, a home-based hormone testing service for women.

Portfolio highlights

• Tasogare — Tasogare distributes high-quality coffee.
• The ROOM4D — The ROOM4D is a contract data analysis consulting service company.
• PeaceTecLab — PeaceTecLab is a CtoCsharing service, as its main business.

Portfolio highlights

• MerryBiz — Merrybiz is a new business partner at Slogan, GREE's overseas alliance strategy.Startup. Merrybiz provides the accounting business is extensive, and the concerns of customers are diverse. You are busy with daily tasks such as journal entry and expense reimbursement, taking longer than necessary in invoicing, managing accounts receivable andpayable, or unavoidable manpower in closing operations. In addition, suddenly heavy workloads such as the introduction of accounting software may be added to daily tasks.
• Landit — Landit manages transportation infrastructure and real estate technology firms.
• Commune — Commune is a developer of a platform that supports connections, community building, and customers between organizations and people.

Portfolio highlights

• PoliPoli — PoliPoli is a next-generation politics co-creation platform where you can participate like a game. Politicians from all over Japan post their policies in an easy-to-understand manner, and those who sympathize can enjoy working on the "missions" necessary to realize the policies.
• Astroscale — Astroscale is one of the few companies in the world proposing to aid in the removal of orbital debris through the provision of End of Life (EOL) and Active Debris Removal (ADR) services. In addition to providing a technical solution, Astroscale is helping to define the business case for this service and are working with national space agencies,international institutions, non-profit organizations, insurance companies and satellite operators to develop norms, regulations and incentives that contribute to the responsible use of space.
• TECHFUND — TechFund is a venture capital firm specializing in incubation and seed stage investments. The company is headquartered in Tokyo, Japan.

Portfolio highlights

• Morus — Morus is a university-based biotech startup developing functional food ingredients from silkworms to address global health and nutrition challenges.
• FunPep — FunPep is an Industry-university collaboration bioventure company.
• AI Silk — AI Silk are innovative conductive fibers produced with a dyeing technique. By using natural silk and giving conductivity to the fiber itself, They have succeeded in producing electrodes that reduce some of the risks and challenges of conventional medical electrodes, which can cause discomfort,skin and in vivo inflammation, and measurement failuredue to sweat or other elements. Their brand, AI Silk, is a new material that has strong and diverse application potential, even beyond the health / medical field.

Portfolio highlights

• Bgrass — bgrass is a consultation support platform for women working in the IT industry.
• Blankr — Blankr inc has developed an application called Raidli. Using the app, Vtubers can hold a virtual handshake event.
• Tripi — Tripi provides travel media and digital marketing services, as well as the accommodation gift service.

Portfolio highlights

• 3DC — 3DC develops and manufactures a new carbon material, graphene meso sponge (GMS), for electrodes in next-generation batteries, capacitors, fuel cells and other energy storage and generation devices.
• Elephantech — Elephantech is a startup company that aims to drastically innovate the technology for manufacturing electronic circuits, with the vision of achieving faster manufacturing at lower cost by leveraging printing technology.Electronic circuits are literally part of social infrastructures and are embedded everywhere in the world that we live in today.While the number and types of electronic devices being used by humans have been increasing dramatically, driven by advances in semiconductor and telecommunication technology, the technology for manufacturing electronic circuits has not seen any major innovation over the past 50 years.Conventional electronic circuits are manufactured through a process called photolithography, which involves applying metal all over the surface of a substrate and melting the metal off any unrequired areas. However, photolithography has the disadvantage of wasting large amounts of the materials used and driving up the production cost, in addition to being harmful to the environment.Elephantech’s suggested manufacturing method, which is a totally opposite approach to photolithography, involves printing metal only onto the required areas using inkjet printing and enlarging the printed metal by applying plating technology.This approach has enabled Elephantech to manufacture PWBs at significantly lower cost as the amounts of materials required and the number of processes have been reduced. In addition, as this is an on-demand manufacturing solution that does not require any initial cost, it is cost-effective especially for producing prototypes in small quantities, the cost of which can be reduced by at least 80%.We currently possess the best technology in the world for manufacturing PWBs using inkjet printers, the business of which is slated to expand rapidly going forward. Elephantech is committed to accelerating global manufacturing activities by leveraging such technology.
• FiscalNote — The #1 most trusted partner for government relations & public affairs software. Track policy, manage stakeholders, act fast.

Portfolio highlights

• Neith — Neith is a apparel manufacturer, seller and a whoelseller of water absorbing bralette, lingerie and shorts for women.
• WARC — WARC provides hands-on support for business management departments as well as mergers and acquisition advisory services.
• Vitalogue Health — Vitalogue Health offers Canvas, a home-based hormone testing service for women.

Portfolio highlights

• Asuene — Asuene involves in clean power retail business, retail SaaS business, etc.
• YOUTRUST — YOUTRUST is a startup to operate YOUTRUST a referral recruitment platform for side-job change.
• Testsigma — Powerful cloud-based test automation platform that lets you automate tests for web, mobile, desktop apps, and APIs in minutes. Sign up now!

Portfolio highlights

• CLAS — Class is a connection between people, the value of money, time and things.
• CAMELOVE — Cameloveis a Camera equipment rental subscription service.

Portfolio highlights

• EBRU — EBRU is a manufacturer and seller of earphones and ear monitor audio products that include custom artwork on the products.
• Meiten Kan — Meiten Kan engages in the food delivery service industry.
• Novius Company — Novius, Inc. is a Japan-based medical technology startup developing advanced glass-free 3D endoscopic imaging solutions. Its flagship platform, N-Vision3D, enables real-time 2D-to-3D conversion of endoscopic and microscopic images using proprietary AI-powered depth estimation. By enhancing depth perception without requiring specialized 3Dendoscopes, Novius improves surgical accuracy, supports medical training, and expands accessibility to next-generation imaging worldwide. Developed proprietary real-time 2D-to-3D imaging technology compatible with existing Olympus endoscopy towers and monitors.Completed initial clinical adoption with early users in Japan.Expanding global commercialization in minimally invasive surgery, cancer treatment, and medical education.