Global Brain

Founded in Tokyo in 1998, Global Brain is a venture capital firm focusing on seed to late-stage investments across various sectors globally. They have invested in over 300 startups, facilitating 25 IPOs and 61 M&As through hands-on support services.

Kaori Akiba

Director

Hidetaka Aoki

Investment Group Partner and Fellow Chief of Space Lab

Tatsunori Arai

Director, Investment Group

Megumi Asatsuma

Director

Anjani Bansal

Partner, India Office Representative

Brooke Beers

Partner

Takuji Chida

Director, Investment Groups

Thomas Duong

Director

Brian Flucht

Partner and Head, US Division

Hajime Furuya

Venture Partner

Shohei Hayashi

Partner, Investment Group

Harue Hayashi

Partner / Vice Chief Fund Management Officer

Kenji Hayashi

Director

Jie He

Director China office Representative

Yosuke Hirai

Director

Joopyo Hong

Partner Investment Group

Naoki Horie

Investor

Takuya Hosomura

Partner

Jang Hyeokjin

Principal, Investment Group

Shohei Ichimiya

Partner, US Office

Sho Ikeda

Partner, Indonesia Office Representative

Nozomu Ikuta

Principal

Kotona Inaida

Director

Tomoaki Ishikure

Investment Group Partner

Yoshinari Ito

Venture Partner

Yuki Ito

Director

Hiroyuki Izumi

Partner

Ken Kajii

General Partner, Investment Group

Daisuke Kashiro

Partner, Investment Group

Kirin Kato

Principal

Takashi Kato

Partner, San Francisco Office Representative

Masaya Kawakami

Principal, Investment Group

Hiroyuki Kawamoto

Principal

Ko Kawaragi

Director

Maiko Kayata

Director

ByeongJin Kim

Principal

Riichiro Kimura Ph.D

Director, Investment Group

Issei Kokubu

Principal, Investment Group

Yoshiomi Kubota

Principal

Jinya Kurita

Director, Investment Group

KyungHun Lee

Partner, South Korea Office Representative

YingQi Liang(Joy)

Principal

Chukaku Lin

Director

Atsushi Matsuda

Venture Partner

Akira Matsumoto

Principal

Yuki Matsuo

Director

Natsumi Matsuoka

Principal

Tomoko Minagawa

Director, Investment Group

Ai Minamizaki

Principal, Investment Group

Shigeru Mitarai

Director

Miyazawa Yusuke

Venture Partner

Shuhei Mori

Director

Seiichiro Mukai

Director

Satoko Murata

Director

Kohtaro Nagawa

Director, Investment Group

Tasuke Nakagawa

Partner, M&A

Mitsutaka Nakao

Director

Shien Nakayama

Director

Yuya Namiki

Director

Ying Jian Ng

Director, Investment Group

Daisuke Nishida

General Partner

Yukari Nishiyama

Director, Investment Group

Akiko Noguchi

Director

Rina Obi

Investment Group Director, Berlin Office

Sho Ohtani

Principal, Investment Group

Tetsui Okada

Director, Investments Group

Mayu Okamoto

Director

Akane Okuyama

Director

Shingo Otaki

Partner, Investment Group

Naoki Sadakuni

Venture Partner

Enen Sai

Principal

Youichi Sakagawa

Director, Investment Group

Kazuki Sakuragawa

Partner / Editor in Chief

Naoki Sato

Director

Masumi Sato

Principal

Tomoki Sekiguchi

Director

Rie Shibata

Director

Takeru Shigemura

Director

Miku Shimamura

Principal

Hiroshi Shimazu

Managing Director

Masamune Shin

General Partner

Ayu Shinoyama

CFO

Chisa Shinsakaue

Director

Divyansh Singh

Principal

Hiroto Sorita

Director, Investment Group

Sachiko Sugiura

Director

Yusuke Suzuki

Partner

Kazumo Tachibana

Director

Mana Takabayashi

Director, Investment Group

Hiroki Takai

Director, Investment Group London Office

Toko Takao

Director

Hideyuki Tanaka

Director

Marika Tazaki

Partner

Hirotaka Togashi

Director

Haruka Tsujii

Director

Atsushi Ueda

Director

Takuya Ukai

Principal

Tetsuya Urimoto

Director

Noriko Usui

Partner / Chief Fund Management Officer

Keita Washizu

Principal

Masao Yamada

Senior Partner, Investment Groups

Kazunor Yamaguchi

Partner

Kazunori Yamaguchi

Partner, Investment Group

Ryozo Yamamoto

Partner, Investment Group

Michiko Yamazaki

Principal

Isao Yasuda

Senior Partner

Takuro Yoda

Principal

Sayaka Yoshino

Director

Miku Yoshio

Partner, Investment Group

Yasuhiko Yurimoto

Founder, Owner, CEO and General Partner

Lusheng Zou

Director, Investment Group

Past deals in Advertising

LOOV

Seed Round in 2025
LOOV is a video platform focused on enhancing the sales and marketing efforts of professionals through the creation of tailored, data-driven videos. The platform connects buyers and sellers by producing videos that adapt based on viewer attributes, thereby collecting valuable viewing and customer data. This approach allows sales and marketing teams to deliver relevant information to each customer, ultimately aiming to improve conversion metrics and customer engagement. By leveraging technology to optimize video content, LOOV supports professionals in their efforts to increase sales effectiveness and foster deeper connections with their audience.

Geofla

Venture Round in 2024
Geofla is a business that specializes in creating and planning products and applications designed to encourage physical activity and stimulate foot traffic in various spaces. The company's offerings include advertising and promotional services, incentivizing users to move around businesses through a points-based system.

Thinkr

Series A in 2024
Thinkr provides advertising, video production, content, UX design, and animation services.

iPrice Group

Corporate Round in 2022
iPrice Group is an online price comparison platform that aims to enhance the e-commerce experience for shoppers in Southeast Asia by offering a diverse selection of products from numerous online retailers. The company provides users with the ability to compare prices, discover various products, and find the best deals across multiple categories, including electronics, fashion, home improvements, and baby products. By partnering with hundreds of online shops, iPrice facilitates a transparent and convenient shopping experience. Established in Kuala Lumpur, the company has rapidly expanded its presence across seven markets, including Indonesia, Vietnam, Singapore, Hong Kong, Thailand, and the Philippines. With a mission to boost trust and convenience in the e-commerce sector, iPrice leverages international expertise in technology and online marketing to serve its customers effectively.

JX Press

Series C in 2021
JX Press is a Japanese technology‑driven news organization described as a virtual news agency. Its FASTALERT service uses artificial intelligence to detect and deliver breaking bulletins on accidents, natural disasters, and other incidents to major television broadcasters in Japan and to many local stations. The company also operates NewsDigest, a consumer app that automatically delivers AI-identified news bulletins. JX Press collaborates with leading media groups in Japan, such as Kyodo News, TV Asahi, Fuji TV, and the Nikkei Group, providing computerized reporting to major media. In addition, it runs a data intelligence platform that combines bots and AI to generate content related to breaking events and disasters, and includes a social listening tool that aggregates brand-related information from multiple platforms while filtering misinformation, enabling AI-based marketing insights. Through automated reporting, media partnerships, and brand monitoring, the company positions itself as a modern, technology-driven news provider.

FIREBUG

Venture Round in 2020
FIREBUG Inc., established in Tokyo, Japan in 2016, specializes in media content creation and marketing services. The company offers comprehensive solutions including marketing planning for mass and digital platforms, public relations support, TV commercial production, media buying, event planning, and smartphone video distribution. FIREBUG also facilitates talent development for comedians, actresses, models, artists, and creators by arranging production plans and creating IP and advertising items based on their social networking sites. Additionally, they provide basic marketing assistance and advertising services for businesses.

JX Press

Series C in 2019
JX Press is a Japanese technology‑driven news organization described as a virtual news agency. Its FASTALERT service uses artificial intelligence to detect and deliver breaking bulletins on accidents, natural disasters, and other incidents to major television broadcasters in Japan and to many local stations. The company also operates NewsDigest, a consumer app that automatically delivers AI-identified news bulletins. JX Press collaborates with leading media groups in Japan, such as Kyodo News, TV Asahi, Fuji TV, and the Nikkei Group, providing computerized reporting to major media. In addition, it runs a data intelligence platform that combines bots and AI to generate content related to breaking events and disasters, and includes a social listening tool that aggregates brand-related information from multiple platforms while filtering misinformation, enabling AI-based marketing insights. Through automated reporting, media partnerships, and brand monitoring, the company positions itself as a modern, technology-driven news provider.

Mirrativ

Venture Round in 2019
Mirrativ Inc. is a Tokyo-based company founded in 2015 that specializes in mobile game streaming services. Its application allows users to live-stream the screens of their smartphones and tablets, facilitating real-time sharing of gaming experiences. The platform enables users to engage with their audience through text chatting and viewer interaction, such as commenting and expressing appreciation with stars. While users can broadcast gameplay live to their followers, the platform currently does not save streams for later viewing. Mirrativ aims to innovate within the live gaming and advertising sectors, enhancing the overall gaming experience by allowing users to easily share and connect over exciting moments.

Raksul

Series D in 2016
Raksul Inc. is a Tokyo-based company that specializes in providing comprehensive printing services in Japan. Founded in 2009, Raksul offers a wide range of printed products, including flyers, business cards, pamphlets, posters, New Year’s cards, and various promotional materials. The company operates as a B2B platform, facilitating a streamlined connection between small and medium-sized enterprises and existing players in the printing, logistics, and advertising industries. By leveraging a sharing economy model, Raksul enables customers to access excess capacities from these industries at competitive prices, thereby simplifying traditional value chains and promoting efficiency.

every

Venture Round in 2016
Founded in 2015, every, Inc. is a Japanese company that produces and distributes online videos across various platforms. These include DELISH KITCHEN for food recipes, KALOS for beauty and fashion, MAMADAYS for family-oriented content, and TIMELINE for entertainment. The company also offers advertising services on its platforms.

YouAppi

Series B in 2016
YouAppi specializes in mobile app marketing and retargeting. Its data-driven platform enables marketers, agencies, and app developers to acquire new users and re-engage lapsed ones through targeted ad campaigns. Headquartered in San Francisco with global operations, YouAppi uses machine learning for audience targeting.

Wing Style

Series A in 2016
Wing Style is a marketing & advertising company.

Logly

Corporate Round in 2015
Logly is a Japan-based technology company that specializes in media technology, advertising technology, and data marketing. It operates Logly Lift, an advertising service platform that delivers corporate content to users through media and brand recognition, as well as Loyalfarm, an audience engagement tool, and Zenback, a widget that aggregates article data from across the web. The company primarily serves advertisers and distributors, focusing on helping brands reach audiences and measure engagement through its suite of advertising and data tools.

Logly

Venture Round in 2015
Logly is a Japan-based technology company that specializes in media technology, advertising technology, and data marketing. It operates Logly Lift, an advertising service platform that delivers corporate content to users through media and brand recognition, as well as Loyalfarm, an audience engagement tool, and Zenback, a widget that aggregates article data from across the web. The company primarily serves advertisers and distributors, focusing on helping brands reach audiences and measure engagement through its suite of advertising and data tools.

Fronto

Series B in 2015
Fronto is the world’s first mobile lock screen media, which displays curated articles, hot new apps and deals & promos to mobile users through the everyday lock screen in a perfectly seamless way. By simply waking up your phone, you can read trending articles, earn rewards, download coupons, learn new promotional deals. Our first product, Cashslide, was launched in Korea in Nov 2012, and it now has 14 mil users, 2.5 mil DAU and 150 mil PV, which makes it as the most preferred mobile ad channel among local advertisers. In Jul 2013, just 8 months after the launch, we successfully raised $4 mil in Series-A funding. In Apr 2015, we raised $14 mil in Series-B funding. We launched Fronto in the US in May 2014 and hit #1 in New Top Free in Lifestyle. We are looking for experienced mobile media professionals. Join us as a founding member of Fronto based in the SF Bay Area. We are redesigning everyday mobile experience. For more details, visit www.fronto.co and check our app here bit.ly/1ocOJKg

Plucky

Venture Round in 2015
Plucky is a platform and Managed Service that empowers advertisers to better understand business metrics associated with customer segments, and measure risk for acquisition budgets. Managed service includes an agency-style managing performance marketing campaigns for startups

Raksul

Series C in 2015
Raksul Inc. is a Tokyo-based company that specializes in providing comprehensive printing services in Japan. Founded in 2009, Raksul offers a wide range of printed products, including flyers, business cards, pamphlets, posters, New Year’s cards, and various promotional materials. The company operates as a B2B platform, facilitating a streamlined connection between small and medium-sized enterprises and existing players in the printing, logistics, and advertising industries. By leveraging a sharing economy model, Raksul enables customers to access excess capacities from these industries at competitive prices, thereby simplifying traditional value chains and promoting efficiency.

Q

Venture Round in 2015
Q co. offers advertising, promotional planning, web design and web development services.

q CORPORATION

Venture Round in 2015
q CORPORATION is a soup and curry shop with advertising. Chicken vegetables, Shimeji chicken, shimeji chicken vegetables, sausage, cheese hamburger, Shimeji vegetables, minced meat natto, seafood, Chai, grain coffee, plain lassi, mango lassi, ice tea, iced grain coffee, apple juice, mango juice, and other beverages are on the menu.

Live Aid

Venture Round in 2015
Live Aid is a Tokyo-based company that specializes in developing applications for smartphones and web services. It creates innovative solutions for both Android and iPhone devices, enhancing advertisement delivery through its product AID. In addition to app development, Live Aid focuses on providing systems that deliver up-to-date information and engaging content across various genres of virtual reality. The company also offers features that facilitate check-in processes, including guest identity verification and key handover services. Through its diverse offerings, Live Aid aims to improve user experience and connectivity in the digital landscape.

Near Pte.

Series B in 2014
Near Pte. Ltd., also known as AdNear, operates a location-based intelligence platform that delivers real-time insights about places, people, and products. Founded in 2012 and headquartered in Singapore, the company specializes in data-driven solutions that help brands and publishers engage and analyze audiences. Its offerings include Allspark, a mobile-first audience cloud solution, and Carbon, which analyzes real-world consumer behavior across significant locations. Near's platform processes data from approximately 1.6 billion unique user IDs and 70 million points of interest across over 44 countries, enabling clients to better understand consumer behaviors and preferences. The company serves a diverse range of industries, including retail, technology, travel, telecommunications, and financial services, with additional offices in major global cities such as San Francisco, New York, London, Bengaluru, Tokyo, and Sydney.

Near Pte.

Venture Round in 2014
Near Pte. Ltd., also known as AdNear, operates a location-based intelligence platform that delivers real-time insights about places, people, and products. Founded in 2012 and headquartered in Singapore, the company specializes in data-driven solutions that help brands and publishers engage and analyze audiences. Its offerings include Allspark, a mobile-first audience cloud solution, and Carbon, which analyzes real-world consumer behavior across significant locations. Near's platform processes data from approximately 1.6 billion unique user IDs and 70 million points of interest across over 44 countries, enabling clients to better understand consumer behaviors and preferences. The company serves a diverse range of industries, including retail, technology, travel, telecommunications, and financial services, with additional offices in major global cities such as San Francisco, New York, London, Bengaluru, Tokyo, and Sydney.

Tapjoy

Seed Round in 2014
Tapjoy is a mobile advertising and app monetization platform that helps advertisers, developers, and publishers reach and monetize audiences. Its Maximum Impact Platform delivers rewarded Interplay ads, including video and rich media, to drive performance and brand engagement. The Tapjoy software development kit is embedded in thousands of mobile apps, reaching hundreds of millions of monthly active users. The platform enables publishers to monetize social apps, merchants to generate leads and conversions, and advertisers to target consumers using segmentation and predictive analytics to optimize revenue. Founded in 2007 and headquartered in San Francisco, Tapjoy operates globally with offices around the world.

VentureBeat

Venture Round in 2014
Founded in 2006, VentureBeat is a leading online technology news platform that delivers news, analysis, and events. It covers a wide range of technology trends, providing context to help executives, entrepreneurs, and tech enthusiasts make informed decisions.

Raksul

Series B in 2014
Raksul Inc. is a Tokyo-based company that specializes in providing comprehensive printing services in Japan. Founded in 2009, Raksul offers a wide range of printed products, including flyers, business cards, pamphlets, posters, New Year’s cards, and various promotional materials. The company operates as a B2B platform, facilitating a streamlined connection between small and medium-sized enterprises and existing players in the printing, logistics, and advertising industries. By leveraging a sharing economy model, Raksul enables customers to access excess capacities from these industries at competitive prices, thereby simplifying traditional value chains and promoting efficiency.

Supership

Funding Round in 2013
Supership continuously develops optimized ad platform products and provides them to advertisers and publishers because they demand only the best advertising solutions. The most important thing for advertisers is a platform that can analyze data and achieve results through optimized promotions. Our platform offers a number of demand side solutions, such as, 「AppVador's Video Ad Network」 and 「ScaleOut DSP」 that targets users with precision based on advertiser goals, a DMP that contains a wealth of data which makes data-driven marketing a reality, a SSP(「Ad Generation」) that is highly valued for generating revenue, especially in the app business. The combination of these products provides our customers with a total advertising solution that can meet a wide range of digital marketing needs.

Jimoty

Venture Round in 2012
Jimoty is a free online bulletin board serving approximately 9 million users monthly. It facilitates the posting of advertisements categorized by type and purpose, including second-hand goods, event announcements, job listings, recruitment notices, real estate information, and more.

Geniee

Seed Round in 2011
Founded in 2010, Geniee is a leading Asia-Pacific AdTech company with headquarters in Japan. It specializes in providing SaaS solutions for advertising and marketing technology, helping clients enhance their revenue and success. With international offices across APAC, including Singapore, Japan, Thailand, Indonesia, and Vietnam, Geniee offers services such as Geniee SSP, Geniee Trading Desk, DMP, Data Exchange, and more.

Retailigence

Series A in 2011
Retailigence Corporation is a technology company that specializes in an online-to-offline marketing platform aimed at enhancing in-store product sales. Founded in 2009 and based in Redwood City, California, Retailigence offers a software-as-a-service (SaaS) solution that employs machine learning to optimize various retail functions, including store clustering, assortment optimization, in-store monitoring, and customer segmentation. The company's adPOP Engine provides a robust application programming interface that integrates data into programmatic advertising, facilitating location-based user experiences across mobile and digital platforms. Additionally, Retailigence delivers a mobile application that displays local store-level product availability and acts as a central data distribution point for retailers, brands, and marketing solutions. The company serves a diverse clientele, including advertising solutions providers, application developers, and brick-and-mortar retailers. Retailigence operates as a subsidiary of ShopAdvisor, Inc., and has formed a strategic partnership with Gimbal, Inc.

Stipple

Seed Round in 2010
Stipple is an internet technology company based in San Francisco that specializes in enhancing the visual web by transforming digital images into interactive experiences. Its innovative marketing technology stack detects and identifies content within images, allowing advertisers and publishers to incorporate interactive and curated content seamlessly. Stipple's platform enables native advertising solutions and fosters organic connections to commerce, thereby driving discovery, engagement, and customer loyalty. The technology offers unique image analytics and advertising capabilities without the need for widgets or embed codes, making it scalable across the web. Stipple is backed by prominent investors, including Floodgate and Kleiner Perkins.

Retailigence

Seed Round in 2010
Retailigence Corporation is a technology company that specializes in an online-to-offline marketing platform aimed at enhancing in-store product sales. Founded in 2009 and based in Redwood City, California, Retailigence offers a software-as-a-service (SaaS) solution that employs machine learning to optimize various retail functions, including store clustering, assortment optimization, in-store monitoring, and customer segmentation. The company's adPOP Engine provides a robust application programming interface that integrates data into programmatic advertising, facilitating location-based user experiences across mobile and digital platforms. Additionally, Retailigence delivers a mobile application that displays local store-level product availability and acts as a central data distribution point for retailers, brands, and marketing solutions. The company serves a diverse clientele, including advertising solutions providers, application developers, and brick-and-mortar retailers. Retailigence operates as a subsidiary of ShopAdvisor, Inc., and has formed a strategic partnership with Gimbal, Inc.

Tri-Stage

Seed Round in 2007
Tri-Stage is a leading provider of direct marketing support services in Japan, specializing in assisting marketing companies. The company leverages its extensive experience to offer high-quality solutions aimed at enhancing client mail-order sales. Tri-Stage utilizes various media channels, including television and the Internet, to support product and service marketing, customer acquisition, and overall sales processes. By focusing on comprehensive customer management, Tri-Stage aims to maximize the effectiveness of its clients' marketing efforts.

Tri-Stage

Angel Round in 2006
Tri-Stage is a leading provider of direct marketing support services in Japan, specializing in assisting marketing companies. The company leverages its extensive experience to offer high-quality solutions aimed at enhancing client mail-order sales. Tri-Stage utilizes various media channels, including television and the Internet, to support product and service marketing, customer acquisition, and overall sales processes. By focusing on comprehensive customer management, Tri-Stage aims to maximize the effectiveness of its clients' marketing efforts.

Tri-Stage

Angel Round in 2006
Tri-Stage is a leading provider of direct marketing support services in Japan, specializing in assisting marketing companies. The company leverages its extensive experience to offer high-quality solutions aimed at enhancing client mail-order sales. Tri-Stage utilizes various media channels, including television and the Internet, to support product and service marketing, customer acquisition, and overall sales processes. By focusing on comprehensive customer management, Tri-Stage aims to maximize the effectiveness of its clients' marketing efforts.
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