Aww Inc.
Tokyo, JP · 2 known investors
Aww Inc. creates photorealistic virtual humans using 3D CGI and AI technologies including speech recognition, large language models, and voice synthesis. The company develops and produces virtual human characters for entertainment, media, and storytelling applications.
Also known as Aww · Aww Inc.
Founders & leadership
Investors · 2
Company profile
researched Aug 2026Aww Inc. is a Tokyo-based company that develops virtual humans and positions itself as a "virtual human AI company." Its stated aim is to combine virtual humans with AI to create storytellers for a new era. The company builds and operates its own photorealistic virtual human characters — including imma, MIRAI and plusticboy — which maintain presences across social platforms such as Instagram, X, TikTok, YouTube, Weibo, Douyin, RED, Zepeto and Facebook.
The business is organized into three lines: an IP production business, in which Aww operates its own virtual human characters using 3DCG technology and a proprietary IP model with fan participation; a planning and development business, in which it creates original virtual humans for companies and brands, covering both short-term campaigns and longer-term IP building; and an AI solutions business, which applies conversational virtual humans to customer service, education, tourism and other uses. Its AI solution product, HITO, is a voice-based AI customer-service service that holds natural spoken conversations to handle facility guidance, product explanation, reception, FAQ responses and multilingual support. HITO has been shown publicly as a conversational AI version of the imma character.
Business model
Aww operates in-house virtual human IP and monetizes it through character operations with fan involvement, provides contracted planning and development of original virtual humans for corporate and brand clients, and offers the HITO conversational virtual human AI service for applications such as customer service, education and tourism.
Traction
The company's virtual humans have attracted mainstream media attention: MIRAI was named to Forbes JAPAN's "20 HOT CREATORS" list in the March 2026 issue, ABC News in the US aired a 10-minute feature on Aww in May 2025, the company was featured on the Japanese program "Sekai Ichi Uketai Jugyo" in July 2025, and its HITO service appeared on TBS programming and in an HP Japan interview article in August 2026.
Latest developments
In July 2026 Aww exhibited at AI・人工知能EXPO NEO, presenting imma as the conversational AI virtual human HITO. In August 2026, HITO appeared on the TBS program "カバン持ちさせてください！" and in an interview article published by HP Japan, and an interview with CEO Takayuki Moriya was published in Shukan Denpa Shimbun.
▸Full profile — technology, go-to-market, geography
Technology
The company uses 3DCG technology to produce photorealistic virtual humans, and voice-based conversational AI in its HITO service, which supports spoken dialogue, facility guidance, product explanation, reception, FAQ handling and multiple languages.
Go-to-market
Aww markets through its own virtual human characters' social media channels, dedicated service sites for its brand-development and HITO offerings, trade show exhibitions such as AI・人工知能EXPO NEO, and broad media exposure including television programs, Forbes JAPAN, ABC News and a TED Conferences talk.
Companies and brands seeking original virtual human characters or campaigns, operators of facilities requiring customer-facing guidance and reception (including education and tourism settings), and consumer fan audiences of its own virtual human IP.
Geography
Headquartered in Tokyo, Japan, with character accounts on Chinese and Korean platforms (Weibo, Douyin, RED, Zepeto) and media coverage in the United States.
Compiled by commissioned research from 1 cited public sources — announcements, filings, and press listed under research sources below.
Competitors · 4
by search overlap
Companies competing with Aww Inc. for the same Google search keywords, organic and paid, via search-intersection analysis.
Timeline · 8
launches, deals, and filingsAww Inc. exhibited at the AI・人工知能EXPO NEO trade show, presenting its virtual human imma in the form of the conversational AI virtual human service HITO.
The company's virtual human MIRAI was selected for the "20 HOT CREATORS" list in the March 2026 issue of Forbes JAPAN.
US broadcaster ABC News aired a 10-minute feature segment on Aww Inc.
Video of a TED Conferences talk given by Aww's ジューストー沙羅, described as the youngest speaker at the event, was published.
Dated company events from announcements, filings, and press; legal rows summarize public dockets and regulator releases.
In the news
▸Research sources · 1
primary sources listed
- Aww Inc.aww.tokyo · web
1 public sources were cited for this profile; the first-party ones are listed here.
Frequently asked questions
- What does Aww Inc. do?
- Tokyo-based company building virtual humans and conversational AI services for IP, brand and customer-service use.
- Who founded Aww Inc.?
- Aww Inc. was founded by 守屋貴行.
- Who are Aww Inc.'s investors?
- Aww Inc.'s investors include Coral Capital, Kindred Ventures.
- Where is Aww Inc. headquartered?
- Aww Inc. is headquartered in Tokyo, JP.