Future of Work Startups

xCARE operates a talent platform and project management service specialized for the medical industry, connecting external professional experts with pharmaceutical, medical device, and other medical product development projects. The Japan-based company aims to help startups and academic projects bring medical products to market by supplying needed specialists on a flexible basis.

1 investor

Aidemy Business provides e-learning content and practical training programs for AI, DX (digital transformation), and GX (green transformation) workforce development, offering over 250 original courses plus assessments benchmarked against Japanese government digital skill standards. It serves companies looking to train employees and measure their DX capabilities, with dedicated specialists supporting skill assessment, training design, and learning.

1 investor

Coconala operates an online marketplace, launched in 2012, where individuals and professionals sell skills and services such as logo design, website development, presentation decks, business plans, SEO advice, and app development. Its "PRO" certification program matches certified professionals with business customers.

1 investor

Connectill is a Japanese company that provides remote-work employment opportunities—matching skilled but unavailable IT and programming workers with jobs—while also running AI development, data creation, and software product/solution services (including Forguncy implementation and training). It focuses on remote-work staffing, women's workforce participation, and AI support initiatives in Japan.

1 investor

Shuuumatu Worker is a marketplace connecting freelance professionals with side-gig opportunities, primarily offering remote work projects for engineers, designers, and marketers seeking to earn ¥80,000–¥140,000 monthly with 5–10 hours of weekly commitment.

1 investor

スーツアップ (SuitUp) is an AI-supported team task management tool that focuses tasks on three elements — who, what, and by when — with a spreadsheet-like interface, automated recurring tasks, deadline reminders, and integrations with chat and calendar tools like LINE, Slack, Microsoft Teams, Chatwork, and Google Calendar. It targets small and mid-sized businesses in Japan, including teams new to task management software.

1 investor

Startup Class ("スタクラ") is a Japanese job-change and side-work platform focused on connecting professionals with vetted, high-growth startups and ventures. It offers curated startup job listings, a 5-minute startup aptitude assessment, and career-change stories, targeting people seeking more autonomy and challenge in their work.

1 investor

Taimee is a mobile app-based gig work platform that connects workers with short-term job opportunities across various industries including warehouse work, food service, delivery, and office work in Japan. The platform enables workers to book single-day shifts, receive same-day payment, and build reputation through workplace badges.

1 investor

UT Group operates a platform for workforce management and career development in Japan, addressing diverse employment conditions, skills training, and life-stage support for Japanese workers and foreign nationals seeking employment in Japan.

1 investor

Minshoku (株式会社みんなの社食) operates a delivery-based corporate cafeteria service, providing lunch to employees at companies that lack an in-house canteen. Based in Tokyo, it works with restaurant partners and delivery partners to serve workplace lunches in Japan.

1 investor

Work Life Balance Co., Ltd. is a Japanese consulting firm that helps companies and government organizations implement work-style reform (hatarakikata kaikaku) through consulting, executive and staff training, lectures, organizational diagnostics, and guidebooks. It also offers web-based productivity tools including "Asa-mail.com" for visualizing and sharing daily schedules and time estimates and "Kaeru Kaigi Online" for structured team improvement meetings.

1 investor

rakumo provides add-on cloud software for Google Workspace and Microsoft 365, offering tools such as group calendar scheduling, an internal bulletin board, a web address book, workflow approvals, attendance management, and expense reconciliation. The product is aimed at Japanese businesses to add functions those platforms lack, and is used by around 2,600 companies.

1 investor

Asproad is a Japanese construction-focused group company that provides workforce solutions through staffing and training. The company connects experienced engineers and specialists with construction projects through its subsidiary companies Archi Japan and JAG Field, serving both workers seeking career development and construction firms needing technical expertise.

1 investor

Andus Labs helps organizations build the human readiness needed to adopt AI, drawing on experience in digital transformation and AI labs. It focuses on the organizational and people-side factors of AI adoption rather than the technology capability itself.

0 investors

TransactIQ offers a collaborative workspace application for corporate real estate teams and brokerages to manage site selections, negotiations, contracts, and lease management. The platform provides configurable workflows, interactive digital market surveys and tourbooks for commercial real estate (CRE) transactions.

0 investors

Apex TI offers Toolbelt, an AI workforce platform that connects business tools with AI-powered "Assistants" to automate workflows, aimed at non-technical users. The company also provides forward-deployed engineering services to design, build, and maintain custom AI agents for organizations.

0 investors

AspenView Technology Partners provides IT talent acquisition and digital transformation services, leveraging AI-native capabilities and Latin American technical expertise to help CIOs reduce total cost of employment and meet staffing needs in North America.

0 investors

Bereave provides technology that helps people find guidance, support and information when navigating the death of a loved one, serving employees, families, HR teams and managers. It offers workplace bereavement support and end-of-life resources for organizations and their staff.

0 investors

Beyond Work offers an enterprise intelligence platform for designing, executing, and reusing AI-enabled work across business processes, using components called Studio, Flow, Workblocks, and Blocks. It is aimed at organizations seeking to turn expert work into reusable operating assets with access controls, auditability, and secure enterprise deployment.

0 investors

bluSPARC offers a leadership development system for enterprise executives and managers, combining psychometric assessments, one-to-one coaching, and cohort learning delivered through a digital platform. It measures leadership competencies and behavioral change for corporate clients across all levels of an organization.

0 investors

Breezeworks provides software for field service professionals, offering scheduling, invoicing, team communication, custom forms, online service requests, and customer promotions.

0 investors

BuildWitt Improve is a mobile-first microlearning platform that delivers short, practical training videos and lessons to field crews in heavy civil and construction industries. It serves contractors across sectors such as transportation infrastructure, utilities and energy, mining, and demolition, with manager dashboards to track participation and Spanish-language support for bilingual teams.

0 investors

BusyBusy is a GPS time tracking and job costing app for construction crews and other remote-industry workforces, enabling employees and supervisors to clock in/out, capture time card signatures, and track equipment. It also offers budgets, daily reports, project progress photos, scheduling, safety sign-offs, and payroll tools for field and office staff.

0 investors

Chief of Staff Association (CSA) is a professional membership body for chiefs of staff, offering community, education, advocacy, and the Certified Chief of Staff credential. It operates internationally across more than 75 countries, providing professional development including executive education at business schools.

0 investors