What stage does Dentsu Ventures invest at?

Dentsu Ventures invests at the Seed, Series A, Series B, Series C, Growth, Late Stage stages.

Where is Dentsu Ventures located?

Dentsu Ventures is headquartered in Tokyo, JP.

Dentsu Ventures

Corporate VC

Tokyo · Seed–Late Stage · 11 people tracked

★ Follow + Add to CRM ⤳ Find an introduction

✨ Fox Verdict

Investment thesis

Dentsu Ventures invests in startups globally, particularly in Japan and Asia, across emerging sectors and technologies. The firm supports both early-stage and growth-stage companies, leveraging Dentsu Group's expertise in marketing, media, and digital innovation to help portfolio companies expand internationally and collaborate with Dentsu's global operations and group companies.

Invests inAdTech AI & Machine Learning Future of Work Gaming Marketing Tech Media & EntertainmentAsia-PacificEuropeGlobalJapanNorth AmericaTokyoUnited States

Source: firm website, verified Aug 7, 2026.

Stage

Seed–Late Stage

Tokyo, JP

Instruments

Equity

Founded

2015

AUM

$180M

Tracked investments

Team · 11 people

from the firm's website

Kotaro Sasamoto· Managing Partner

Founder and Managing Partner of Dentsu Ventures, which he launched in April 2015. He previously worked across advertising, marketing strategy, and international operations at Dentsu, including startup investment and new business development in its corporate strategy division. He holds a bachelor's from Kyoto University and an MBA from Harvard Business School.

s•••@dentsu-v.comreveal

Daiji Horibe· General Partner

General Partner focused on fund management, sourcing, valuation, and value-add for Japanese and international startups. He co-founded and is Managing Partner at Prime Partners Inc., and previously worked at an independent VC firm, Boston Consulting Group, Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corporation, and Daiwa Securities SMBC. He holds degrees from Kyoto University and an MBA from the University of Rochester.

h•••@dentsu-v.comreveal

Daisuke Takemori· General Partner

General Partner responsible for sourcing, valuation, and value-add activities for Japanese startups. A Founding Partner of Prime Partners Inc., he has advised startups such as PKSHA Technology and WACUL and served as COO and board member at ROBIT. He previously worked at Boston Consulting Group and Sony, and holds a bachelor's from Keio University.

t•••@dentsu-v.comreveal

Kevin Hasegawa· General Partner

General Partner focused on sourcing and investing in international startups and supporting their expansion into Japan and Asia. He is Co-founder and Managing Partner at Prime Partners Inc. and has mentored at Y Combinator (Bio), IndieBio, and Techstars. He previously worked at an independent VC fund, Itochu Corporation, and CTC. He holds degrees from USC and an MS from Chiba University.

h•••@dentsu-v.comreveal

Hideyuki Nakanishi· Principal

Principal responsible for sourcing, valuation, and due diligence of Japanese and international startups, with consulting work at Prime Partners Inc. He was previously an Investment Director at Hong Kong-based Ward Ferry Management for seven years and worked at Boston Consulting Group and Citigroup Global Markets Japan. He graduated from the University of Tokyo Faculty of Economics.

n•••@dentsu-v.comreveal

Takashi Nishizu· Principal

Principal responsible for global startup investments across Japan and other regions and strategy planning for new business domains within the Dentsu Group. He previously worked as an equity analyst at Nomura Securities and at A.T. Kearney on technology strategy and due diligence. He holds a B.A. from the University of Tokyo and an MBA from Carnegie Mellon's Tepper School, and is a CMA.

Tatsuru Isayama· Principal

Principal investing in global startups primarily in Japan and the US, and supporting new business development across the Dentsu Group. He previously worked at Dentsu Inc. in media buying and account management. He graduated from the University of Tokyo Faculty of Law and holds an MBA from MIT Sloan.

i•••@dentsu-v.comreveal

Masataka Wakamatsu· Venture Partner

Venture Partner responsible for venture investment in Japan and Europe, also working with the Dentsu Innovation Initiative on global new business strategy. Joining Dentsu Ventures in 2021, he previously worked in Dentsu's information systems and account management divisions on marketing projects. He holds a master's from Waseda University and an MBA from IE Business School in Spain.

Takeshi Oda· Venture Partner

Venture Partner focused on venture investment, value-add, and project creation with portfolio companies, especially in XR and content. He also works with the Dentsu Innovation Initiative on new business foundations for the Dentsu Group. Joining Dentsu Ventures in 2019, he previously worked in public sector project management, and graduated from the University of Tokyo Faculty of Law.

Yuki Ino· Venture Partner

Venture Partner responsible for venture investment in Japan, also working with the Dentsu Innovation Initiative on new business strategy and portfolio management. He previously worked in Dentsu's corporate strategy division on M&A and at GREE on venture investment and post-merger integration in San Francisco. He holds a bachelor's from Sophia University.

Yuka Okada· Senior Associate

Senior Associate handling Japanese and global startup investment. She previously worked in the investment banking division of SMBC Nikko Securities on global IPOs and M&A for technology companies. She holds a bachelor's from Kyoto University.

o•••@dentsu-v.comreveal

What they invest in

from 27 of 61 portfolio companies

AI & Machine Learning ×13Enterprise Software ×6SaaS ×6Deep Tech ×5Developer Tools ×5Biotech ×4Consumer ×3Data & Infrastructure ×3

HQs:United States×13Japan×11

Investments · 61 tracked

founders shown can be your intro path

GRAILgrail.comin 𝕏NASDAQ: GRAL

GRAIL develops the Galleri blood test for multi-cancer early detection using next-generation sequencing and machine learning to screen for multiple deadly cancer types before symptoms appear.

AI & Machine LearningBiotechHealthtechMedical DevicesMenlo Park, US

Joshua Ofman, MD, MSHS(Chief Executive Officer)Aaron Freidin(Executive Officer)Sarah Krevans(Director)Gregory Summe(Director)Josh Ofman(Executive Officer)Steve Mizell(Director)

Twist Biosciencetwistbioscience.comin 𝕏NASDAQ: TWST

Twist Bioscience develops a silicon-based synthetic DNA manufacturing platform that produces high-quality DNA, genes, and NGS reagents for customers in medicine, agriculture, and industrial chemicals.

BiotechDeep TechSemiconductorsSouth San Francisco, US

Keith Crandell(Director)Paul Conley(Director)Fred Craves(Director)Emily Marine Leproust(Executive Officer, Director, Promoter)William Charles Banyai(Executive Officer, Director, Promoter)Bill James Peck(Executive Officer, Promoter)

555 Bryant Streetgoo.gl

agoloagolo.com

Implicit is an AI-powered knowledge platform that aggregates technical content from manuals, tickets, and procedures to provide cited answers to both human workers and AI agents.

AI & Machine LearningEnterprise SoftwareSaaS

Asobicaasobica.co.jp

Astrobloxastrocade.com

Clear Labsclearlabs.comin

Clear Labs develops fully automated next-generation sequencing (NGS) platforms that process genomic data into insights for research and surveillance applications across infectious disease, food safety, and oncology.

BiotechData & InfrastructureDeep TechHealthtechMedical DevicesSan Carlos, US

Sasan Amini(Co-founder & CEO)Ramin Khaksar(Executive Officer)inEdward Fan(Executive Officer)inBrodie Flanders(Executive Officer, Director)Charlie Piper(Director)Nicolas H. Roelofs(Director)

CLUEt-clue.com

Cue Healthcuehealth.com

Cultaculta.jp

Double Jump Tokyodoublejump.tokyo

Tokyo

Yukinori Matsuya(Director)Takashi Fujishima(Director)Ryo Manzoku(Director)Hiroyuki Kawamoto(Director)Hironobu Ueno(Director)Guo Yihong(Executive Officer)

emole株式会社emole.co.jp

Exoproteinexoprotein.com

Fiddler AIfiddler.aiin 𝕏

Fiddler provides an AI control plane that offers monitoring, guardrails, and governance for enterprise AI agents and compound AI systems.

AI & Machine LearningDeveloper ToolsEnterprise Software

Krishna Gade(Founder & CEO)in

Fiddler Labs, Inc.

Palo Alto, US

Amit Paka(Executive Officer, Director)Krishna Gade(Executive Officer, Director)

BoardRaviraj Jain(Director)Bilal Zuberi(Director)George Mathew(Director)

FOLIOfolio-sec.com𝕏

FOLIO is an AI-powered robo-advisor that automatically manages investment portfolios by predicting market trends and dynamically adjusting asset allocation monthly.

AI & Machine LearningFintech

forest㈱forest-inc.jpin 𝕏

FUNDiT IT領域に特化した共創型M&Aとロールアップを行う事業投資を展開fundit.jp

FUNDiT acquires and operates small to mid-sized IT businesses using AI and big data analysis for M&A targeting and operational improvement.

AI & Machine LearningEnterprise SoftwareShinagawa, JP

廣瀬寛入澤佳奈寺田修輔細田聖子伊藤雅仁潮田一成

Hoodlinehoodline.com

Develops a platform for auto-generating local news content.

Houston, TXmacrofab.com

infoboxinfo-box.jp

Inworld AIinworld.aiin 𝕏

Inworld AI provides a full-duplex audio streaming platform that enables real-time conversational AI interactions with intelligent turn-taking, function calling, and multi-model routing capabilities for developers building conversational applications.

AI & Machine LearningDeveloper Tools

KaKa Creationkakacreation.co.jp

Kakehashikakehashi.life𝕏

Kakehashi develops digital transformation products for Japan's approximately 60,000 community pharmacies, focusing on digitization of pharmacy operations and personal health record implementations.

Digital HealthHealthtechSaaS

Knowledge Workknowledgework.com

Kognitoskognitos.comin 𝕏

Kognitos is a neurosymbolic agentic AI platform that automates enterprise back-office workflows in finance, accounting, healthcare, and operations by allowing users to describe processes in plain English rather than coding.

AI & Machine LearningEnterprise SoftwareSaaSSan Jose, US

Binny Sher Gill(Executive Officer, Director)Ashmeet Sidana(Director)

LiveLikelivelike.comin

LiveLike develops interactive digital engagement tools for sports and entertainment audiences.

Marketing TechMedia & EntertainmentSaaSNew York, US

Loomailoomai.com

Managing Your Finances with Truebillcheddar.com𝕏acquired by Altice

Mirarealitymirareality.com

Mysten Labsmystenlabs.comin 𝕏

Mysten Labs builds infrastructure and tools for web3, focusing on making decentralized systems secure, reliable, and ready for mass adoption.

Cloud ComputingCrypto & Web3Deep TechDeveloper Tools

Adeniyi Abiodun(Founder)in

Narvarnarvar.comin 𝕏

Narvar provides AI-powered software for post-purchase customer experiences, offering delivery estimates, tracking, returns management, and fraud prevention for retailers and e-commerce brands.

AI & Machine LearningE-commerceRetail TechSan Mateo, US

Brian O'Malley(Director)Amit Sharma(Executive Officer, Director)

New Standard.Conew-standard.co.jp

NFTマーケティングsushitopmarketing.com

Novarca Inc.novarca.jp

Overtimeovertime.tv𝕏

Read the press releaseopenweb.comin

Ricecurry (MUSCAT GROUP)(IPO)muscatgroup.co.jp𝕏

Roforcoroforco.com

Scalebase株式会社scalebase.co.jp

Skyflowskyflow.comin 𝕏

Skyflow provides a data privacy vault delivered via an API that lets companies store, protect, and manage sensitive customer information such as financial, healthcare, and other personal data.

AI & Machine LearningCybersecurityData & InfrastructureDeveloper ToolsPalo Alto, US

Anshu Sharma(Co-founder & CEO)Roshmik Saha(Co-founder)Amruta Moktali(Chief Product Officer)Ken Laversin(Chief Revenue Officer)Daniel Wong(Head of Security Engineering)

Smarkingsmarking.comin 𝕏

JustPark Insights is a parking data platform that centralizes information from equipment, payments, and applications to provide real-time visibility into parking metrics.

AI & Machine LearningData & InfrastructureEnterprise SoftwareMobility & TransportationSaaSSan Francisco, US

Wen Sang(Founder/CEO)inMaokai Lin(Founder/CTO)in

Solstensolsten.ioin

Surviossurvios.com𝕏

TechTouchtechtouch.jp

TechTouch is a Digital Adoption Platform (DAP) that improves user experience on web systems and applications through intuitive operational guides and navigation.

Developer ToolsEnterprise SoftwareSaaSTokyo, JP

TSUKURUBA (IPO)tsukuruba.com𝕏

Turing株式会社tur.ing

Company working on fully autonomous driving technology, presenting itself under the slogan "We Overtake Tesla." The page is a recruitment section seeking team members to work on self-driving vehicle development.

AI & Machine LearningDeep TechMobility & TransportationTokyo, JP

Issei Yamamoto(Founder & CEO (代表取締役CEO))Daisuke Tanaka(取締役COO)Masato Morishima(取締役CFO)Yu Yamaguchi(執行役員兼 CTO)Yugo Tokuchi(執行役員兼 CSO)

Two Bit Circustwobitcircus.com

Two Bit Circus is an entertainment incubator and exhibitor that develops immersive experiences and interactive entertainment projects.

ConsumerGaming

Eric Gradman(Executive Officer, Director)Ryan McIntyre(Director)Brent Bushnell(Executive Officer, Director)Mark Solon(Director)

Tynkertynker.comin 𝕏

Tynker is a digital learning platform providing coding curriculum and courses for children through schools and parents.

AI & Machine LearningEdTechChicago, US

Ubiquity6ubiquity6.com

San Francisco, US

Phineas Barnes(Director)Anjney Midha(Executive Officer, Director)Ankit Kumar(Executive Officer, Director)

Upside Foodsupsidefoods.comin

Upside Foods produces cultivated meat using cell-based technology.

BiotechFoodTechSan Francisco, US

Uma Valeti(Founder & CEO)in

Vidmobvidmob.comin

Vidmob provides software to help brand marketing teams discover top-performing creative requirements, maintain consistent brand guidelines across advertising platforms, and manage creative data at scale.

AdTechAI & Machine LearningMarketing TechNew York, US

Brian Barnum(Director)Laura Held(Director)Alex Collmer(Executive Officer, Director, Promoter)JP Maheu(Director)Jim Curry(Director)Mainardo de Nardis(Director)

Voicyvoicy.jp

WOTA株式会社wota.co.jp𝕏

WOTA develops small-scale decentralized water recycling systems and autonomous water treatment control systems.

CleantechClimate TechHardwareImpact & Social GoodTokyo, JP

Yosuke Maeda(代表取締役 (Representative Director))

カウシェkauche.com

Kauche Farm is a gamified mobile app feature integrated into the Kauche app where users nurture virtual crops through daily watering and quests to earn free product coupons.

ConsumerGamingMarketplacesSocialTokyo, JP

ソラジマsorajima.jp

メタジェンセラピューティクスmetagentx.com

代々木アニメーショングループyoani.group

Yoani Group is the parent holding company for the Yoani anime production group, responsible for strategic planning and management support across its subsidiary companies.

Creator EconomyMedia & EntertainmentTokyo, JP

Masashi Kurata(Representative Director)

将来宇宙輸送システム株式会社innovative-space-carrier.co.jp𝕏

Innovative Space Carrier (将来宇宙輸送システム株式会社) is a Japanese company developing future space transportation systems.

Deep TechHardwareLogistics & Supply ChainSpace TechTokyo, JP

畑田 (Hatakuta)(CEO)野村 (Nomura)(COO)畑田康二郎(代表取締役社長兼最高経営責任者 (CEO))

株式会社Mellow Active Platform 日本フードトラックプラットフォーム事業mellow.jp𝕏

Mellow operates a platform that matches mobile shops such as food trucks (kitchen cars) with vacant spaces, connecting mobility-business operators with locations like offices and neighborhoods.

FoodTechLogistics & Supply ChainMarketplacesMobility & TransportationTokyo, JP

石澤(代表取締役社長兼CEO (President & CEO))

Frequently asked questions

What stage does Dentsu Ventures invest at?: Dentsu Ventures invests at the Seed, Series A, Series B, Series C, Growth, Late Stage stages.
What sectors does Dentsu Ventures focus on?: Dentsu Ventures focuses on AdTech, AI & Machine Learning, Future of Work, Gaming, Marketing Tech, Media & Entertainment.
Where is Dentsu Ventures located?: Dentsu Ventures is headquartered in Tokyo, JP.

Images

Similar investors

Interlock Partners

Interlock Partners is an investment firm that backs companies positioned to win, offering a hands-on approach and operating experience to accelerate their success.

$1M – $5M

Audacity Venture Capital

Audacity is a specialist media and technology venture fund that backs founders from seed through growth, focusing on the intersection of AI and media.

Rho Ventures

Rho is an investment firm founded in 1981 that backs inventors, entrepreneurs, and operators across all stages of company growth to build market-defining companies.

$2M – $15M

Dot Capital

Dot Capital is a boutique New York City venture capital firm founded in 2012 that invests in disruptive growth technology companies across sectors like SaaS, mobile, digital media, IoT and internet infrastructure.

$750K – $4M

OMERS Ventures

OMERS Ventures is the venture capital arm of the OMERS pension plan, investing in early-stage technology founders building solutions across North America and Europe.

$3.6M – $18.3M