Shoichiro Aoyama

ABEJA develops AI platform products for retail operations and manufacturing quality control, applying computer vision to analyse in-store customer behaviour and product performance in retail environments, and deploying visual inspection AI for defect detection in manufacturing production lines. The Tokyo company has built an enterprise software business serving Japanese retailers and manufacturers seeking to apply AI to operational problems without building internal AI engineering teams.\n\nThe company raised approximately $50 million in venture funding from investors including SBI Investment, SMBC Venture Capital, and KDDI Open Advancement Fund. ABEJA serves major Japanese retailers, convenience store chains, and manufacturing companies with AI analytics that derive insights from existing camera infrastructure in stores and factories. The company ABEJA Platform cloud product allows enterprise clients to build, deploy, and manage computer vision AI applications with managed infrastructure that reduces the AI operations burden.\n\nABEJA competes in the Japanese enterprise AI market alongside Retail AI (a Seven-Eleven Japan subsidiary) and international computer vision vendors. Japan large retail and manufacturing sectors, combined with limited English-language AI vendor support and preference for domestic supplier relationships in enterprise procurement, create a favourable environment for domestic AI platform companies with established enterprise relationships. The company participation in Japan government digital transformation initiatives has provided additional channels for deploying AI in public sector and infrastructure applications.