Startup
ZZEALS
株式会社ZEALS
#57 (tie) in the Japan Top 100 Startups
| Founded / HQ | 2014 · Tokyo |
|---|---|
| Equity raised to date | ¥7.5B “累計調達額76.5億円” Company-stated cumulative · as of 2024 · ZEALS company deck Cumulative ¥7.65B less the ¥1.5B overdraft facility in the 2022 round. |
| Reported total | ¥7.65B incl. debt or other non-equity, as published |
| Last round | 12 May 2022 · Round · ¥5B 総額50億円（うち当座貸越枠15億円） |
| Latest public valuation | Not publicly disclosed (we do not estimate) |
| Unicorn | No |
| Website | zeals.ai |
From Japanese sources
Findings from Japanese-language filings, government records, trade press, interviews and job posts, with our English analysis. Items tagged Japanese-only had no English coverage when we checked quickly. Most insightful first.
| 2026-09-24 | Exec interviewJapanese-onlyZEALS CEO Masahiro Shimizu on launching humanoid robot 'D1' nine months after conception ZEALS 代表取締役CEO 清水正大（週刊BCN Era） The chat-commerce and AI-agent company unveiled and began selling a humanoid robot, D1, on 5 Aug 2026, a striking pivot into hardware. Shimizu frames it as his lifelong goal to 'build Doraemon'. Investors should ask how a company with ¥0.48B losses funds robot development. Source: 週刊BCN (trade press) |
|---|---|
| 2026-02-27 | Regulatory filingJapanese-onlyZEALS FY11 notice: net loss ¥482.5M; retained deficit equals just that year's loss 株式会社ZEALS 決算公告（第11期） A retained deficit equal to one year's loss means earlier cumulative losses were wiped out by a capital reduction. The loss is modest, but the company is now funding a robotics push from that base. Source: 官報ブログ (statutory notice transcription) |
Overview
ZEALS provides chat-commerce services, AI chat agents that guide shoppers through purchases on messaging apps and websites. It was founded in 2014 by Masahiro Shimizu. In May 2022 it raised ¥5B, made up of ¥3.5B in equity and ¥1.5B in debt.
Built from: May 2022 release
Company timeline
Founded
| Date | 2014-04-01· ZEALS |
|---|---|
| Founders | Masahiro Shimizu |
Funding
| Date | Round | Amount | Lead / key investors | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2017-05-18 | Funding | ¥80M 8000万円 | PR TIMES | |
| 2019-04 | Funding | ¥350M 3.5億円 | Fujita Fund | BRIDGE |
| 2019-04-01 | Funding | ¥350M 3.5億円 | PR TIMES | |
| 2021-04-01 | Funding | ¥1.8B 総額18億円 | PR TIMES | |
| 2022-05-12 | Series E | ¥5B (¥3.5B equity + ¥1.5B debt) 総額50億円 | Company release |
Key hires & board
| 2026-08-10 | HireFormer justice minister Hideki Makihara advises robotics business· PR TIMES |
|---|
Milestones
| 2026-05-18 | ProductLaunches Omakase AI Avatar· PR TIMES |
|---|---|
| 2026-05-21 | TractionOmakase AI eligible for 2026 AI subsidy· PR TIMES |
| 2026-06-30 | PartnershipAI avatar counselling with Attenir· PR TIMES |
| 2026-07-07 | ProductAI principal avatar for entrepreneurship education· PR TIMES |
| 2026-08-05 | ProductZEALS unveils humanoid D1; 100 units planned this year· PR TIMES |
| 2026-08-27 | PartnershipCo-creation partnership with Timee· PR TIMES |
| 2026-09-07 | ProductMUFG Bank adopts Omakase AI· PR TIMES |
| 2026-10-14 | ProductZEALS launches Omakase AI Phone for EC· PR TIMES |
News
| 2026-10-14 | ZEALS launches Omakase AI Phone for EC ジールス、Omakase AIのカスタマーサポート領域を強化。EC特化の「Omakase AI電話 for EC」を提供開始し、ecforceとの連携を推進· PR TIMES |
|---|---|
| 2026-09-14 | ZEALS deploys humanoid D1 at Sakura Juji care home ジールス、準国産コンパクトヒューマノイド「D1」を桜十字グループの介護施設へ初投入· PR TIMES |
| 2026-09-10 | Omakase AI avatar guides Ad:tech Tokyo ジールス、「Omakase AIアバター」でアドテック東京公式ガイドAIを実装· PR TIMES |
| 2026-09-07 | MUFG Bank adopts Omakase AI ジールス、三菱ＵＦＪ銀行のデジタル顧客接点に「Omakase AI」を提供開始· PR TIMES |
| 2026-08-28 | Humanoid D1 trialled in hospital for 35 hours ジールス、準国産ヒューマノイド「D1」を病院へ初投入。35時間の現場稼働、5つの院内業務を検証完了。· PR TIMES |
| 2026-08-27 | Launches HIS AI avatar ジールス、HISと旅行のプロ275人の経験知を集約した「HIS AIアバター」の提供を開始· PR TIMES |
| 2026-08-27 | Co-creation partnership with Timee ジールス、タイミーとフィジカルAI時代の新たな働く機会の創出に向けた共創パートナーシップを締結· PR TIMES |
| 2026-08-10 | Former justice minister Hideki Makihara advises robotics business 元法務大臣・牧原秀樹氏、ジールスのロボティクス事業顧問に就任· PR TIMES |
| 2026-08-05 | ZEALS unveils humanoid D1; 100 units planned this year ジールス、“準国産”コンパクトヒューマノイド「D1」を発表～年度内に100台量産、人手不足の現場で10,000時間稼働を目指す· PR TIMES |
| 2026-07-24 | Launches AI alumni visits ジールス、大学・居住地・人脈を問わず、誰もが実在する社員7名と24時間365日対話できる「AI OBOG訪問」を開始· PR TIMES |
| 2026-07-07 | AI principal avatar for entrepreneurship education ジールス、教育業界初(※)現役校長の実践知をもとに、アントレプレナーシップ教育について相談できるAIアバター「AI校長 生井先生」を無料で提供開始· PR TIMES |
| 2026-06-30 | AI avatar counselling with Attenir ジールス、「Omakase AIアバター」を活用し、化粧品業界初※のAIアバターカウンセリングをアテニアと共同開発· PR TIMES |
| 2026-05-21 | Omakase AI eligible for 2026 AI subsidy ジールス、音声AIエージェント「Omakase AI」が「デジタル化・AI導入補助金2026」の対象プロダクトに· PR TIMES |
| 2026-05-18 | Survey on AI interviews ジールス、「AI面接」に関する意識調査レポートを公開· PR TIMES |
| 2026-05-18 | Launches Omakase AI Avatar ジールス、まるで人間と話しているような対話型AIアバター「Omakase AIアバター」を提供開始· PR TIMES |
| 2026-04-16 | Receives SOC 2 Type 2 report ジールス、グローバル基準の内部統制を証明する「SOC2(R) Type2」保証報告書を受領· PR TIMES |
| 2026-03-25 | Humanoid robot trial at University of Tsukuba Hospital ジールス、日本初※となる筑波大学附属病院におけるヒューマノイドロボットの実証実験を実施· PR TIMES |
| 2026-02-27 | LIFULL HOME'S adopts Omakase AI ジールス、「LIFULL HOME'S住まいの窓口」に音声接客AIエージェント「Omakase AI」を導入· PR TIMES |
| 2026-02-17 | Chikyu no Utage adopts Omakase AI phone ジールス、無農薬野菜・無添加食品を中心とした通販サイト「ちきゅうのうたげ」にOmakase AIの電話AI機能を日本初導入（※）· PR TIMES |
| 2022-05-12 | Series E: ¥5B (¥3.5B equity + ¥1.5B debt)· Company release |
Funding rounds in 2026
No 2026 rounds in our database yet. Earlier funding is summarised above from the cited source.