MODE
MODE provides an IoT data platform, BizStack, that unifies physical-world signals from sensors, cameras, and legacy systems into structured, AI-ready data for industrial and infrastructure operators, with primary traction in Japan's civil engineering, energy, construction, and cold storage sectors.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded2014
- HeadquartersSan Mateo, United States
- Headcount11–50
- GTM typeB2B
- OfferingSoftware
What MODE does
MODE, Inc. is a private IoT data platform company founded in 2014 by Gaku Ueda (CEO, formerly Director of Engineering at Twitter and lead of the Google Maps Japan launch) and Ethan Kan (CTO, first engineering hire at ONElist and former tech lead of Yahoo Groups). The company's flagship product, MODE BizStack, is a time-series database paired with a flexible Entity model that ingests data from physical sources — sensors, cameras, legacy PLCs, cloud VMS, and internal systems — and structures it around real-world asset hierarchies. The platform is composed of integrated modules: BizStack Gateway (on-premise data transformation), BizStack Cloud Data (structured cloud layer), BizStack Console (dashboards), BizStack Assistant (AI-powered natural language chat), and BizStack User Interface (tailored operational views), with MCP support for LLM-based tools and AI agents.
MODE serves industrial and infrastructure operators — civil engineering firms, energy utilities, construction companies, facility management organizations, and cold-storage operators — with deployments in Japan serving as the company's primary proof point. Named enterprise customers include Nishimatsu Construction (mountain tunnel monitoring), Panasonic Corporation (H2 KIBOU FIELD energy management demonstration facility), a large unnamed commercial general contractor (achieving $80K savings and 21% operational cost reduction), and a major global logistics company (cold storage monitoring across 80+ facilities). The company monetizes through monthly platform subscriptions starting at $1,000/month, scaled by deployment size and data volume, with onboarding and deployment support included. Go-to-market combines direct enterprise field sales with POC arrangements and a partner ecosystem of technology integrators and solution builders.
MODE operates from a San Mateo, California headquarters and a Tokyo regional office, with offices at 1840 Gateway Dr. Suite 250 (USA) and KANDA HIKOBAE 2F, Iwamotocho, Chiyoda-ku (Japan). The company has raised approximately $25M+ across eight funding rounds from 2014 to 2025, with strategic investors including Kleiner Perkins, True Ventures, Global Brain Corporation, Panasonic Kurashi Visionary Fund, and a 2025 round led by syndicate of Canon Marketing Japan, KDDI Open Innovation Fund, Kirin CVC, and Safie Ventures. Headcount sits at 51-100 employees.
MODE firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- MODE
- Legal name
- MODE, Inc.
- Website
- https://tinkermode.com
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 2014
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 11–50 employees
- Short description
- MODE provides an IoT data platform, BizStack, that unifies physical-world signals from sensors, cameras, and legacy systems into structured, AI-ready data for industrial and infrastructure operators, with primary traction in Japan's civil engineering, energy, construction, and cold storage sectors.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Where MODE is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- San Mateo
- HQ country
- United States
- HQ region
- North America
Offices2 records
Markets served
MODE business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B
- Offering type
- Software
- Cost components
- Technology or R&D, Personnel, Infrastructure, Operations, Marketing or Sales
Revenue model
- Platform Subscription: MODE BizStack is priced as a subscription based on deployment scope. Every plan includes full platform access — data ingestion, dashboards, alerts, reports, and API. Scales with deployment size and data volume. Starting from $1,000/month with onboarding and deployment support included.
- Professional Services: Onboarding and deployment support are included in the subscription, suggesting a services component for implementation. POC arrangements are offered for evaluation before committing.
Pricing tiers
| Model | Billing | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Subscription | Monthly | Starting tier at $1,000/month with full platform access |
Go-to-market motion1 record
Distribution channels2 records
Marketing channels4 records
MODE product offering
Product offeringCore offering
MODE BizStack is an IoT data platform that ingests signals from physical sources (sensors, cameras, legacy PLCs, cloud VMS, internal systems), structures the data around a flexible Entity model mapped to real-world asset hierarchies, and delivers role-based dashboards, threshold alerts, scheduled reports, a REST API, and an AI chat assistant (embeddable in Slack and Teams with MCP support). The platform serves enterprise industrial and infrastructure operators in civil engineering, energy, construction, facility management, and cold storage logistics, and provides an AI-ready data foundation for predictive and autonomous workflows.
Product overview
MODE offers BizStack, an all-encompassing IoT application platform tailored for businesses, with its core product being the BizStack platform. The platform consists of several integrated modules: BizStack Console (central dashboard), BizStack Assistant (AI-powered natural language chat interface), BizStack Gateway (on-premise data transformation), BizStack Cloud Data (cloud data organization), and BizStack User Interface (operational interface). The platform unifies physical-world data from sensors, cameras, and legacy systems into structured, contextual data accessible via dashboards, alerts, and chat. BizStack is enhanced with AI capabilities through the BizStack Assistant, which provides natural language querying of operational data. Recent additions include the Site Work Suggestion AI, a generative AI module for construction site management developed in partnership with Tekkken Construction.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Brands
- BizStack: MODE's flagship IoT application platform that unifies physical-world data from sensors, cameras, and legacy systems into structured, context-rich data for real-time operations and AI agents.
Products and services
- MODE BizStack IoT data platform that unifies physical-world signals from sensors, cameras, legacy PLCs, cloud VMS, and internal systems into structured, context-rich data using a time-series database paired with a flexible Entity model. Delivers role-based dashboards, threshold alerts, scheduled reports, and a REST API for real-time operational visibility and AI readiness, targeted at enterprise industrial and infrastructure operators in civil engineering, energy, construction, facility management, and cold storage logistics.
- BizStack Assistant AI-powered chat assistant integrated with BizStack that allows field workers and project managers to query operational data using natural language and receive contextual answers from live data without requiring data science expertise. Embeddable in Slack and Microsoft Teams with MCP support for LLM-based tools and AI agents.
- Site Work Suggestion AI Generative AI module developed in partnership with Tekkken Construction that analyzes onsite data from sensors and communications to autonomously assess and categorize construction site conditions in real time, generating summaries, handover information, and safety alerts.
Quantifiable outcome
- 21.05% reduction in operational costs ($80,000 savings)
- +5 more outcomes
Companies that use MODE
Customer profileNamed customers4 records
Segments2 records
Ideal customer profiles2 records
MODE technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed Yes
API detail
- Has API
- Yes
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Integration9 records
AI capability11 records
Feature9 records
MODE partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
Three partnerships are on record, tiered core and flagship.
- Tekkken Construction Co., Ltd.coreMODE partnered with Tekkken Construction to launch a proof of concept using generative AI for construction site management. The partnership created 'Site Work Suggestion AI' that analyzes onsite data and communications to generate summaries, handover information, and safety alerts. The AI agent leverages MODE's IoT platform BizStack alongside the communication tool 'direct' to autonomously assess and categorize site conditions in real time.
- Nishimatsu Construction Co., Ltd.flagshipNishimatsu (celebrating 150th anniversary in 2024) deployed BizStack and BizStack Assistant for mountain tunnel construction monitoring. The partnership has demonstrated significant outcomes including 40% reduction in inspection time and faster initial response during abnormalities. Nishimatsu is also testing advanced technologies including unmanned and automated construction systems at its R&D center 'N-Field.'
- Panasonic CorporationflagshipPanasonic uses BizStack Assistant as part of its 'Panasonic GREEN IMPACT' environmental vision for carbon neutrality. The partnership supports the H2 KIBOU FIELD demonstration facility combining hydrogen fuel cells with solar cells and storage batteries. MODE enables conversion of accumulated data into knowledge, improving Panasonic's ability to make customer proposals.
Scale indicators3 records
Recent moves6 records
Expansion highlights6 records
MODE competitors and assessment
Company assessmentBroad incumbents
- Samsara: Samsara is a publicly traded IoT platform focused on physical operations (fleet, construction, cold chain). It overlaps with MODE's cold-storage and construction use cases at much greater scale, but is broader and less customizable than MODE's entity-modeled BizStack.
- PTC ThingWorx: PTC's ThingWorx is an established industrial IoT platform for connecting machines, sensors, and assets in manufacturing and operations. It competes with MODE in the industrial data-platform layer, but is anchored in manufacturing execution rather than MODE's civil engineering, energy, and construction focus.
- Siemens MindSphere: Siemens MindSphere is the industrial IoT arm of Siemens, offering cloud-based connectivity and analytics for industrial assets. It overlaps with MODE's energy and infrastructure operator use cases but is positioned as part of Siemens' broader industrial automation stack, not as an open, partner-friendly platform.
- Honeywell Forge: Honeywell Forge is Honeywell's enterprise performance management platform for industrial operations, including asset reliability and energy management. It competes with MODE on real-time industrial visibility but is tightly coupled to Honeywell's own installed base of control systems.
- C3.ai: C3.ai is an enterprise AI application platform with industrial and operations use cases (predictive maintenance, energy management). It overlaps with MODE on AI-ready operational data and AI agents but is positioned at much larger enterprise deals and broader verticals.
Direct peers
- Augury: Augury provides AI-based asset health and process monitoring for industrial equipment using vibration, temperature, and other sensor data. It is directly comparable to MODE's anomaly detection and predictive workflows for physical operations, though MODE's horizontal entity model covers more asset types and use cases.
- Tulip Interfaces: Tulip is a frontline operations platform combining sensor data, machine integrations, and no-code apps for manufacturing and life sciences. Like MODE, it targets operators on the floor with contextual real-time data, though Tulip focuses on operator UI while MODE focuses on the underlying entity-modeled data layer.
- Uptake: Uptake is an industrial AI platform that connects asset data, ERP, and operations to drive reliability and productivity outcomes. It is directly comparable to MODE in targeting industrial operators with AI on physical asset data, though Uptake's historical focus has been heavier on rail, energy, and heavy equipment verticals.
Emerging players
- Particle Industries: Particle provides an IoT platform with hardware, connectivity, and a cloud data layer for connected products. It overlaps with MODE on ingestion and time-series storage of physical-world data, but is more developer- and product-oriented, less vertically specialized in construction, energy, and infrastructure.
- Losant: Losant is an IoT and edge computing platform offering data ingestion, dashboards, and workflows for connected operations. It is a smaller-scale, more horizontal peer to MODE's BizStack, with similar time-series and alerting capabilities but less specialization in heavy-infrastructure and construction use cases.
Market position
Strengths4 records
Weaknesses4 records
Competitive moat5 records
Key risks6 records
Key highlights7 records
Customer concentration
MODE social profiles
Digital presenceMODE financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
MODE leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles2 records
MODE funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds17 records
Investors16 records
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
MODE M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about MODE
What does MODE do?
MODE BizStack is an IoT data platform that ingests signals from physical sources (sensors, cameras, legacy PLCs, cloud VMS, internal systems), structures the data around a flexible Entity model mapped to real-world asset hierarchies, and delivers role-based dashboards, threshold alerts, scheduled reports, a REST API, and an AI chat assistant (embeddable in Slack and Teams with MCP support). The platform serves enterprise industrial and infrastructure operators in civil engineering, energy, construction, facility management, and cold storage logistics, and provides an AI-ready data foundation for predictive and autonomous workflows.
Is MODE a public or private company?
MODE is a private company. It is classified as venture growth investor backed and is currently operating.
When was MODE founded?
MODE was founded in 2014. It employs 11 to 50 people.
Where is MODE based?
MODE is headquartered in San Mateo, United States, in the North America region.
How does MODE make money?
Two revenue lines are on record. Platform Subscription is the primary driver. The others are professional Services.
Who are MODE's main competitors?
Broad incumbents on record are Samsara, PTC ThingWorx, Siemens MindSphere, Honeywell Forge and C3.ai. Direct peers are Augury, Tulip Interfaces and Uptake. Emerging players are Particle Industries and Losant.
Does MODE have an API?
Yes. Full REST API for data, entities, and alerts. Developers can feed downstream analytics or build custom front-ends on top of the BizStack platform. API endpoint is api.tinkermode.com.