Zeals
Zeals is an AI-powered social chat commerce platform that helps eCommerce brands run managed conversational experiences on Instagram, Facebook Messenger, and LINE, and is expanding the Omakase AI sub-brand into voice agents, AI avatars, and humanoid robotics.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded2014
- HeadquartersTokyo, Japan
- Headcount101–250
- GTM typeB2B
- OfferingSoftware
What Zeals does
ZEALS, Inc. (Zeals) is an AI-powered social chat commerce platform founded in 2014 and headquartered in Tokyo, with a U.S. office at 535 Mission Street, San Francisco. The company serves eCommerce and consumer brands — including Sephora, L'Oréal, Shiseido, Toyota, Nissan, Volkswagen, LG, Dyson, Rakuten, and JCPenney — by enabling conversational commerce experiences on Instagram, Facebook Messenger, and LINE. Zeals reports more than 1.2 billion conversations facilitated and a customer base of hundreds of brands across beauty, retail, consumer electronics, automotive, and beverage verticals.
The platform is anchored on proprietary large language models fine-tuned per brand, supported by NLP pipelines and a recommendation engine that drive click-to-experience (CTX) ads, organic social engagement, bounce recovery, smart offers, and push notifications. Zeals has built integrations with Meta (reportedly with exclusive push notification rights on Facebook and Instagram), LINE, and has announced Salesforce Commerce Cloud and Shopify integrations. The company is a member of the NVIDIA Inception Program and is expanding the Omakase AI sub-brand across voice agents (Omakase.ai Voice, launched April 2025), AI avatars, and humanoid robotics (demonstrated at Tsukuba University Hospital in March 2026). The 1.2 billion-plus conversation corpus functions as the data flywheel for per-brand model training.
Zeals operates a subscription SaaS plus managed services model, with Starter, Growth, and Enterprise tiers that bundle platform access with Conversation Design Services. Pricing includes minimum monthly CTX ad budgets and a 10-hour conversation design package priced at $200 per hour, supplemented by professional services for custom deployments. Cumulative funding totals approximately $55.4M across multiple rounds, with the largest being a $27.2M Series C in May 2022 led by JIC Venture Growth, alongside strategic investors including Salesforce Ventures, MUFG, Mizuho, Japan Post Capital, Dentsu, Hakuhodo, CyberAgent, FreakOut, and Z Venture Capital.
Zeals firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Zeals
- Legal name
- ZEALS, Inc.
- Website
- https://zeals.ai
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 2014
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 101–250 employees
- Short description
- Zeals is an AI-powered social chat commerce platform that helps eCommerce brands run managed conversational experiences on Instagram, Facebook Messenger, and LINE, and is expanding the Omakase AI sub-brand into voice agents, AI avatars, and humanoid robotics.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Zeals industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Conversational AI for Social Chat Commerce
- NAICS
- Advertising Agencies (541810), Telemarketing Bureaus and Other Contact Centers (561422)
- SIC
- Services-Advertising Agencies (7311), Services-Computer Integrated Systems Design (7373)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Conversational Marketing & Chat Lead Capture (Chatbots, Live Chat) (BPAFAKAJ)
- akta.pro secondary industries
- Messaging-based Social Commerce (Chat Commerce) (CRAFANAG), Social Customer Service & Conversational Sales Platforms (CRAFANAL), Conversational AI Platforms (chat/voice bots, orchestration) (HDAAAFAC)
Keywords
Where Zeals is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Tokyo
- HQ country
- Japan
- HQ region
- Asia
Offices3 records
Markets served
Zeals business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B
- Offering type
- Software
- Cost components
- Personnel, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Operations, Infrastructure
Revenue model
- SaaS Platform Subscription: Social chat commerce platform subscription model with managed services. The company offers fully managed solutions where conversation designers handle design, build, deployment, and optimization. Pricing appears to be based on marketing/advertising budget with customized plans.
- Managed Conversation Design Services: Professional conversation design services included with platform subscription. Up to 10 hours provided for initial launch, with up to 5 hours per month post-launch for reports and optimization. Additional hours available at $200 per hour.
- CTX Ads (Click-to-Experience Ads): Social media advertising solution that integrates AI chat with paid social ads on Instagram and Facebook. Revenue generated through ad spend management and platform fees. Minimum monthly budget of 5-10k recommended for campaign performance.
Pricing tiers
| Model | Billing | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Subscription | Annual | Growth Plan - 12-month comprehensive subscription with full management services |
| Subscription | Multi-year contract | Starter Plan - 3-month subscription for businesses seeking shorter commitment |
| Other | Pay-as-you-go | Additional Conversation Design Hours |
| Other | Monthly | CTX Ads Minimum Budget |
Go-to-market motion3 records
Distribution channels6 records
Marketing channels11 records
Zeals product offering
Product offeringCore offering
Zeals operates an AI-powered social chat commerce SaaS platform that enables brands to engage customers through personalized, conversation-like experiences directly within social messaging apps (Facebook, Instagram, LINE). The offering spans three solution areas: Paid Social (CTX Ads), Organic Social Engagement, and Bounce Recovery, supported by fully managed conversation design services. The company also operates the Omakase AI sub-brand, which provides voice-powered sales agents, AI avatars, and humanoid robotics solutions for hospitality use cases.
Product overview
ZEALS operates a dual-brand portfolio. The ZEALS core brand is a Social Chat Commerce Platform — a SaaS platform combining AI-powered chat experiences with managed conversation design services across three solution areas: Paid Social (CTX Ads), Organic Social Engagement, and Bounce Recovery. The platform integrates with e-commerce platforms (Shopify, Salesforce Commerce Cloud) and messaging channels (Facebook, Instagram, LINE). The Omakase AI sub-brand encompasses AI-powered sales agent products including Omakase.ai Voice (voice-powered sales agent), Omakase AI Avatar (human-like conversational AI avatar), and Omakase Robotics (AI-powered humanoid robots for hospitality and service environments). Supporting features include Smart Offer (personalized recommendations), Push Notifications, Tag-to-Chat, and Link-to-Chat, all powered by proprietary LLM-based AI trained and managed by ZEALS conversation designers.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Brands
- Omakase.ai: A voice-powered sales agent that allows users to create AI agents from any URL, ranking #1 Product of the Day on Product Hunt in April 2025.
- Omakase AI Avatars
- Omakase Robotics
Products and services
- ZEALS Social Chat Commerce Platform
- CTX Ads (Click-to-Experience Ads)
- Organic Social Engagement
- Bounce Recovery
- Conversation Design Services (Managed Services)
- ZEALS AI Agent
- Omakase.ai Voice Voice-powered sales agent that allows brands to create a personal shopper AI agent using just a URL. Ranked #1 Product of the Day on Product Hunt in April 2025. Enables voice-based customer interactions on websites.
- Omakase AI Avatar
- Omakase Robotics
Quantifiable outcome
- Increases click-through rates by up to 100%
- +16 more outcomes
Companies that use Zeals
Customer profileNamed customers27 records
Segments5 records
Ideal customer profiles4 records
Zeals technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed Yes
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Integration2 records
AI capability6 records
Feature9 records
Zeals partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
Nine partnerships are on record, tiered strategic and core.
- Quick CorporationstrategicCollaboration on humanoid robot demonstration experiments at Tsukuba University Hospital using Unitree G1 humanoid robot. This marked Japan's first case where a general-purpose humanoid robot performed combined functions (autonomous walking, obstacle avoidance, navigation through conversation, and transportation) within a hospital setting.
- Unitree RoboticsstrategicChinese robotics company whose Unitree G1 humanoid robot is being tested for hospital applications in collaboration with ZEALS and Quick Corporation. Represents integration of Chinese robotics technology with Japanese hospitality standards.
- Tsukuba University HospitalstrategicHospital partner for humanoid robot demonstration experiment. Hospital director Yuji Hiramatsu provided positive feedback and indicated the institution would consider actual implementation possibilities within one to two years.
- L'OréalstrategicZEALS participated in L'Oréal Big Bang North Asia program at CIIE in Shanghai, showcasing open innovation ecosystem. ZEALS was among 19 startups selected for this program focused on sustainable materials and supply chain improvements.
- MetacoreStrategic technology partnership providing exclusive push notification capabilities for ZEALS customers. Meta's platforms (Instagram, Facebook) are the primary channels where ZEALS chat experiences are deployed.
- LINEcoreLINE messaging platform integration for chat commerce deployment in Japanese and Asian markets.
- SalesforcecoreSalesforce Commerce Cloud integration (coming soon) for seamless connection with enterprise eCommerce systems. Also listed as investor.
- ShopifycoreIntegration with Shopify for eCommerce connectivity (coming soon), enabling product data and offer integration.
- NVIDIAcoreNVIDIA Inception Program member, providing access to AI and deep learning technologies for platform development.
Scale indicators6 records
Recent moves6 records
Expansion highlights6 records
Zeals competitors and assessment
Company assessmentDirect peers
- ManyChat: ManyChat is a leading chat marketing platform for Instagram, Facebook Messenger, WhatsApp, and TikTok. It directly competes with Zeals in social messaging commerce, serving similar SMB and mid-market eCommerce brands with automation, conversation flows, and CTX-style ad-to-chat capabilities.
- Octane AI: Octane AI is a Shopify-focused conversational commerce platform offering AI-powered quizzes, personalized recommendations, and Messenger/SMS opt-ins. It competes head-to-head with Zeals in social chat commerce for product discovery and conversion, especially for Shopify-based brands.
- Gorgias: Gorgias is a helpdesk and conversational AI platform purpose-built for eCommerce. It overlaps with Zeals' bounce recovery and customer engagement solutions for DTC brands on Shopify and BigCommerce, with both companies competing for the same marketing-team budget.
- Tidio: Tidio provides live chat, chatbots, and AI-powered customer service for SMB eCommerce merchants. It competes with Zeals' lower end of the market through self-serve conversational commerce on websites, Messenger, and Instagram.
Emerging players
- Heyday (by Hootsuite): Heyday is a conversational AI platform for retail and eCommerce that integrates with messaging channels, CRMs, and e-commerce platforms. Acquired by Hootsuite, it competes with Zeals in personalized AI shopping assistants for mid-market brands.
- Ada: Ada is an AI-powered customer service automation platform for enterprise brands. It overlaps with Zeals' AI Agent and managed-services positioning for automated, brand-aligned customer conversations across channels.
- Cognigy: Cognigy is an enterprise conversational AI platform for customer service automation across voice and chat. It competes with the Omakase AI / ZEALS AI Agent positioning for large enterprises deploying AI agents at scale across multiple channels.
Broad incumbents
- Intercom: Intercom is an enterprise customer service and conversational AI platform with Fin AI. It competes with Zeals at the higher end of the market for AI-driven customer engagement, though with a broader web/SaaS focus rather than social-messaging-first.
- LivePerson: LivePerson is an established enterprise conversational AI and messaging platform serving large brands in retail, financial services, and telco. It overlaps with Zeals' enterprise chat commerce solutions, but at much larger scale and with a broader channel mix.
- Salesloft (Drift): Drift (now part of Salesloft) pioneered B2B conversational marketing and AI chat. While primarily B2B-focused, its playbooks for ad-to-chat, bounce recovery, and personalized conversation align closely with Zeals' core solutions in approach, even if end markets differ.
Market position
Strengths5 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat5 records
Key risks6 records
Key highlights7 records
Customer concentration
Zeals social profiles
Digital presenceZeals financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Zeals leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles2 records
Zeals funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds8 records
Investors11 records
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Zeals 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 Zeals
What does Zeals do?
Zeals operates an AI-powered social chat commerce SaaS platform that enables brands to engage customers through personalized, conversation-like experiences directly within social messaging apps (Facebook, Instagram, LINE). The offering spans three solution areas: Paid Social (CTX Ads), Organic Social Engagement, and Bounce Recovery, supported by fully managed conversation design services. The company also operates the Omakase AI sub-brand, which provides voice-powered sales agents, AI avatars, and humanoid robotics solutions for hospitality use cases.
Is Zeals a public or private company?
Zeals is a private company. It is classified as venture growth investor backed and is currently operating.
When was Zeals founded?
Zeals was founded in 2014. It employs 101 to 250 people.
Where is Zeals based?
Zeals is headquartered in Tokyo, Japan, in the Asia region.
How does Zeals make money?
Three revenue lines are on record. SaaS Platform Subscription is the primary driver. The others are managed Conversation Design Services and CTX Ads (Click-to-Experience Ads).
Who are Zeals's main competitors?
Direct peers on record are ManyChat, Octane AI, Gorgias and Tidio. Emerging players are Heyday (by Hootsuite), Ada and Cognigy. Broad incumbents are Intercom, LivePerson and Salesloft (Drift).
Does Zeals have an API?
No public API is recorded for Zeals.
What industry is Zeals in?
Zeals's product category is Conversational AI for Social Chat Commerce. Its primary akta.pro industry code is BPAFAKAJ, Conversational Marketing & Chat Lead Capture (Chatbots, Live Chat), with a secondary code of CRAFANAG, Messaging-based Social Commerce (Chat Commerce). Its NAICS code is 541810 and its SIC code is 7311.