What HACARUS does

Strategically, HACARUS has assembled a strong Japanese corporate ecosystem. Mitsubishi Electric took an equity stake in January 2024 alongside pre-existing backers Daikin, Osaka Gas and Miyako Capital (Kyoto University), with the company also disclosing presence in Asia, Europe and North America across 100+ AI projects since founding. Customers include DENSO TEN, BMW Startup Garage, Yanmar Holdings, Mitsubishi Electric FA, Daigas Group, Hitachi Zosen, Tokyo Electron, Toda Corporation, JR West Group and Tokyo Electron Technology Solutions, among others. Headcount is in the 51-100 range, and the company has been ranked 31st in Deloitte Touche Tohmatsu Japan's Technology Fast 50 based on 160.9% three-year revenue growth.

Name

HACARUS

Legal name

株式会社HACARUS

Website

https://hacarus.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2014

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

51–100 employees

Short description

HACARUS is a Kyoto-based AI software company founded in 2014 that applies proprietary Sparse Modeling technology to visual inspection, workplace safety, and hazard prediction, serving manufacturing, construction, semiconductor, and infrastructure enterprises via direct sales and OEM robotics partnerships.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

AI Visual Inspection Software

NAICS

Instruments and Related Products Manufacturing for Measuring, Displaying, and Controlling Industrial Process Variables (334513), Navigational, Measuring, Electromedical, and Control Instruments Manufacturing (33451)

SIC

Industrial Instruments For Measurement, Display, And Control (3823)

akta.pro primary industry

Industrial Automation Software (SCADA, HMI, MES, Historian) (IMAHAHAJ)

akta.pro secondary industry

Industrial Vision & Quality Inspection (HDAAAEAG)

Keywords

• AI visual inspection
• Industrial computer vision
• Automated quality inspection
• Workplace safety analytics
• Hazard prediction software

Headquarters

HQ city

Kyoto

HQ country

Japan

HQ region

Asia

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Software

Cost components

Technology or R&D, Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales

Revenue model

1. AI Software Licenses: Annual or perpetual licenses for HACARUS Check AI software, including Developer's License (CASD-2023) for building AI models and Run-time License (CASR-2023) for deployment. Software can be sold standalone or bundled with hardware.
2. AI Visual Inspection Systems (Hardware + Software): Complete turn-key inspection machines combining HACARUS Check AI software with FANUC CRX collaborative robots. Products include CFCD-1000 (fully automated 360° inspection), CFCS-1000 (semi-automatic), and plugin peripheral kits (CFCO-2000, CFCO-1000).
3. HACARUS KY Application Subscription: Monthly subscription for workplace safety AI application. Initial setup fee plus recurring monthly fees for KY activity support and hazard prediction services.
4. HACARUS Field Vision Tuner Cloud Application: Cloud application subscription for retraining PPE detection AI models without specialized AI knowledge.
5. Professional Services: Implementation support, on-site setup, customization development, and technical consulting services for AI deployment.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion3 records

Distribution channels6 records

Marketing channels7 records

Core offering

HACARUS develops and sells AI-based software and integrated robotic inspection systems for industrial visual quality control, together with workplace-safety applications for construction, infrastructure, semiconductor, and general industrial operations. Its portfolio includes the HACARUS Check Series, HACARUS Check ZERO, HACARUS KY, HACARUS Workplace Safety and Field Vision products, and customized HACARUS AI Solutions.

Product overview

HACARUS is a Kyoto-based AI company founded in 2014 offering a portfolio of AI solutions built on proprietary sparse modeling technology. The core product line includes HACARUS Check Series for visual inspection (available in multiple configurations: HACARUS Check, HACARUS Check ZERO, and specialized integrations with FANUC CRX, Mitsubishi Electric MELFA FR, and NTN i-WRIST robots), HACARUS KY for construction hazard prediction, HACARUS Workplace Safety/Field Vision for manufacturing safety monitoring, and HACARUS AI Solution for generative AI business applications. The company also operates HACARUS Humanoid Lab for humanoid robotics verification and maintains healthcare AI products (HACARUS MD, HACARUS DD). The portfolio architecture combines standalone software products with turn-key hardware-software integrated systems, supporting industries including manufacturing, construction, semiconductor, and healthcare.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• HACARUS Check: AI-powered visual inspection solution combining proprietary AI software with hardware for automated quality control in manufacturing
• HACARUS KY
• HACARUS Field Vision
• HACARUS AI Solution
• HACARUS Check ZERO
• HACARUS Humanoid Lab

Products and services

• HACARUS Check Series Flagship AI visual-inspection suite for automated defect detection in precision manufacturing. It combines HACARUS proprietary sparse-modeling software with image-capture hardware and is also available as standalone software for automotive, casting, electronics, metals, and machined-parts inspection.
• HACARUS Check ZERO Visual-inspection AI software with annotation-based Dual Tuning for continuous accuracy improvement. It is designed to reduce both over-detection and missed detection while training from small good-data datasets.
• HACARUS Check for FANUC CRX Series Turn-key inspection system combining HACARUS Check AI with FANUC CRX collaborative robots. It includes the CFCD-1000 fully automated 360-degree configuration and the CFCS-1000 semi-automatic 180-degree configuration.
• Food Package AI Visual Inspection Solution AI visual-inspection offering for food-packaging quality control. It detects foreign-matter contamination, shape defects, chips, breakage, seal defects, and label-printing issues.
• HACARUS KY (KY Hazard Prediction Support Service) Subscription application for construction-industry KY hazard-prediction activities. It searches a database of more than 3,500 industrial-accident cases, suggests relevant danger points, and generates accident illustrations from work-site conditions for smartphone, tablet, or PC users.
• HACARUS Field Vision Tuner Cloud application for retraining PPE-detection models without specialized AI knowledge. It extracts learning images from workplace videos so models can be adapted to local working conditions.
• HACARUS Workplace Safety (Field Vision) Edge-AI workplace-safety offering for industrial hazard prevention. It monitors camera images in real time to detect prohibited-area intrusion, unsafe behavior, and improper PPE use, while supporting accident review.
• HACARUS AI Solution Custom business-efficiency AI offering that combines AI agents and image-recognition AI to build generative-AI systems for operational workflows.
• HACARUS MD Diagnostic-support AI platform for healthcare professionals, including HACARUS MD for Colposcopy with image storage, processing, and examination-findings records.
• HACARUS DD AI drug-discovery support platform that combines researcher expertise with AI-assisted image analysis for drug-development workflows.

Quantifiable outcome

• Reduced manual inspections by 66% (from 6 to 2 workers) at Asahi Kosei
• +4 more outcomes

Named customers15 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration8 records

AI capability10 records

Feature5 records

Partnerships

Eight partnerships are on record, tiered minor, flagship and core.

• Kawasaki Heavy IndustriesminorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ Distributor · 5 August 2026HACARUS Check AI visual inspection solution registered as a product under Kawasaki Heavy Industries' robot peripheral equipment 'K-AddOn' program.
• BREXA Technology (formerly Outsourcing Technology)minorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 23 July 2025Co-creation partnership for image recognition software field implementation and sales expansion. Awarded TECH BEAT Shizuoka 2025 AWARD for this collaboration.
• NV Devices CorporationminorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ Distributor · 20 November 2024Exhibited at FOODtech Japan in NV Devices' booth, showcasing HACARUS Check AI Software with Canon Components' compact line scan camera for blister pack inspections.
• NTN CorporationflagshipTechnology or Integration · 7 February 2024Joint webinar and technology partnership featuring NTN's i-WRIST wrist joint module with HACARUS Check AI for high-speed inspection of die-cast products. i-WRIST enables flexible and rapid imaging for automated multi-angle inspection.
• Mitsubishi Electric CorporationcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 22 January 2024Strategic collaboration to expand AI visual inspection business. Mitsubishi Electric took an equity stake in HACARUS. Leverages HACARUS' AI expertise with Mitsubishi Electric's FA products and sales network to provide integrated automated AI visual inspection solutions. Mitsubishi Electric's MELSOFT VIXIO supported by HACARUS' AI technology.
• Visco TechnologiesflagshipTechnology or Integration · 22 January 2024Technology collaboration to promote automation of visual inspections in manufacturing. HACARUS Check AI software integrated with Visco's image processing inspection equipment (VTV-9000 Series) for hybrid inspection combining AI and rule-based technology. Enables simultaneous inspection of inner and outer surfaces of cylindrical metal parts.
• FANUC CorporationflagshipTechnology or IntegrationHACARUS Check for FANUC CRX Series is the first AI visual inspection system and first plug-in peripheral device compatible with FANUC's CRX collaborative robot lineup. Provides complete turn-key inspections for various inspection targets.
• Daido (Daido Trading Co.)minorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorPartner exhibiting HACARUS Check for FANUC CRX Series at International Robot Exhibition (iREX) and Manufacturing World Osaka.

Scale indicators6 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights7 records

Direct peers

• MVTec Software GmbH: Munich-based vendor of HALCON and MERLIC machine vision software, including deep-learning-based defect detection used in industrial inspection — directly comparable to HACARUS Check on vision-software stack and customer verticals.
• Cognex Corporation: Cognex is the global leader in machine vision systems and industrial barcode readers, with deep-learning-based inspection software (Edge Learning) used in automotive, electronics, and parts QA — the most direct head-to-head competitor to HACARUS Check.
• Basler AG: German industrial camera and vision-processing company offering hardware plus vision software for factory automation inspection. Comparable to HACARUS as both sell into industrial machine vision OEMs and integrators across automotive and electronics.

Emerging players

• Landing AI: Andrew Ng's AI-vision startup focused on manufacturing visual inspection through its LandingLens platform. Comparable as a software-led AI-only inspection vendor pursuing similar 'data-efficient' defect-detection positioning.
• Preferred Networks, Inc. Japan-based deep-learning-focused AI company applying its technology to industrial applications including manufacturing. Comparable as a Japan-domestic AI startup targeting factory and robotics customers with adjacent vision/inspection use cases.

Broad incumbents

• Omron Corporation: Japanese industrial automation leader whose FA and Sensing divisions include vision systems and AI-based inspection. Comparable as a Japan-domestic incumbent selling vision + automation solutions to similar automotive and electronics customers.
• Teledyne Technologies (FLIR / Teledyne Vision Solutions): Diversified industrial imaging and instrumentation group that supplies machine vision cameras, software, and inspection subsystems globally. Comparable in industrial machine vision hardware/software stack and customer verticals.
• SICK AG: Global manufacturer of industrial sensors including machine vision and quality inspection systems. Overlaps with HACARUS in factory automation QA, factory safety sensors, and industrial image processing.
• National Instruments / NI (Emerson): Test, measurement, and vision systems vendor (now part of Emerson) delivering vision inspection software and image acquisition hardware for manufacturing QA. Adjacent competitor serving similar factory-automation and automotive inspection use cases.
• KEYENCE Corporation: Japan-based industrial sensor and measurement leader with a machine vision lineup serving automotive, electronics, and factory automation. Highly comparable given HACARUS' CPO (Rio Onishi) held multiple senior roles at KEYENCE prior to joining HACARUS.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/hacarusinc
• Facebookfacebook.com/hacarus
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/hacarusinc

Compliance2 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles3 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds7 records

Investors20 records

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about HACARUS