ROUTE06
ROUTE06 is a Tokyo-based AI-driven business transformation company that combines proprietary SaaS products (Acsim, Giselle, Liam, Plain) with professional services to support digital transformation and agile software development for large Japanese corporations and global product builders.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded2020
- HeadquartersMarunouchi, Japan
- Headcount51–100
- GTM typeB2B
- OfferingSoftware
What ROUTE06 does
ROUTE06, Inc. is a Tokyo-headquartered, private AI-powered business transformation company founded in 2020 by CEO Takafumi Endo. The company operates a dual business model combining proprietary AI-driven SaaS products with embedded professional services, targeting the digital transformation (DX) needs of large Japanese corporations while also serving global product builders through self-serve tools. Its product portfolio addresses gaps across the software development lifecycle: Acsim is an AI platform for requirements definition that generates conversation-based business flows and automatic design documentation; Giselle is a visual AI app builder released as open-source under Apache License 2.0 in December 2025; Liam is an AI coding agent for development teams; and Plain is a self-developed enterprise SaaS platform providing back-end systems and APIs for vertical digital business launch.
Underlying technology is delivered through a service-integrated stack combining Acsim with Vercel (frontend infrastructure via v0) and Supabase (Postgres-based backend) to enable same-day PoC/MVP construction. The company holds ISO/IEC 27001-aligned information security management and operates from Marunouchi, Tokyo, with 51-100 employees.
ROUTE06 generates revenue through two primary streams: (1) subscription-based SaaS licensing for Acsim, Giselle, Liam, and Plain, distributed via self-serve channels and strategic partnerships (notably DG Business Technology for Acsim); and (2) professional services encompassing agile development support, UX/operation design, UI design, system design and implementation, and growth-phase consulting for major Japanese enterprises. Its go-to-market combines product-led growth for SaaS with direct enterprise field sales and partner-channel introductions for large engagements. Named enterprise engagements include Mitsubishi Corporation (next-generation PVC order/delivery platform 'step X'), Mitsubishi Materials Corporation (e-scrap platform MEX), and Sogo & Seibu (OMO retail initiative 'CHOOSEBASE SHIBUYA'). The company has raised approximately $12.8M cumulatively across a 2020 seed round and a June 2022 Series A led by All Star SAAS Fund with participation from Mitsubishi Corporation, Mitsubishi UFJ Capital, Mizuho Capital, SMBC Venture Capital, JAFCO, Delight Ventures, and Genesia Ventures.
ROUTE06 firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- ROUTE06
- Legal name
- ROUTE06, Inc.
- Website
- https://route06.com
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 2020
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 51–100 employees
- Short description
- ROUTE06 is a Tokyo-based AI-driven business transformation company that combines proprietary SaaS products (Acsim, Giselle, Liam, Plain) with professional services to support digital transformation and agile software development for large Japanese corporations and global product builders.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
ROUTE06 industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Enterprise Software / AI Development Platform
- NAICS
- Software Publishers (513210), Custom Computer Programming Services (541511), Computer Systems Design Services (541512)
- SIC
- Services-Prepackaged Software (7372), Services-Computer Programming, Data Processing, Etc. (7370), Services-Computer Programming Services (7371)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Low-Code/No-Code Application Platforms (HDAEAKAA)
- akta.pro secondary industries
- Process & Case Management Low-Code Platforms (HDAEAKAE), Developer Experience Platforms for Enterprise (IDEs, CI/CD, Dev Portals) (HDAEAKAI), B2B/EDI & Supply Chain Process Automation Platforms (HDAEAHAK), AI/ML Engineering & Model Development Services (BPAEAHAF), Industry-Specific Low-Code Platforms (Vertical App Platforms) (HDAEAKAL)
Keywords
Where ROUTE06 is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Marunouchi
- HQ country
- Japan
- HQ region
- Asia
Offices1 record
Markets served
ROUTE06 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 Product Subscriptions (Acsim, Giselle, Liam, Plain): ROUTE06 generates recurring subscription revenue from its AI-powered SaaS platforms. Acsim provides requirements definition AI on a subscription basis. Products are available via freemium/self-serve online channels as well as enterprise seat-based licensing.
- Professional Services: Comprehensive agile development and DX consulting services for major Japanese corporations, covering UX/operation design, UI design, system design and implementation, and growth-phase support. Delivered by in-house product managers, designers, and software engineers as a cohesive team.
- Plain (Enterprise SaaS Platform): Self-developed enterprise SaaS product providing back-end systems and APIs, positioned as a foundational platform across wide range of industries. Reinforced as top-priority management issue with dedicated Product Development Division under CTO.
Pricing tiers
| Model | Billing | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Subscription | Annual | Acsim - AI Requirements Definition SaaS |
Go-to-market motion2 records
Distribution channels4 records
Marketing channels10 records
ROUTE06 product offering
Product offeringCore offering
ROUTE06 develops and sells AI-powered SaaS products (Acsim for requirements definition, Giselle visual AI app builder, Liam AI coding agent, and Plain enterprise platform) that streamline upstream software development processes. The company also provides professional services for agile development support covering UX/operation design, UI design, system design and implementation, and growth-phase support for major Japanese enterprises undergoing digital transformation.
Product overview
ROUTE06 is an AI-powered business transformation company offering a portfolio of AI-driven products and professional services. The core product lineup includes Giselle (visual AI app builder), Liam (AI development tool), and Acsim (requirements definition AI platform), all of which work together to support the software development lifecycle from requirements gathering through to application deployment. The company also provides Professional Services for agile development support and Plain, a self-developed enterprise SaaS platform for back-end systems and APIs.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Brands
- Giselle: AI-powered visual app builder that enables drag-and-drop AI app creation. Released as open-source under Apache License 2.0.
- Liam
- Acsim
Products and services
- Giselle A visual AI app builder that enables drag-and-drop AI application creation. Released as open-source under Apache License 2.0, freely available for individuals and companies worldwide. Designed for software engineers, product managers, and developers.
- Liam An AI-powered development tool designed to enhance AI-assisted coding workflows for development teams. Accompanied by open-source repositories on GitHub (liam-hq).
- Acsim An AI-powered requirements definition platform that supports upstream software development from conception to approval. Generates conversation-based business flows, identifies problems, constructs prototypes, and outputs design documentation automatically. Addresses dependency on individual expertise and talent shortage in upstream processes.
- Professional Services Professional services supporting practical agile development for major Japanese corporations. Covers UX and operational design, UI design, system design and implementation, and growth phase support. Delivered by in-house product managers, designers, and software engineers.
- Plain A self-developed enterprise SaaS platform providing back-end systems and APIs for vertical launch of digital businesses for major companies. Positioned as foundational platform infrastructure across industries and operations, with focus on manufacturing and trading industries.
Quantifiable outcome
- Same-day frontend construction from requirements definition (via Acsim + v0 + Vercel integration)
- +1 more outcomes
Companies that use ROUTE06
Customer profileNamed customers3 records
Segments2 records
Ideal customer profiles2 records
ROUTE06 technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed Yes
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Integration2 records
AI capability4 records
Feature4 records
ROUTE06 partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
Six partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.
- SupabasecoreAcsim, ROUTE06's requirements definition AI, partnered with Supabase Inc., which offers the Postgres-based development platform 'Supabase' used by over 2 million developers worldwide. Users can now access Supabase environments directly through Acsim, enabling PoC and MVP launch in just one day.
- VercelcoreROUTE06 and Vercel announced a strategic partnership combining 'Acsim,' 'v0,' and Vercel's infrastructure to provide an AI-driven development environment enabling same-day frontend construction from requirements definition. The partnership targets all SIers, IT departments, and development teams in Japan.
- DG Business TechnologycoreROUTE06 and DG Business Technology formed a business alliance to launch 'Acsim,' a SaaS platform revolutionizing requirements definition with AI. The platform comprehensively supports from conversation-based business flow generation, problem identification, prototype construction to automatic design documentation output. It addresses reproducibility and speed in upstream processes challenged by individual dependency and talent shortage.
- Mitsubishi CorporationcoreROUTE06 partnered with Mitsubishi Corporation to develop 'step X,' a next-generation order and delivery platform for the PVC industry. ROUTE06 serves as DX partner providing enterprise software infrastructure and agile commercialization support, enabling companies to transform commerce into a platform for business transactions.
- Sogo & Seibu (CHOOSEBASE SHIBUYA)minorROUTE06 and Sogo & Seibu jointly developed 'CHOOSEBASE SHIBUYA,' a media-style OMO (Online Merges with Offline) store at the Seibu Shibuya store. The store uses OMO systems and services provided by ROUTE06 and partners including AWL, hey(stores), and Logikura.
- Mitsubishi Materials CorporationcoreROUTE06 participated as a partner company in the MEX e-scrap trading platform launch press conference organized by Mitsubishi Materials Corporation. ROUTE06 contributed to explaining MMC's digitalization strategy MMDX (Mitsubishi Materials Digital Business Transformation) and the potential of the MEX platform.
Scale indicators2 records
Recent moves6 records
Expansion highlights6 records
ROUTE06 competitors and assessment
Company assessmentDirect peers
- Replit: Replit is a cloud-based AI development platform offering code generation, deployment, and collaboration. It overlaps with ROUTE06's Giselle (visual AI app builder) and Liam (AI coding agent) in enabling rapid app creation by product builders.
- Bubble: Bubble is a visual no-code application platform that lets non-developers build web apps. It is directly comparable to ROUTE06's Giselle product, which similarly enables drag-and-drop AI application creation for product builders.
- Retool: Retool is a low-code platform for building internal business tools and apps. It is comparable to ROUTE06's portfolio of low-code/AI app builders (Giselle) targeting enterprise productivity use cases and developer-adjacent personas.
- Lovable: Lovable (formerly GPT Engineer) is an AI-powered app builder that turns natural language into production apps. It competes with ROUTE06's Giselle visual AI app builder and with Acsim's promise of same-day frontend/MVP creation.
- Cursor (Anysphere): Cursor is an AI-native code editor competing directly with ROUTE06's Liam AI coding agent. Both target developer productivity gains from AI-assisted coding, and they compete for the same Japanese enterprise developer seats and global mindshare.
Broad incumbents
- Mendix: Mendix (Siemens) is an enterprise low-code platform with broad workflow and application development capabilities. It is comparable to ROUTE06's Plain enterprise SaaS platform and broader DX offering, serving large enterprise transformation needs.
- OutSystems:
Market position
Strengths2 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat4 records
Key risks6 records
Key highlights6 records
Customer concentration
ROUTE06 social profiles
Digital presenceROUTE06 compliance and trust
Trust signalCompliance1 record
ROUTE06 financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
ROUTE06 leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles4 records
ROUTE06 funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds2 records
Investors7 records
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
ROUTE06 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 ROUTE06
What does ROUTE06 do?
ROUTE06 develops and sells AI-powered SaaS products (Acsim for requirements definition, Giselle visual AI app builder, Liam AI coding agent, and Plain enterprise platform) that streamline upstream software development processes. The company also provides professional services for agile development support covering UX/operation design, UI design, system design and implementation, and growth-phase support for major Japanese enterprises undergoing digital transformation.
Is ROUTE06 a public or private company?
ROUTE06 is a private company. It is classified as venture growth investor backed and is currently operating.
When was ROUTE06 founded?
ROUTE06 was founded in 2020. It employs 51 to 100 people.
Where is ROUTE06 based?
ROUTE06 is headquartered in Marunouchi, Japan, in the Asia region.
How does ROUTE06 make money?
Three revenue lines are on record. SaaS Product Subscriptions (Acsim, Giselle, Liam, Plain) is the primary driver. The others are professional Services and plain (Enterprise SaaS Platform).
Who are ROUTE06's main competitors?
Direct peers on record are Replit, Bubble, Retool, Lovable and Cursor (Anysphere). Broad incumbents are Mendix and OutSystems.
Does ROUTE06 have an API?
No public API is recorded for ROUTE06.
What industry is ROUTE06 in?
ROUTE06's product category is Enterprise Software / AI Development Platform. Its primary akta.pro industry code is HDAEAKAA, Low-Code/No-Code Application Platforms, with a secondary code of HDAEAKAE, Process & Case Management Low-Code Platforms. Its NAICS code is 513210 and its SIC code is 7372.