What Next Innovation does

Next Innovation Inc. (株式会社ネクイノ) is a Japanese medical communication company founded on June 3, 2016 and headquartered in Osaka, with a stated capitalization of 100 million JPY and 51–100 employees. The company builds and operates technology platforms that connect women with healthcare services and products, organized under two principal product lines. Smaluna, launched in June 2018, is a smartphone-based telemedicine platform enabling online physician consultations, prescription issuance, medication delivery, and free 24/7 access to midwives and pharmacists; the app has accumulated over 1.3 million downloads. Toreluna is an IoT-enabled sanitary product dispensing service consisting of physical machines installed in public restrooms across Japan (approximately 800 units as of April 2025, with a stated target of 6,000 units by end of 2025), accessed via smartphone QR-code scan.

The underlying technology combines a mobile telemedicine application stack with proprietary IoT dispensing hardware integrated to a mobile app. Additional sub-brands include Smaluna for Biz (a B2B version of the consultation platform), N Connect (an organizational telemedicine platform), and Smaluna Mart (a consumer testing service). Next Innovation's business model is hybrid: smaluna and Smaluna for Biz generate subscription/recurring consultation revenue, toreluna generates revenue from hardware-enabled sanitary product dispensing, and the B2B platforms serve employer/organization clients. The company is privately held, founder-controlled (Representative Director Kenichi Ishii / 石井 健一), and has raised approximately $22M across multiple rounds between 2017 and 2021 from investors including JAFCO, Akatsuki Games Inc., Nissay Capital, ANOBAKA, Saison Ventures, and others.

Name

Next Innovation

Legal name

株式会社ネクイノ

Website

https://nextinnovation-inc.co.jp

Company type

Private

Founded year

2016

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Next Innovation Inc. is a Japanese medical communication company that operates smaluna, a smartphone-based telemedicine platform for women's health with 1.3M+ downloads, and toreluna, an IoT sanitary product dispensing network scaling across Japanese public restrooms.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Women's Health Telemedicine

SIC

Services-Offices & Clinics Of Doctors Of Medicine (8011)

akta.pro primary industry

Women’s Health & Contraception Prescribing + Pharmacy Delivery Platforms (HLALAIAI)

akta.pro secondary industries

Women’s Health & Family Care Virtual Care (fertility, maternity, pediatrics) (HLALADAE), Healthcare On‑Demand Platforms (Telehealth, Home Care, Nursing) (BPAMAHAH)

Keywords

• Online medical consultation
• Telemedicine platform
• Femtech services
• Women's health apps
• Medical dispensing devices

Headquarters

HQ city

Osaka

HQ country

Japan

HQ region

Asia

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B and B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Technology or R&D, Operations, Supply Chain, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. smaluna Online Medical Consultations: Revenue from telemedicine consultations where users receive medical prescriptions and healthcare advice through the smaluna app. Includes consultation fees and pharmaceutical dispensing services.
2. toreluna Sanitary Product Sales: Revenue generated from menstrual product dispensing devices installed in public restrooms, providing sanitary napkins to users via smartphone scanning.
3. smaluna for Biz: B2B telemedicine services for business clients, providing employee healthcare consultation solutions.

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels2 records

Marketing channels3 records

Core offering

Next Innovation operates smaluna, a smartphone-based telemedicine platform that connects women with registered physicians for online medical consultations, prescription services, and 24/7 access to midwives and pharmacists. The company also operates toreluna, an IoT-enabled network of restroom-mounted sanitary napkin dispensing devices activated via smartphone QR scan, targeting 6,000 installations nationwide by end of 2025.

Product overview

Next Innovation operates a multi-product femtech and digital health platform. The core offerings consist of Smaluna, an online medical consultation and prescription delivery platform for women's health (including a B2B variant, Smaluna for Biz), and Toreluna, a device-and-app service providing sanitary pad dispensing in restrooms via QR code. Additional sub-brands include N Connect (a business-oriented online consultation platform) and Smaluna Mart (a testing service). The portfolio shares a focus on democratizing access to healthcare and women's health through technology and communication.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• smaluna: Online telemedicine platform for women's health offering doctor consultations and medication delivery. Also includes free 365-day consultation service by midwives and pharmacists.
• toreluna

Products and services

• smaluna An online medical consultation platform for women's health that enables users to consult with physicians via app-based video call, receive prescriptions, and have medication delivered. The platform also offers a free 24/7 Smaluna Medical Consultation Room staffed by midwives and pharmacists for general medical inquiries.
• toreluna A device and mobile app combination enabling users to receive sanitary napkins (pads) by scanning a QR code with their smartphone at participating restroom locations. The service is part of a femtech initiative to provide accessible menstrual products in public restrooms and promote open discussion of menstrual health.
• Smaluna for Biz

Quantifiable outcome

• 1.3 million+ cumulative app downloads since June 2018 service launch
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers3 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature3 records

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Market position

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles2 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds6 records

Investors10 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 Next Innovation