Cerevo
Cerevo is a Japanese IoT hardware developer based in Tokyo building live streaming encoders (LiveShell W), wireless tally light systems (FlexTally Pro/Uni), and licensed smart toys, while also providing ODM electronic product development services to B2B clients.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded2012
- HeadquartersTokyo, Japan
- Headcount1–10
- GTM typeB2B and B2C
- OfferingHardware or Manufacturing
What Cerevo does
Cerevo (株式会社Cerevo) is a Tokyo-headquartered Japanese IoT hardware developer and ODM service provider operating with a 1-10 employee team. The company's name is a coined term combining "Consumer Electronics" and "REVOlution," reflecting its founding mission to add network connectivity to devices not originally designed for the internet. Its current active product portfolio centers on the LiveShell series of live streaming encoders (most prominently LiveShell W, a compact 2-input HDMI video switcher with integrated H.264 encoder, PinP and chroma key, web-based control via LiveShell Studio) and the FlexTally series of wireless tally lamp systems (FlexTally Pro supporting PoE/wired/wireless operation with up to 128 lamps across 100+ switcher models, and FlexTally Uni dedicated to Nikon digital accessory shoe cameras). Historically, Cerevo developed a wide range of IoT hardware including the 1/8 Tachikoma interactive robot, DOMINATOR Psycho-Pass smart toy, S.E.E.S. Persona 3 Reload Evoker, XON sports sensors, Tipron home robot, Taclim VR tactile system, and IoT modules like BlueNinja and CDP-ESP8266 — most of which have been discontinued. LiveShell products have been deployed by professional broadcasters and cable operators in over 85 countries.
The company operates a hybrid business model combining direct-to-consumer hardware sales (through its official cerevo.shop-pro.jp store and official Amazon.co.jp storefront) with B2B ODM services spanning electronic circuit design, mechanical design, software development, prototyping, and mass production. Pricing is largely quote-based for the ODM and professional segments; the Biz Meeting Set remote work bundle is publicly listed at 199,000 yen excluding tax. Distribution for the LiveShell series is supplemented by platform partnerships with YouTube Live, Ustream (historically), and Nico Nico Douga via RTMP/RTMPS protocol support. Customer concentration sits primarily in Japanese broadcasting and media (TBS Television, Shizuoka Broadcasting Corporation, TV Osaka, Komadori Cable) and the ODM client base is non-disclosed. Cerevo's IP-licensed smart toy business was historically anchored by partnerships with ATLUS (Persona 3 Reload) and Production I.G./Kodansha (Ghost in the Shell, Psycho-Pass). The company has no disclosed funding rounds in the available data, is privately held without identified external investors, and has no parent company. Engineering activity remains active through a TechBlog publishing technical content into mid-2025.
Cerevo firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Cerevo
- Legal name
- 株式会社Cerevo
- Website
- https://cerevo.com
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 2012
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 1–10 employees
- Short description
- Cerevo is a Japanese IoT hardware developer based in Tokyo building live streaming encoders (LiveShell W), wireless tally light systems (FlexTally Pro/Uni), and licensed smart toys, while also providing ODM electronic product development services to B2B clients.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Cerevo industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Live Streaming Equipment and IoT Electronics
- NAICS
- Electrical Equipment Manufacturing (33531), Industrial Design Services (54142)
- SIC
- Electronic Components & Accessories (3670)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Live Streaming & Low-Latency OTT Orchestration (LL-HLS, DASH, WebRTC) (MPAHAJAK)
- akta.pro secondary industry
- Consumer Electronics & Gadgets DTC (CRAFACAF)
Keywords
Where Cerevo is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Tokyo
- HQ country
- Japan
- HQ region
- Asia
Offices1 record
Markets served
Cerevo business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B and B2C
- Offering type
- Hardware or Manufacturing
- Cost components
- Personnel, Supply Chain, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Operations
Revenue model
- Hardware Product Sales: Sale of proprietary IoT and consumer electronics products including live streaming equipment (LiveShell, FlexTally), smart toys (DOMINATOR, Tachikoma), and other connected devices. Products sold through official store and Amazon.
- ODM/Development Services: Custom product development services where Cerevo handles electronic circuit design, mechanical design, software development, and mass production from concept to finished product for clients.
Pricing tiers
| Model | Billing | Price |
|---|---|---|
| One time/ perpetual license | Pay-as-you-go | Biz Meeting Set - Special (Remote Work PC Set) |
Go-to-market motion3 records
Distribution channels3 records
Marketing channels4 records
Cerevo product offering
Product offeringCore offering
Cerevo designs, develops, and manufactures connected consumer electronics, primarily compact live streaming encoders (LiveShell series) and wireless tally lamp systems (FlexTally series) for professional video production, along with licensed smart toys (e.g., DOMINATOR, Persona 3 Evoker). The company also offers full-stack electronics ODM (original design manufacturing) services covering electronic circuit design, mechanical design, software development, prototyping, and mass production for clients.
Product overview
Cerevo is a Japanese electronics design and manufacturing company whose name combines Consumer Electronics with REVOlution. The company develops IoT hardware products and provides ODM (original design manufacturing) services for electronics product development. The current active product portfolio centers on the LiveShell series of live streaming encoders and the FlexTally series of wireless tally lamp systems. LiveShell W is a compact 2-input video switcher with integrated live streaming encoder supporting PinP and chroma key; FlexTally Pro and FlexTally Uni are tally lamp systems for professional video production. The company also licenses entertainment IP for collectible smart toys (DOMINATOR 10th Anniversary Edition, S.E.E.S. Evoker from Persona 3 Reload). The broader historical portfolio includes smart sports devices (XON SNOW-1, XON RIDE-1, XON ORBITREC), the 1/8 Tachikoma interactive robot, smart home devices (Tipron, Taclim, SmartTrigger), maker-focused modules (BlueNinja, CDP-ESP8266), and legacy live streaming products (LiveShell X, LiveShell PRO, LiveShell 2, LiveWedge, CEREVO LIVEBOX, CEREVO CAM live!). ODM services encompass full-stack electronics development from circuit design through mass production.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Products and services
- LiveShell W
Quantifiable outcome
- FlexTally supports connection of up to 128 lamps for large-scale productions
- +1 more outcomes
Companies that use Cerevo
Customer profileNamed customers8 records
Segments3 records
Ideal customer profiles3 records
Cerevo technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed Yes
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Integration11 records
AI capability6 records
Feature5 records
Cerevo partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
Seven partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.
- Nikon CorporationcoreNikon digital accessory shoe compatibility. FlexTally Uni is designed specifically for Nikon cameras with digital accessory shoes, enabling tally lamp functionality for professional video production.
- ATLUScoreS.E.E.S. Summoner from Persona 3 Reload - ATLUS licensed the use of their intellectual property for Cerevo to create an authentic 1:1 scale replica of the in-game item with character voice recordings.
- YouTube LivecoreLiveShell series products support streaming to YouTube Live via RTMP/RTMPS protocol. Official platform compatibility for live broadcasting functionality.
- Ustream (formerly)coreLiveShell series originally developed with Ustream support for live streaming. Historical platform partnership for video streaming services.
- Production I.G / Kodansha / Ghost in the Shell Production Committeecore1/8 Scale Tachikoma product line - Licensed from Ghost in the Shell property for authentic robot toy development with dialogue features and character voice.
- Production I.G / Toei Animation / Psycho-Pass Production CommitteecoreDOMINATOR smart toy - Licensed reproduction of the fictional weapon from Psycho-Pass anime series with authentic auto-transformation mechanism.
- CamCast Mobile (Camcast7)minorLTE SIM card service provider recommended for stable live streaming in exhibition environments where WiFi is unstable. Provides upload-unlimited SIM cards for professional streaming use.
Scale indicators2 records
Recent moves6 records
Expansion highlights5 records
Cerevo competitors and assessment
Company assessmentDirect peers
- Datavideo: Taiwan-based manufacturer of professional video switchers, streaming encoders, and mobile video studios with significant overlap to Cerevo's LiveShell and tally workflows. Closely comparable product philosophy: turnkey, professional-grade, accessible to non-broadcasters.
- Roland: Japanese pro audio/video manufacturer whose V-1HD and V-8HD compact video switchers compete head-to-head with Cerevo's LiveShell W for the same live-event and small-broadcast market. Roland's much larger brand and distribution network makes it both a direct competitor and a strategic reference point.
- Magewell: Manufacturer of video capture cards, encoding hardware, and NDI converters. Closely comparable to Cerevo's hardware-encoder category, particularly for fixed-installation and broadcast customers needing reliable H.264/H.265 streaming appliances.
- Atomos: Australian manufacturer of monitor-recorders (Ninja, Shogun) and live production switchers (Shogun Studio) for video professionals. Comparable in serving multi-camera live production workflows, though more weighted toward cinematic recording than streaming encoding.
- Elgato (Corsair): Maker of the Stream Deck and HD60 capture card lines targeting live streamers and content creators. Directly comparable to Cerevo's prosumer streaming focus, though Elgato is positioned more at the creator-economy end and Cerevo more at the professional broadcaster end.
- AVerMedia: Taiwan-based manufacturer of capture cards and live streaming hardware (Live Gamer series, Stream Engine). Directly comparable to Cerevo's LiveShell encoders, serving the same prosumer and prosumer-broadcaster customer base with similar HDMI-input streaming workflows.
- SlingStudio (by Meta/DJI): Wireless multi-camera live streaming system targeted at small production teams and event videographers. Directly comparable use case (compact, multi-camera streaming) to Cerevo's LiveShell + FlexTally combination, though discontinued/transitioned in recent years.
- Teradek (Vitec Group): US-based manufacturer of wireless video transmitters, bonded cellular encoders (CUBE, Bond), and live streaming appliances serving professional broadcast and film customers. Comparable in target market and live-encoding focus, with greater depth in wireless and bonded workflows.
Broad incumbents
- Sony Professional Solutions: Global incumbent in broadcast cameras, switchers, and IP live production systems. Cerevo's FlexTally Uni Nikon partnership explicitly integrates with the broader professional camera ecosystem that Sony anchors; Sony is a broad incumbent rather than a direct competitor in Cerevo's compact-encoder niche.
- Blackmagic Design: Australia-based incumbent in professional video production equipment, including the ATEM line of compact video switchers that overlap with Cerevo's LiveShell W and the HyperDeck recorder ecosystem. A much larger player but the most direct competitive overlap in the small-form-factor switcher + encoder category.
Market position
Strengths5 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat5 records
Key risks6 records
Key highlights7 records
Customer concentration
Cerevo social profiles
Digital presenceCerevo financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Cerevo leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles8 records
Cerevo funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds2 records
Investors8 records
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Cerevo 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 Cerevo
What does Cerevo do?
Cerevo designs, develops, and manufactures connected consumer electronics, primarily compact live streaming encoders (LiveShell series) and wireless tally lamp systems (FlexTally series) for professional video production, along with licensed smart toys (e.g., DOMINATOR, Persona 3 Evoker). The company also offers full-stack electronics ODM (original design manufacturing) services covering electronic circuit design, mechanical design, software development, prototyping, and mass production for clients.
Is Cerevo a public or private company?
Cerevo is a private company. It is classified as founder individual operated bootstrapped and is currently operating.
When was Cerevo founded?
Cerevo was founded in 2012. It employs 1 to 10 people.
Where is Cerevo based?
Cerevo is headquartered in Tokyo, Japan, in the Asia region.
How does Cerevo make money?
Two revenue lines are on record. Hardware Product Sales are the primary driver. The others are ODM/Development Services.
Who are Cerevo's main competitors?
Direct peers on record are Datavideo, Roland, Magewell, Atomos, Elgato (Corsair), AVerMedia, SlingStudio (by Meta/DJI) and Teradek (Vitec Group). Broad incumbents are Sony Professional Solutions and Blackmagic Design.
Does Cerevo have an API?
No public API is recorded for Cerevo.
What industry is Cerevo in?
Cerevo's product category is Live Streaming Equipment and IoT Electronics. Its primary akta.pro industry code is MPAHAJAK, Live Streaming & Low-Latency OTT Orchestration (LL-HLS, DASH, WebRTC), with a secondary code of CRAFACAF, Consumer Electronics & Gadgets DTC. Its NAICS code is 33531 and its SIC code is 3670.