Ibis
Ibis is a Japanese mobile technology company that develops and operates ibisPaint, a globally popular digital painting app with 540 million cumulative downloads, alongside the ibisWorks B2B cloud platform offering zero-trust storage (ibisStorage) and AI meeting transcription (ibisScribe) for Japanese enterprises.
- Company typePublic
- Founded2000
- HeadquartersNagoya, Japan
- Headcount251–500
- GTM typeB2B and B2C
- OfferingSoftware
What Ibis does
Ibis Inc. (株式会社アイビス) is a Japan-based mobile technology company founded on May 11, 2000, and listed on the Tokyo Stock Exchange Growth Market (Code: 9343) since March 23, 2023. The company operates two distinct product lines: a consumer-facing digital painting application (ibisPaint) and an enterprise B2B cloud services platform (ibisWorks). ibisPaint is a cross-platform digital illustration app available on iOS, Android, Windows, Mac, and Huawei AppGallery, with 540 million cumulative downloads across 200+ countries as of May 2026, and approximately 40 million monthly active users. ibisWorks offers enterprise cloud storage (ibisStorage) with zero-trust security and AI-powered meeting transcription (ibisScribe). The company maintains offices in Tokyo (Chuo-ku), Nagoya (regional HQ relocated May 2026), and Osaka, with 190 disclosed contract workers across the three offices.
The company's core technology stack is built around a proprietary GPU-accelerated mobile painting engine written in C++, supporting pressure-sensitive brush input, vector layers, and animation functionality. AI capabilities include deep learning-based automatic coloring (released 2017), AI super-resolution upscaling (June 2023), and a distinctive "AI learning obstruction" feature (May 2024) that adds protective noise to artwork to degrade output from AI models trained on scraped creator content. ibisStorage integrates AI-OCR (leveraging the ChatGPT API) to extract structured fields from receipts and invoices for Japanese electronic bookkeeping compliance. The company holds ISO/IEC 27001 (ISMS), ISO/IEC 27017 (cloud security), Privacy Mark, and JIIMA electronic bookkeeping certifications, supporting its enterprise go-to-market.
Ibis's business model combines multiple revenue streams: a freemium consumer model with ad-supported free tiers (ibisPaint X), paid app downloads at 980 JPY per platform, and premium subscriptions at 300 JPY/month or 2,980 JPY/year; marketplace commissions from Apple App Store, Google Play, Microsoft Store, and Huawei AppGallery; B2B subscription revenue from ibisWorks (ibisStorage Standard at 600 JPY/user/month, Enterprise at 1,400 JPY/user/month, plus unlimited-seat tiers); a historical IT engineer dispatch business (190 contract workers with disclosed margin rates of 42.7–47.4%); and contracted software development services. Approximately 90% of ibisPaint users are international, and primary customer segments span Gen Z/Gen Alpha individual creators, professional illustrators and studios, educational institutions (via ibisPaint Edu), and Japanese SMBs requiring compliant document storage.
Ibis firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Ibis
- Legal name
- 株式会社アイビス
- Website
- https://ibis.ne.jp
- Company type
- Public
- Founded year
- 2000
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 251–500 employees
- Short description
- Ibis is a Japanese mobile technology company that develops and operates ibisPaint, a globally popular digital painting app with 540 million cumulative downloads, alongside the ibisWorks B2B cloud platform offering zero-trust storage (ibisStorage) and AI meeting transcription (ibisScribe) for Japanese enterprises.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Ibis industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Digital Art Software
- NAICS
- Software Publishers (513210), Computing Infrastructure Providers, Data Processing, Web Hosting, and Related Services (518210), Graphic Design Services (54143)
- SIC
- Services-Computer Programming Services (7371), Pens, Pencils & Other Artists' Materials (3950)
- akta.pro primary industry
- AI Integration & Orchestration Platforms (Connectors, Workflow, iPaaS for AI) (HDAEANAI)
- akta.pro secondary industry
- iPaaS & Workflow Automation (BPAMAOAB)
Keywords
Where Ibis is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Nagoya
- HQ country
- Japan
- HQ region
- Asia
Offices4 records
Markets served
Ibis business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B and B2C
- Offering type
- Software
- Cost components
- Personnel, Operations, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure, Others
Revenue model
- ibisPaint Premium Subscriptions: Freemium model with basic free features and premium paid tier; premium includes advanced brush sets, materials, AI tools, and exclusive features; monthly subscription at 300 JPY per month for premium membership
- App Store Commissions: Revenue share from paid app downloads (980 JPY for paid versions) and premium subscriptions through Apple App Store, Google Play, Microsoft Store, and Huawei AppGallery
- ibisWorks Enterprise Cloud Services: B2B cloud storage (ibisStorage) and AI meeting transcription (ibisScribe) sold to enterprises with per-user or unlimited-user pricing tiers
- B2B Contracted Development: Custom software development services for enterprise clients alongside IT technician dispatch services
- Advertising Revenue: Ad revenue from free app users; user behavior analytics shared with sponsors for targeted advertising
Pricing tiers
| Model | Billing | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Freemium | Monthly | ibisPaint Free Version - Basic drawing features at no cost |
| Subscription | Annual | ibisPaint Premium Membership - 300 JPY/month or 2,980 JPY/year |
| One time/ perpetual license | Monthly | ibisPaint Paid App - One-time purchase at 980 JPY per platform |
| Per seat | Monthly | ibisStorage Standard Plan - 600 JPY/user/month for 300GB |
| Per seat | Monthly | ibisStorage Enterprise Plan - 1,400 JPY/user/month for 1TB |
| Subscription | Monthly | ibisStorage Unlimited User Standard - 18,000 JPY/month flat |
| Subscription | Monthly | ibisStorage Unlimited User Enterprise - 30,000 JPY/month flat |
| Freemium | Monthly | ibisStorage Free Plan - 2GB free storage |
Go-to-market motion4 records
Distribution channels7 records
Marketing channels7 records
Ibis product offering
Product offeringCore offering
Ibis develops and operates the ibisPaint mobile digital painting app — a cross-platform illustration tool with over 540 million cumulative downloads across iOS, Android, Windows, Mac, and Huawei devices — along with the ibisWorks enterprise cloud services platform offering ibisStorage (zero-trust cloud storage with AI-OCR for electronic bookkeeping) and ibisScribe (AI meeting transcription). The company additionally provides contracted mobile app development and IT technician dispatch services.
Product overview
Ibis operates two distinct product lines: (1) Consumer digital art: ibisPaint — a mobile-first painting app available as free (ibisPaint X) and premium versions across iOS, Android, Windows, and Mac, plus ibisPaint Edu for educational institutions; and (2) Enterprise B2B: ibisWorks — a cloud services platform comprising AI meeting minutes service ibisScribe and zero-trust cloud storage ibisStorage. The company also maintains historical legacy products (ibisBrowser series, ibisMail) which are discontinued. The portfolio spans C2C illustration/social (ibisPaint community), B2C subscription (ibisPaint premium), and B2B SaaS (ibisWorks enterprise tools).
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Quantifiable outcome
- Cumulative downloads reached 540 million globally (May 2026)
- +4 more outcomes
Companies that use Ibis
Customer profileNamed customers2 records
Segments5 records
Ideal customer profiles4 records
Ibis technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed Yes
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Integration2 records
AI capability8 records
Feature6 records
Ibis partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
Five partnerships are on record, tiered minor and core.
- QUICK (株式会社QUICK)minorQUICK Research Net, a web media operated by Nikkei Group company QUICK, featured ibisPaint and company business strategy in their 'Trend Selection' article series. Article highlighted ibisPaint's global growth through word-of-mouth and community features, reaching 40 million MAU, plus future growth strategies including AI integration and subscription monetization.
- JETRO Nagoya (Japan External Trade Organization)minorParticipated in foreign media press tour organized by JETRO Nagoya and Foreign Press Center Japan (FPCJ); part of international promotion efforts to showcase Japanese mobile apps globally.
- Wacom Co., Ltd.coreibisPaint pre-installed on Wacom MovinkPad series tablets as exclusive drawing app; comes with 180-day premium membership bonus for enhanced drawing experience. Strategic hardware bundling to reach professional artists and creators.
- NIJIN Afterschool (合同会社NIJIN)minorCollaboration with metaverse-based after-school program for digital art education; held illustration contest for elementary/middle school students themed 'Ideal Vtuber' using ibisPaint.
- Techno-Speech Co., Ltd. (株式会社テクノスピーチ)coreIbis acquired Techno-Speech (VoiSona brand) as subsidiary to expand into AI voice/speech synthesis market; synergy between ibisPaint animation features and voice synthesis technology for content creation.
Scale indicators11 records
Recent moves12 records
Expansion highlights7 records
Ibis competitors and assessment
Company assessmentEmerging players
- Krita Foundation (Krita): Krita is a free, open-source professional painting application popular with concept artists and illustrators on desktop. It competes with ibisPaint's premium tier on price (free) within the professional creator segment, though it lacks ibisPaint's mobile-first product advantage.
- Otter.ai: Otter.ai is an AI meeting transcription and notes service targeting enterprise and SMB meeting workflows. It is directly comparable to ibisScribe as an AI-powered meeting minutes product competing for the same B2B productivity customer base.
Broad incumbents
- Picsart: Picsart is a mobile-first creative tools platform with AI-powered photo editing, drawing, and design tools. While broader than illustration, its freemium mobile model, social community features, and AI creative tooling directly overlap with ibisPaint's product-led growth and consumer creator positioning.
- Canva: Canva is the dominant consumer-friendly graphic design platform offering templates, drawing tools, and AI image generation. It overlaps with ibisPaint on casual creator segments and is rapidly encroaching on illustration workflows with Magic Studio and AI features.
- Box Inc. Box is an enterprise cloud storage and content management platform with strong compliance certifications (HIPAA, FedRAMP). It is comparable to ibisStorage as a secure enterprise cloud storage solution, though Box operates at global scale versus ibisStorage's Japan-SMB focus.
- Adobe (Fresco & Creative Cloud): Adobe's Fresco drawing app and broader Creative Cloud suite serve the same professional and prosumer illustration market as ibisPaint, but as part of a much larger creative software portfolio. Adobe bundles Fresco with Creative Cloud subscriptions, leveraging enterprise-wide distribution that ibisPaint lacks.
- Autodesk Sketchbook: Autodesk Sketchbook is a free cross-platform drawing app from Autodesk serving hobbyist and professional illustrators. As a free incumbent with established brand recognition, it competes for ibisPaint's indie creator audience particularly on desktop platforms.
Direct peers
- MediBang (MediBang Inc.): MediBang Paint is a Japanese-developed free cross-platform illustration app (mobile + desktop) targeting the same teen and amateur manga/digital art demographic as ibisPaint. Its freemium model with optional Pro subscription directly competes for the lower end of ibisPaint's user base.
- Celsys (Clip Studio Paint): Clip Studio Paint is the leading professional illustration and manga creation software from Japanese developer Celsys. It shares ibisPaint's anime/manga-focused user base and expanding mobile/desktop cross-platform strategy, with subscription and perpetual licensing models that directly compete for professional illustrators.
- Procreate (Savage Interactive): Procreate is the dominant professional digital illustration app on iPad, the closest direct competitor to ibisPaint in the mobile/tablet drawing category. It targets a similar creator demographic with a one-time purchase model and overlapping feature set (brushes, layers, animation), making it the natural head-to-head for ibisPaint on iOS.
Market position
Strengths5 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat6 records
Key risks6 records
Key highlights8 records
Customer concentration
Ibis social profiles
Digital presenceIbis compliance and trust
Trust signalCompliance5 records
Ibis financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Ibis leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles1 record
Ibis funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Ibis 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 Ibis
What does Ibis do?
Ibis develops and operates the ibisPaint mobile digital painting app — a cross-platform illustration tool with over 540 million cumulative downloads across iOS, Android, Windows, Mac, and Huawei devices — along with the ibisWorks enterprise cloud services platform offering ibisStorage (zero-trust cloud storage with AI-OCR for electronic bookkeeping) and ibisScribe (AI meeting transcription). The company additionally provides contracted mobile app development and IT technician dispatch services.
Is Ibis a public or private company?
Ibis is a public company. It is classified as public and is currently operating.
When was Ibis founded?
Ibis was founded in 2000. It employs 251 to 500 people.
Where is Ibis based?
Ibis is headquartered in Nagoya, Japan, in the Asia region.
How does Ibis make money?
Five revenue lines are on record. ibisPaint Premium Subscriptions are the primary driver. The others are app Store Commissions, ibisWorks Enterprise Cloud Services, B2B Contracted Development and advertising Revenue.
Who are Ibis's main competitors?
Emerging players on record are Krita Foundation (Krita) and Otter.ai. Broad incumbents are Picsart, Canva, Box Inc., Adobe (Fresco & Creative Cloud) and Autodesk Sketchbook. Direct peers are MediBang (MediBang Inc.), Celsys (Clip Studio Paint) and Procreate (Savage Interactive).
Does Ibis have an API?
No public API is recorded for Ibis.
What industry is Ibis in?
Ibis's product category is Digital Art Software. Its primary akta.pro industry code is HDAEANAI, AI Integration & Orchestration Platforms (Connectors, Workflow, iPaaS for AI), with a secondary code of BPAMAOAB, iPaaS & Workflow Automation. Its NAICS code is 513210 and its SIC code is 7371.