Efficient

What Efficient does

Efficient Co., Ltd. (株式会社エフィシエント) is a Yokohama-based AI and IoT technology company founded in April 2019 by Representative Director Kenichiro Wakisaka. The company operates three principal business lines: commissioned development of IoT and AI systems for manufacturing and service-sector clients, the Steach AI-powered interview-practice application targeted at job seekers and students, and a System Engineering Service (SES) that supplies skilled engineers (C#, C/C++, Python, AI/ML, IoT) to client companies on quasi-delegation contracts centered on Yokohama and expanding into the Shonan and Ken-ou industrial corridors. Efficient also co-developed and commercially deployed an AI resale-prevention engine for signed merchandise and uniforms with J-League soccer club Kawasaki Frontale.

The company's technical foundation is built on applied AI: Steach combines computer vision (gaze, posture, speaking-speed analysis) with NLP-based speech transcription and a proprietary 'clarity of communication' feature, while IoT offerings span end-to-end sensor selection, data collection, storage architecture, and analytics for industrial deployments. Two granted patents protect core technology — Patent #6978815 for video evaluation visualization (December 2021) and Patent #7156654 jointly with Kawasaki Frontale for the resale-prevention AI system (October 2022) — alongside human-centric big-data analytics capabilities. Revenue is generated across four streams: commissioned project licensing, Steach freemium/premium subscriptions, SES professional services, and AI-engine licensing to enterprise and sports-team clients.

Since December 19, 2023, Efficient has operated as a wholly-owned subsidiary of JAIC Co., Ltd., an HR technology company, with the share transfer effective February 1, 2024. Prior to that, Kitamura Chemical Industries held a 21.4% stake from a February 2020 third-party share allocation. The JAIC relationship drives distribution of Steach and the jointly developed AI Job Hunting Advisor (就活AI) through JAIC's enterprise HR customer base and the sai.jaic-g.com platform, while Efficient's independent Kanagawa manufacturing-IoT pipeline, SES staffing nationwide, and Steach consumer channel remain active. The company was certified as a Yokohama IP Future Company in March 2025.

Name

Efficient

Legal name

株式会社エフィシエント（Efficient Co., Ltd.）

Website

https://efficient-inc.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2019

Operating status

Operating

Short description

Efficient Co., Ltd. is a Yokohama-based AI and IoT firm building the Steach interview-practice app, manufacturing IoT systems, and the Kawasaki Frontale resale-prevention AI engine. A JAIC Group wholly-owned subsidiary since February 2024, it also operates SES engineer staffing across Japan.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

AI and IoT Software Solutions

NAICS

Custom Computer Programming Services (541511), Computer Systems Design Services (541512)

SIC

Services-Computer Programming Services (7371), Services-Computer Integrated Systems Design (7373)

akta.pro primary industry

AI/ML Engineering & Model Development Services (BPAEAHAF)

akta.pro secondary industries

Industrial Automation Software (SCADA, HMI, MES, Historian) (IMAHAHAJ), Industrial & Process Engineering Consulting (BPAHAIAF)

Keywords

• AI video analytics
• IoT system integration
• Custom software development
• IT engineering staffing
• Manufacturing digital transformation

Headquarters

HQ city

Yokohama-shi

HQ country

Japan

HQ region

Asia

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B and B2C

Offering type

Software

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. Commissioned Systems Development (請負開発): Custom software and IoT system development contracted on a project basis. Covers IoT systems, AI-implemented systems, and mobile applications for clients across industries.
2. Product Sales - Steach App: AI interview practice application with free lite version and premium paid features. Revenue from user subscriptions or premium features targeting job seekers and educational institutions.
3. System Engineering Services (SES): Staffing and engineering resource provision to client companies. Contracted as quasi-delegation (準委任) agreements, providing skilled engineers (C#, C/C++, Python, AI/ML, IoT) for client projects nationwide, centered on Yokohama and expanding to Shonan/Keio area.
4. Technology Licensing / AI Solutions: Licensing of proprietary AI engines (resale prevention, speech analysis) to enterprise and sports team clients. Joint development and deployment of AI systems.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion3 records

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

Efficient Co., Ltd. provides commissioned development of AI and IoT systems (sensors to analytics) primarily for Japanese manufacturing clients, an AI-powered video analytics consumer app called Steach for interview practice, and System Engineering Services (SES) staffing for IT projects. The company also licenses proprietary AI engines including a resale prevention system jointly developed with J-League team Kawasaki Frontale, and offers big-data AI analytics to support digital transformation (DX) on production floors.

Product overview

Efficient is an AI and IoT technology company operating primarily in Japan's Kanagawa Prefecture. Its product portfolio centers on Steach, an AI-powered interview practice app that analyzes video recordings to evaluate speaking performance including gaze, posture, speaking speed, and text transcription. The company also develops AI resale-prevention systems (patented with Kawasaki Frontale), provides big data and AI analytics solutions for manufacturing DX, and delivers custom software development and SES staffing services. Its AI Job Hunting Advisor, developed with JAIC, extends Steach's technology into the job-seeking market. The company positions its expertise across IoT and AI as its core technical capability, with Steach serving as the primary consumer-facing product and the resale prevention AI and DX solutions serving enterprise clients.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Steach: AI-powered video analysis application that evaluates speaking manner, eye contact, posture, speaking speed, and text transcription using AI. Targets job seekers for interview practice.

Products and services

• Steach (AI interview practice app) AI-powered web and mobile application that analyzes a user speaking on camera (via smartphone or PC), evaluating gaze direction, posture, speaking speed, and transcribing speech content to provide objective feedback for interview and presentation practice. Targets Japanese job seekers and educational institutions; offered via a free lite browser version with premium features available.
• IoT solutions for manufacturing and service industries End-to-end commissioned IoT system development covering sensor proposal, data accumulation architecture, and analytics. Targets manufacturing and service-industry firms in Japan, particularly small and medium-sized manufacturers in Kanagawa seeking digital transformation.
• AI resale prevention system (signed goods and uniforms) Proprietary AI engine developed jointly with Kawasaki Frontale to detect and prevent unauthorized resale of signed merchandise and team uniforms, including counterfeit and similarity detection capabilities. Licensed to enterprise and sports team clients.
• Big-data AI analytics for DX promotion AI-driven big-data analytics solutions leveraging IoT-collected data to support digital transformation (DX) in business operations, particularly for manufacturing and industrial applications, including human-centric data analysis on speech patterns, expressions, and behavior.
• SES (System Engineering Service) Staffing service providing specialized engineers to client companies on quasi-delegation contracts. Covers C#, C/C++, Python, AI/ML, IoT, 3DCAD plugin development, and image processing. Headquartered in Yokohama with nationwide coverage and active expansion to Shonan and Keio areas.
• Commissioned/custom software development (受託システム開発) Contract-based custom software development including IoT systems, AI-implemented systems, and smartphone applications delivered entirely with internal engineering resources. Targets enterprise clients across industries.
• AI Job Hunting Advisor (就活AI) AI job-seeking assistant jointly developed with JAIC that provides interview practice, motivation letter assistance with URL reading functionality, and reverse-question preparation tools for job-seeking students.

Quantifiable outcome

• Manufacturing clients can achieve DX and IT-driven operational efficiency with end-to-end IoT support
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers4 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

AI capability5 records

Feature4 records

Partnerships

Six partnerships are on record, tiered minor, core and moderate.

• 湖南省smart化センター / さがビジネスサポートセンター (Saga Smart Center)minorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 November 2023Listed as an affiliated organization/member in the company profile. Connection through the open innovation ecosystem involving Kanagawa and Saga prefectures.
• 川崎フロンターレ (Kawasaki Frontale)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 23 May 2022Joint development and deployment of resale prevention AI system for team merchandise and uniforms. Efficient provides the AI engine technology; Kawasaki Frontale provides the use case and domain expertise. Joint patent obtained (Patent #7156654). NHK, Nihon Keizai, Sankei, and Mainichi covered the system in 2022.
• 株式会社ジェイック (JAIC Co., Ltd.)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 18 November 2021Joint development of 'AI就活アドバイザー' (AI Job-Hunting Advisor) based on the Steach application, started November 2021 under BAK PARTNERS CONNECT 2021 program. JAIC provides HR/employment domain expertise; Efficient provides AI analytics technology. New URL reading feature added in November 2025.
• 公益社団法人湖南省情報サービス産業協会 (KIA)minorOthersRegular member since January 2025. Industry association membership providing networking within Kanagawa's IT services industry.
• 横浜未来機構 / YOXO / I・TOP横浜 (Yokohama Future Organization)moderateStrategic or Co-development PartnerActive participant in multiple Yokohama City startup support programs: YOXO Accelerator (2nd cohort), I・TOP Yokohama zone, Yokohama Open Innovation EXPO. Received booth space at Technical Show Yokohama via I・TOP Yokohama.
• ビジネスアクセラレーターかながわ(BAK) / eiiconmoderateStrategic or Co-development PartnerAccepted into BAK PARTNERS CONNECT 2021 program co-operated by Kanagawa Prefecture and eiicon. Participated in BAK CONNECTING DAY events and FactoryDX 2023. Winner of multiple BAK-sponsored programs.

Scale indicators6 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Emerging players

• MyInterview: Video-based AI interview platform that scores candidates on communication and presentation. Comparable in using computer vision and NLP to evaluate speaking performance.
• LeapMind: Japanese edge-AI startup focused on compact deep-learning models for industrial IoT and manufacturing. Comparable as a sub-scale Japanese AI-for-manufacturing player.

Direct peers

• AI inside: Tokyo-listed AI services and OCR platform company offering AI model development and deployment. Comparable in delivering custom AI engineering plus productized AI to Japanese enterprise customers.
• ABEJA: Tokyo-based AI/IoT platform company offering AI analytics for retail and manufacturing, with a similar mix of AI engineering services and productized analytics. Closely comparable in vertical mix (manufacturing/IoT data) and Japanese sub-scale AI positioning.
• HireVue: Global leader in AI-driven video interview assessment, analyzing candidate speech, facial expressions, and language — a direct international analog to Efficient's Steach product.
• PKSHA Technology: Japanese AI software company providing NLP and computer-vision algorithms sold to enterprise customers. Comparable as a sub-scale Japanese AI vendor turning proprietary algorithms into B2B products.
• TechMatrix: Japanese IT-services and SES company providing contracted engineers and software development. Comparable as a Yokohama/Kanagawa-region IT services and SES peer with similar revenue model.

Broad incumbents

• Preferred Networks: Japan's leading deep-learning platform company with deep manufacturing/IoT partnerships (Toyota, FANUC). Comparable as a Japanese AI-for-manufacturing incumbent, but operating at materially larger scale.
• SoftBank Corp: Major Japanese telecom and AI/IoT platform operator offering enterprise IoT and AI solutions. Comparable as a broad incumbent competing for the same Japanese enterprise AI/IoT wallet.
• Recruit Holdings: Japan's dominant HR-technology and staffing conglomerate (Indeed, HRMOS). Comparable as the broader incumbent in Japan's HR-tech and job-seeker markets that Steach and the AI Job Hunting Advisor address.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/efficient_inc
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/efficient-inc

Compliance1 record

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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 Efficient