Silk

What Silk does

Silk Laboratory Co., Ltd. (株式会社シルク・ラボラトリ) is a privately held Japanese software development company founded in March 1991 and headquartered in Tokyo with a branch in Okayama. The company employs 32 people (as of February 2024) and has operated continuously for 32+ years, becoming a 100% subsidiary of IC Co., Ltd. (株式会社IC) on October 1, 2021. Its business is structured around three pillars — research and development support, commissioned software development, and proprietary product development — spanning six foundational technology areas: measurement processing/IoT device control, image processing, security (notably a proprietary distributed web crawler tool called Silk Crawler), analytics (voice, audio, big data), communications (online game server-side development since 2007, supporting 1 million concurrent users), and application development.

The company's product portfolio combines bespoke systems and packaged offerings. Bespoke highlights include a wind tunnel model deformation measurement system developed for JAXA (Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency) that has been continuously used and refined for nearly 10 years, using sub-pixel-precision image processing across hundreds to thousands of calibration markers per measurement campaign, and the Android/iOS NHK Gogaku language learning app operated for NHK Broadcasting Technology Research Institute, which features speech rate conversion, intonation conversion, and tone verification for language learners. Packaged proprietary products include the Silk Crawler web crawler tool, a swallowing function measurement app, a coating thickness measurement system using hyperspectral imaging, and — most recently — the Outlink Checker self-serve service (outlink-checker.com) launched June 15, 2026, which commercializes a patented (patent application 特願2025-125400, filed July 28, 2025) link analysis technology to detect dangerous external links on websites.

Silk's revenue model is primarily professional services — commissioned development with individual quotation through direct inquiry, supplemented by R&D support engagements with universities and corporate research labs and a small but growing self-serve SaaS revenue stream from Outlink Checker. Publicly disclosed pricing is not available. The company holds ISO/IEC 27001:2022 ISMS certification (registration no. 14171, valid June 23, 2025 to June 3, 2027) and targets enterprise R&D divisions, government research institutions, and universities as its primary buyer segments, with the Outlink Checker service extending reach to website operators and SMBs.

Name

Silk

Legal name

株式会社シルク・ラボラトリ

Website

https://silk.co.jp

Company type

Private

Founded year

1991

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Silk Laboratory is a 32-person Tokyo-based Japanese software firm providing commissioned development, R&D support, and proprietary products in measurement processing, image processing, web security, analytics, communications, and applications — serving enterprises, research institutions, and government bodies including JAXA and NHK.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

Tokyo

HQ country

Japan

HQ region

Asia

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Software

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. 研究開発支援: 大学や企業の研究所に対し、計測処理、画像処理、セキュリティ、解析、通信等技术力で研究開発パートナーとして貢献。シグナルプロセッシングや画像解析等技术提供する形で収益 창출。
2. 受託開発: 企業の研究開発や大学・研究機関からの依頼に基づく、受託ソフトウェア開発。Webアプリ、スマホアプリ、PCアプリ、組込み、通信、DB、セキュリティ等多岐にわたる分野に対応。
3. 自社製品開発: シルククローラー（Webクローラーツール）を始めとする自社製品の開発と販売。新サービス「アウトリンクチェッカー」（outlink-checker.com）の提供を開始。

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

Silk Laboratory operates three business lines: research and development support for universities and corporate research labs (signal processing, image analysis, big data analytics), commissioned software development across web, mobile, embedded, communication, DB, and security domains, and proprietary product development led by its Silk Crawler web crawler tool. The company applies six foundational technology pillars — measurement/IoT, image processing, security (web crawler), analytics (voice/acoustic/big data), communications, and application development — to build custom systems such as wind tunnel deformation measurement, NHK language learning apps, and the new Outlink Checker link diagnostic service.

Product overview

Silk Laboratory is a software development company offering three business lines: research and development support, commissioned development, and proprietary product development. The core product is the Silk Crawler (シルククローラー), a proprietary distributed web crawler tool that powers their security-focused services including the new Outlink Checker (アウトリンクチェッカー) and their patented link analysis technology. Their applied development portfolio includes specialized measurement systems (wind tunnel deformation measurement for JAXA), mobile applications (NHK Gogaku language learning app), and non-AI image analysis systems (coating thickness measurement). They build on six foundational technology pillars: measurement processing/IoT, image processing, security, analytics, communications, and application development. Their services span from research support and proof-of-concept through full-scale development, testing, and operations.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• シルククローラー (Silk Crawler): Proprietary web crawler tool product offered by Silk Laboratory for data collection, scraping, and crawling services.
• アウトリンクチェッカー (Outlink Checker)

Products and services

• Silk Crawler (シルククローラー)

Quantifiable outcome

• JAXA风洞模型变形测量で10年近くにわたり継続使用、人手介入10〜20点に対して数百〜数千点の全自动识别を実現
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers2 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

AI capability11 records

Feature5 records

Partnerships

Four partnerships are on record, tiered minor and core.

• My-IoTコンソーシアムminorOthersIoT 관련 기술 とビジネスモデルの 开发·普及 促进为目的とするコンソーシアム。当社技术力をIoT ecosystem に 提供し、技術交流やニーズ把握に活用。
• KT-NETminorOthers当社が加盟する地域IT產業振兴のためのネットワーク団体
• イノベーティブDXコンソーシアムminorOthersDX(デジタルトランスフォーメーション)推進に関するコンソーシアム。DX推進企业間の情報交流と共同活动
• JAXA（宇宙航空研究開発機構）coreStrategic or Co-development Partner风洞模型变形测定システムの 开发·改进を続けている共同研究パートナー。10年前に初めて风洞模型变形测定プログラムを担当して以来，持续的なシステム改进·高度化を実施

Scale indicators5 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• ALBERT: Tokyo-based data analytics and AI solutions provider with similar mix of bespoke analytics consulting and productized services for Japanese enterprise and government clients.
• Fixstars Corporation: Japanese technology firm specializing in parallel computing, image processing, and AI software development services for enterprise clients, with comparable focus on technical depth over scale.
• Skylight Consulting: Tokyo-based custom software development and consulting firm with comparable headcount scale (approx. 200+) and similar hybrid model spanning research support, contract development, and proprietary tooling for Japanese enterprises.
• Appirits: Japanese custom software development firm with similar scope in web, mobile, and server-side application development, serving Japanese enterprise clients with bespoke project-based engagements.

Emerging players

• LeapMind: Japanese edge AI company applying deep learning to embedded vision and IoT — overlapping with Silk's measurement/IoT and image processing pillars, though focused on edge inference silicon and platform.
• Citadel AI: Tokyo-based AI safety/MLOps startup focused on model monitoring and validation; emerging player with overlapping computer vision deployment expertise for Japanese enterprise clients.
• ABEJA: Tokyo-based AI/ML platform company offering computer vision and data analytics for Japanese enterprises; comparable in applying ML/CV to industrial use cases, though focused more on platform SaaS than bespoke development.

Broad incumbents

• BIPROGY: Large Japanese system integrator providing custom software development and IT services to enterprises and government — comparable in commissioned development work but at significantly greater scale.
• Cybozu: Established Japanese enterprise SaaS vendor (Kintone, Garoon); larger and more productized, but serves the same Japanese enterprise IT buyer profile with software solutions.
• Internet Initiative Japan (IIJ): Major Japanese IT services and network solutions provider; significantly larger, but competes for similar enterprise and government IT outsourcing and systems integration engagements.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks7 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

Compliance1 record

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles5 records

Subsidiaries1 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 Silk