Yi Jing

What Yi Jing does

Yi Jing GmbH, a Swiss private limited company registered in Mels and headquartered in Zürich, develops and operates the Yi Jing Library — a mobile application for iOS and Android that enables users to consult the Book of Changes (I Ching) and access multiple scholarly commentaries. The company was incorporated in 2020 around a project initiated by founder Adrian Stahel with a Russian software partner (Edison) and a multinational digitization team drawn from the University of Zürich and ETH Zürich.

The product is built on the Flutter framework with a SQLite database and legacy Qt functions, operates fully offline once downloaded, and is distributed globally via Apple App Store (including Apple China) and Google Play (excluding Android China). It contains 18+ digitized editions spanning over 6,000 pages in German, English, French, Russian, Chinese, and Latin, including rare translations such as Jean-Baptiste Régis's 17th-century Latin Y-King. The app applies a novel fixed database field structure that assigns text passages to predefined categories, enabling structured cross-author comparison — a proprietary technical differentiator. Founder Adrian Stahel has authored the Dynamics Commentary, the first published application of Western systems theory to I Ching interpretation. The technology stack is delivered through third-party development partners (Edison in West Siberia for the original Qt app; Software Schmiede Christoforidis in Glattbrugg for the Flutter rebuild; Duotones GmbH in Bern for UI design).

The business model is freemium with one-time in-app purchases. The Basic version is free (priced at $0 in current App Store listings; previously $5, then $3) and is limited to 30 stored questions plus the Wilhelm/Baynes edition. The Premium tier is sold as a perpetual one-time license unlocking the comparison function, dynamic commentary, unlimited Q&A, export/sharing, 20 custom fonts, and expanded navigation languages. Individual commentary editions from scholars (Wilhelm, Baynes, Legge, Barrett, Huang, Karcher, Schilling, Simon, Stahel, Yang & Zhang, Régis, Balkin, Hatcher, Chung Wu) are sold as separate in-app purchases. Customers are individual consumers — personal development seekers, I Ching scholars, and professional coaches — with no enterprise or institutional revenue contracts. Marketing relies on app store presence, user testimonials, claimed AI-platform recognition (ChatGPT, Gemini, Perplexity), a small coach referral network, and academic outreach.

Name

Yi Jing

Legal name

Yi Jing GmbH

Website

https://yijing.ch

Company type

Private

Founded year

2020

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Yi Jing GmbH operates the Yi Jing Library, a freemium mobile app for iOS and Android that enables users to consult the I Ching and access 18+ scholarly commentaries in six languages, serving individual practitioners, scholars, and professional coaches worldwide.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Personal Development Software

NAICS

Software Publishers (5132), Libraries and Archives (519210)

SIC

Retail-Computer & Computer Software Stores (5734)

akta.pro primary industry

Digital Lottery & iLottery Platforms (Web/App) (MPAEAFAD)

Keywords

• I Ching app
• Book of Changes
• Oracle consultation
• Commentary editions
• Divination software

Headquarters

HQ city

Zürich

HQ country

Switzerland

HQ region

Europe

Offices7 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Software

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. App Sales and Upgrades: Free basic version with limited features; premium upgrade available for purchase providing access to comparison functions, additional commentaries, structure analysis, and premium fonts.
2. In-App Edition/Commentary Purchases: Users can purchase additional commentary editions from various authors (Richard Wilhelm, Cary Baynes, James Legge, etc.) through the in-app shop. Editions are available in multiple languages including German, English, French, Russian, Chinese, Latin.
3. Basic Version Sales: Basic version was offered at $5.00 USD, later reduced to $3.00 USD for wider accessibility. Includes Wilhelm/Baynes editions.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

Yi Jing operates a mobile application called the Yi Jing Library (I Ging – Yi Jing Bibliothek) for iOS and Android that lets users consult the Book of Changes (I Ching) using virtual coins or yarrow stalks. The app provides access to 18+ scholarly commentary editions covering over 6,000 pages of text, including rare translations in Latin, Russian, German, English, French, and Chinese, and supports side-by-side comparison across authors. Revenue is generated through a free Basic version, a one-time Premium upgrade unlocking advanced features, and individual in-app purchases of commentary editions.

Product overview

Yi Jing offers the Yi Jing Library as a unified mobile application for iOS and Android with two tiers: a free Basic version and a Premium upgrade. The core app enables users to consult the Book of Changes through virtual coins or yarrow stalks and access commentaries. Premium unlocks advanced features including a comparison function for multiple author commentaries, text-to-speech reading, hexagram structure analysis, and the unique Dynamics commentary applying Western systems theory. Individual commentary editions (Richard Wilhelm, Cary Baynes, James Legge, and others in German, English, French, Russian, Chinese, and Latin) are available as separate in-app purchases. The library contains over 12 books with over 6,000 pages of commentaries.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Yi Jing Library (I Ging – Yi Jing Bibliothek) The Yi Jing Library is a mobile application for iOS and Android that lets users consult the Book of Changes (I Ching/Yi Jing) using virtual coins or yarrow stalks, browse all 64 hexagrams and 4,096 changing-line combinations, and access scholarly commentaries. It is built on Flutter with a SQLite database, runs fully offline after download, and supports nine UI languages.
• Commentary Editions (Richard Wilhelm, Cary Baynes, James Legge, Hilary Barrett, Kerson & Rosemary Huang, Stephen Karcher, Dennis R. Schilling, Rainald Simon, A. Stahel, Yang & Zhang, Jean-Baptiste Régis, Jack Balkin, Bradford Hatcher, Chung Wu) Individual scholarly commentary editions available for purchase in the in-app shop, covering works in German, English, French, Russian, Chinese, and Latin from renowned I Ching scholars. The library totals over 12 books and 6,000+ pages, including rare translations not available elsewhere.
• Dynamics Commentary (System Theory) A unique commentary by Adrian Stahel applying Western systems theory to explain the dynamics of hexagrams and trigrams, providing a novel interpretive framework that is published for the first time within this app.

Quantifiable outcome

• 12+ books with over 6,000 pages of commentaries available
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers6 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

Integration2 records

AI capability1 record

Feature4 records

Partnerships

Five partnerships are on record, tiered minor and core.

• Dr. Henrik JägerminorOthersYijing-Coaching partner based in Trier-Freiburg, Germany. Offers coaching services using Yi Jing for personal development and life guidance. Provides professional application of I Ching methodology for decision-making and self-understanding.
• Prof. Dr. Gabriel FelleyminorOthersYijing-Coach and promoted physicist offering Yi Jing coaching services. Website: yintelligence.ch. Combines scientific background with I Ching wisdom for coaching applications.
• Edison (Russian Software Development)coreTechnology or IntegrationRussian software development firm based in West Siberia that developed the original app under Qt framework. Two programmers worked on development led by a CTO. Communication facilitated through English courses provided by the company.
• Software Schmiede ChristoforidiscoreTechnology or IntegrationSwiss software development company in Glattbrugg, Switzerland responsible for programming the Flutter-based version 4.0 of the app.
• University of Zürich Sinology DepartmentminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerAcademic partnership through Prof. Wolfgang Behr who redirected the project inquiry to student Arthur Fritzsche, facilitating collaboration for digitizing James Legge's work and coordinating student digitization teams.

Scale indicators6 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Broad incumbents

• Calm: Large-scale meditation and wellness app with freemium/subscription model and broad content library. Comparable to Yi Jing as a consumer wellness/spiritual guidance incumbent, but at vastly larger scale and with a subscription rather than perpetual-license monetization structure.
• Astro.com: Long-established web-based astrology and personal-chart platform with deep historical content archives. Comparable to Yi Jing as a long-standing content repository for divination/personal guidance, but delivered via web rather than mobile-first and broader in scope than a single tradition.
• Headspace: Established meditation and mental wellness app with subscription monetization and broad consumer reach. Comparable to Yi Jing in addressing consumer personal-development needs via structured content, though at much larger scale and with different core mechanics.

Emerging players

• Moonly: Mobile astrology and lunar-calendar app with ritual/spiritual content and freemium model. Comparable to Yi Jing as a younger, content-led spiritual/divination app targeting similar consumer personas, though less depth in any single oracle tradition.

Direct peers

• Co-Star: Mobile-first consumer astrology/oracle app with freemium model, social/sharing features, and AI-driven personalization. Comparable to Yi Jing as a personal divination/spiritual guidance product with comparable UX expectations and a similar reliance on viral, content-led acquisition.
• The Pattern: Mobile-first astrology and personality-insight app with deep content libraries and freemium conversion. Comparable to Yi Jing in targeting spiritually-curious consumers seeking daily guidance through a personalized oracle-style experience.
• Sanctuary: Mobile-first astrology and spiritual guidance app with live human advisors and content depth. Comparable to Yi Jing in merging content/oracle mechanics with a spiritual-development value proposition for consumers.
• CHANI: Astrology app that combines rich content (daily horoscopes, birth chart readings) with editorial depth and freemium pricing. Comparable to Yi Jing in its content-led, premium-upgrade positioning within a personal oracle/spiritual guidance category.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/yi-jing-library

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles3 records

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 Yi Jing