Corporate Philosophy
Social progress and self-fulfillment of customers and employees through the spread of a better communication culture
Contribution to the manufacturing industry in Japan
Company Overview
| Company name | iPresence Co., Ltd. |
|---|---|
| President | Christopher's Chris Francis |
| Capital | 2,560 million yen |
| Major Shareholder |
Board Member BCC Co., Ltd. (TSE Growth: 7376) Asahi Electronics Co., Ltd. |
| Address |
[Kobe Head Office] 〒658-0032 Kobe Fashion Mart, 6-9 Koyocho Naka, Higashinada-ku, Kobe City, Hyogo Prefecture [Tokyo branch] Ginza Ohtake Residence 22F, 11-2-XNUMX Ginza, Chuo-ku, Tokyo [Tokyo Office] Hatchery Shibuya, 150-0031 Sakuragaoka-cho, Shibuya-ku, Tokyo XNUMX-XNUMX [Osaka development base] 540F COBOX, 0012-3-XNUMX Tanimachi, Chuo-ku, Osaka XNUMX-XNUMX, Japan |
| Related company |
iPresence Ltd. (UK) Architwin Inc. |
| URL | https://ipresence.jp |
| Business content | Provision of advanced technology equipment, robot equipment, communication equipment, software and related services |
| Financial institution |
Minato Bank Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corporation Rakuten Bank Amagasaki Shinkin Bank Kobe Shinkin Bank Nissin Shinkin Bank Japan Finance Corporation |
| Other |
Privacy Mark Certification June 7, 6nd year of Reiwa-August 7rd, 9nd year of Reiwa  11th Knowledge Capital Innovation Award Winner of the Kinki Bureau of Economy, Trade and Industry Award (DigiRobo remote welding system) May 2024  iPresence Co., Ltd. is a supplier (telepresence robot) participating in the operation of the Osaka-Kansai Expo. 2025 World Expo, Japan (Osaka Kansai Expo) Exhibit  ©Expo 2025 |
| Initiatives for SDGs |
iPresence Inc. supports Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)
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Intellectual property right
Our company owns the patents and trademarks listed below.
We regard intellectual property rights as an important management resource, and will continue to focus on the protection and utilization of intellectual property rights.
patent right
| Title of invention | patent number |
|---|---|
| Communication robot and communication system | Patent No. 6560725 |
| Communication robot and communication system | Patent No. 6749711 |
| Robot System | Patent No. 7012272 |
| Information provision system, program, information provision method | Patent No. 7088526 |
Trademark
| Registered trademark name | iTOUR |
|---|---|
| Registration number | 6055443 |
| Registered trademark name | moving phone |
|---|---|
| Registration number | 6509574 |
| Registered trademark name | Telepii |
|---|---|
| Registration number | 6509575 |
| Registered trademark name | iPresence |
|---|---|
| Registration number | 6078869 |
| Registered trademark name | telerobo |
|---|---|
| Registration number | 6709573 |
History
- May 2014
- Opened a business as a remote presence specialist in Kobe City, Hyogo Prefecture Started sales of Double
- May 2014
- Started sales of desktop version telepresence avatar robot kubi
- May 2014
- Construction of iPresence Network started
- May 2015
- Telepresence avatar robot use site support service sales start
- May 2015
- Developed and announced digital signage integrated telepresence avatar robot IZZY
- May 2015
- Established UK company iPresence Ltd.
- May 2015
- Developed and announced telepresence avatar robot ANKO
- May 2016
- Adopted for the Tokyo Metropolitan Robot Industry Revitalization Project Open Recruitment Joint Research and Development Project with Tokyo Metropolitan Industrial Technology Center
- May 2016
- Started selling PadBot
- May 2017
- Started sales of ORIHIME
- May 2017
- Adopted subsidy for practical development cost of nursing care/rehabilitation robot in Kobe
- May 2017
- Developed and announced iTOUR, a tourism/shopping system using a telepresence avatar robot (commissioned by the Tokyo Metropolitan Institute of Technology)
- May 2018
- iTOUR® won the 6th Knowledge Capital Innovation Award Semi-Grand Prix
- May 2018
- Developed and announced CARE-JIRO, a telepresence patrol robot for nursing homes (subsidized by Kobe City)
- May 2018
- Announced and started development of Teleportation as a Service (TaaS) Platform
- May 2019
- Entered the avatar robot development contest ANA AVATAR XPRIZE as Team X:Presence
- May 2019
- CARE-JIRO won the 6th Knowledge Capital Innovation Award Semi-Grand Prix
- May 2019
- Hyogo Prefecture Management Innovation Plan "Development and sales of mobile monitoring robots equipped with unique applications" approved
- May 2019
- Developed and started providing TaaS application AVATAR Robot for ZOOM
- May 2019
- Started sales of AI-equipped mobile telepresence avatar robot temi
- May 2019
- Passed XPRIZE XNUMXst selection and advanced to the semi-finals
- May 2020
- Announced and started providing telerobo work solutions
- May 2020
- Established ArchiTwin Co., Ltd. specializing in digital twin solutions in the architectural field
- May 2020
- Launched new event app Airmeet in Japan
- May 2020
- Announcement of "moving phone telepy" and implementation of crowdfunding
- May 2020
- Received the Excellence Award at the Hyogo Prefecture Creative Business Grand Prix
- May 2021
- Announcement of "moving phone telepy" and crowdfunding achieved at 353%
- May 2021
- Announced and started providing remote meeting service "Tele Robo Meeting" solution
- May 2021
- Efforts on X:Presence won the 8th Knowledge Capital Innovation Award
- May 2021
- Started mass production and sales of "Moving Phone Telepi"
- May 2021
- Avatar robot development contest ANA AVATAR XPRIZE challenged semi-finals in Miami, USA
- May 2021
- Tokyo branch established
- May 2022
- Started sales of "Telerobo School Life Participation" service and dedicated application "Telepotalk" for remote education for the sick
- May 2023
- Changed company name from "iPresence LLC" to "iPresence Co., Ltd."
- May 2024
- Announced capital and business alliance with BCC Co., Ltd., a company listed on TSE Growth.
- May 2024
- DigiRobo remote welding system won the Kinki Bureau of Economy, Trade and Industry Director-General's Award at the 11th Knowledge Capital Innovation Awards.
- May 2025
- Increased capital to 2,560 million yen
- May 2025
- Cooperated as a participating supplier in the operation of the Osaka-Kansai Expo (loaned temi)
Executive profile
Christopher's Chris Francis
(Christophers Chris Francis)
Founder/President
Born in 1980 (Kobe City). At the age of 14, he moved to England with his family.
During his GAP year before university, he worked as a volunteer supporting disabled children in southern India.After studying architecture at the University of Sheffield in the UK and working as an architectural architect, designer, and human resources consultant, he became the head of sales for the world's largest foreign-affiliated remote communication service company, starting with the establishment of its western Japan base (Osaka and Nagoya) and managing sales nationwide.After that, he came across the concept of telepresence avatar robots, which is a new method of remote communication, and in 2014 he launched Japan's first remote presence specialist company, iPresence LLC, which became a corporation in 2023.
By being able to exist as a robot avatar in a remote space and as a digital avatar in a virtual space, and teleport from avatar to avatar in multiple spaces, the experience of augmenting human communication abilities will be realized in a wide range of fields, from education to telemedicine, telework, and hybrid events. We are currently expanding our business with the concept of “Teleportation as a Service”.
In 2021, the simplest form of avatar robot "Telepii" will be successfully crowdfunded, and mass production sales will start in the summer of 2021. ANA AVATAR XPRIZE Semi-Finalist.
Takahiro Ohta
(Takahiro Ohta)
Chief Technology Officer
Born in 1972.
Master of Engineering, Osaka Prefecture University
He has been interested in programming since his school days and continues to create his own work.
After graduating, he joined a telecommunications company.
After joining the company, he was engaged in the development of information sharing ASP infrastructure for the manufacturing industry at the research institute for five years.
After that, he engaged in infrastructure development as an infrastructure engineer in Osaka.While he was an infrastructure engineer, he also wrote his own automation scripts.
In 2016, he left his previous job and worked at iPresence LLC, the predecessor of the current iPresence Corporation. He will develop iPresence's first mobile app and in-house developed robot.
Currently, as an executive employee, he is focusing on the development of the next main business, while working as CTO to create a better engineering organization.
Advisor
- Professor Teruaki Yokoyama Teruaki Yokoyama
- - Biography -
In March 2007, completed doctoral course at Nara Institute of Science and Technology.
Obtained doctorate (engineering).At Cyber University, as a lecturer, involved in opening and teaching at his online university.
Since 2013, he has been engaged in research and development of Internet-related technology and industry-academia collaboration as a lecturer at Kobe Institute of Computing.
Nara Institute of Science and Technology, Internet Engineering Course External Researcher, Asian Satellite Internet Project AI3 member.
Currently, he is interested in remote communication targeting depopulated areas and is experimenting.
