Sakana AI
Sakana AI

Sakana AI

Sakana AI is a Tokyo-based startup developing efficient AI models using bio-inspired evolutionary algorithms to create capable, compact foundation models, with a focus on the Japanese market.

Website
2023Active264Tokyo, Japan

About

Sakana AI is a Tokyo-based frontier R&D company founded in 2023. They focus on developing highly efficient AI models, particularly for resource-constrained environments, by leveraging bio-inspired evolutionary algorithms to optimize model architecture and performance. Their goal is to create capable yet compact foundation models and AI solutions tailored for Japan's needs, working with both enterprises and the public sector.

Key facts

At-a-glance profile data

Website
sakana.ai
Headquarters
Tokyo, Japan
Founded
2023
Employees
264
Total funding
$349M (Funding Round)
Business model
B2B
Tags
Frontier AI Lab
Foundation Model
Large Language Model
Small Language Model
Generative AI

Funding rounds

Funding rounds raised by Sakana AI
DateRoundAmountPost-moneyLead investors
24 Mar 2026Funding RoundUndisclosed--
17 Nov 2025Series B$135M$2.6B-
10 Jul 2024Undisclosed round$19M-NTT Group
22 Jan 2024Series B$135M-Lux Capital, Nvidia
21 Dec 2023Seed$30M-Lux Capital, NTT Group, Khosla Ventures
25 May 2023Undisclosed round$30M-Lux Capital

Tech stack

Detected on sakana.ai, last scanned 25 Sept 2026. Run your own scan

Analytics
Google Analytics 4
CDN
Fastly
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Frequently asked

Is Sakana AI trustworthy and reputable?

StartupHub's Data Trust & Reputation score for Sakana AI is 29 out of 100, based on site security posture and privacy practices.

How much funding has Sakana AI raised?

Sakana AI has raised a total of $349M in funding. The most recent round on record is Funding Round.

How many employees does Sakana AI have?

Sakana AI has approximately 264 people on record.

Public companies they compete with
2
GOOG
Google

Gemini

Sakana AI is partnering with Google to customize Gemini for the Japanese market, but also offers its own LLMs and orchestration models that could compete with Google's offerings in certain enterprise segments.

MSFT
Microsoft

Microsoft Azure AI

Sakana AI's enterprise AI solutions and foundation models could compete with Microsoft's AI offerings on Azure, especially for Japanese businesses seeking localized AI.

Customers
1
DS
Daiwa Securities
Confirmed

Financial Services

Daiwa Securities is already partnering with Sakana AI to develop an AI agent system for wealth-management consulting, indicating a need for advanced AI solutions in finance.

Confirmed customer relationships for Sakana AI. Speculative buyer-fit guesses are not shown.