Orange, Inc., a Tokyo, Japan-based manga localization technology company, raised JPY 2.92 billion (approximately USD 19.5m) in pre-series A financing.
The round was led by Shogakukan, Globis Capital Partners, ANRI, SBI Investment, JIC Venture Growth Investments, Miyako Capital, Chiba Dojo Fund, Mizuho Capital, Mitsubishi UFJ Capital, and GFR Fund.
The funds will be used to develop a localization product based on deep learning models and to launch their digital manga store in the summer of 2024.
Led by Shoko Ugaki, Founder and Chief Executive Officer, Orange is an entertainment technology startup dedicated to the manga industry. The company is developing innovative technologies that enhance the capacity of localization and enable the worldwide simultaneous distribution of manga, working closely with several publishers.
Their proprietary system uses their localization operation process, enabling a capacity for Japanese-to-English localization of up to 500 manga volumes per month. Orange will also work on localizing manga into other languages, ensuring that manga fans across the world can enjoy manga in their native languages.
In the summer of 2024, the company will also launch a digital manga store named “emaqi” in the US. “emaqi” will include titles localized by Orange. It will feature recommendations suggested by AI technology and manga influencers to offer new and fun experiences to all manga fans in the US.
FinSMEs
06/05/2024