Brave group’s purpose is to deliver exciting content and unseen experiences born in Japan to a worldwide audience yet to be unlocked, as embodied in our mission, “Strike wonder in 8 billion hearts”.

We operate as an international company with a strong focus on VTuber business with activities centered around the development of IP productions, platforms and solutions.

This time, we interviewed CEO Keito Noguchi about the business strategy and theme for the 8th fiscal year (ending September 2025), reflecting on the 7th fiscal year (ending September 2024).

A Year Where Each Individual Greatly “Awakened”

── It’s been about a year since our last interview! Thank you for your time today!

It’s already been a year since the last interview. Thank you for having me.

── The 7th fiscal year was another packed one, starting with three domestic business integrations and including major business alliances. At the recent kickoff meeting, you commented that “the 7th year was a tumultuous one”. Looking back, how do you feel?

The 7th fiscal year was one where we were able to make leaps forward with incredible momentum. It began with the business integrations of LaRa Inc. and the former D1 Inc. (now D1-Lab, Inc.) in November 2023, followed by the announcement of our revamped Corporate Identity (CI). We also announced the establishment of local subsidiaries in Thailand and China at the end of the year. In February of the new year, we integrated businesses with Smarprise, Inc., which operates “colleize”, an e-commerce site specializing in official merchandise and licensed products for anime, manga, etc. In the summer, we established “Brave pictures Inc.” a group company focused on animation production.

── And you also integrated with overseas companies, not just domestic ones!

We acquired the overseas VTuber group “idol”, previously operated by IDOL VIRTUAL TALENTS LTD, and integrated its business. This was the first attempt for our group to integrate with an overseas company and business, and it was a significant challenge for us. However, thanks to Mr. Hayashi, CEO of Brave group US Inc., who had been building a solid relationship for about a year, and the efforts of Mr. Shimomura (EVP, Head of FP&A, Head of Corporate Strategy Office), who joined the project midway, I believe it led to a positive outcome.

── It seems that various companies, both domestic and international, not only evaluated our group’s growth but also trusted us enough to join the group, believing they could entrust their future to us.

Yes. Also, in terms of fundraising and capital and business alliances, we received offers from prominent companies. As a result of discussions with various companies alongside Mr. Kosugi (EVP, Head of CFO Office), we were able to conduct large-scale fundraising through the Series D second close at the end of 2023 and the Series D third close this spring. We’ve entered into capital and business alliances with Mitsui Fudosan Co., Ltd., TV Asahi Corporation, Sumisho Venture Partners, and most recently, Sanrio Company, Ltd., a company that represents Japan and holds globally renowned IP. Since our company faced a major online controversy in 2019 and I took over management from the former representative in 2020, we’ve become an entity chosen by such distinguished companies and overseas peers – something that was unimaginable back then.

── I was also very surprised by the capital and business alliance with Sanrio!

Actually, since around 2020, we had been in discussions with Sanrio about “whether we could do something together”, but at that time, the scale of our company and its businesses didn’t lead to an alliance. However, they highly evaluated our progress over these four years, which led to Sanrio reaching out to us again, resulting in this wonderful connection. I believe this is also thanks to the hard work of every one of our colleagues, including Akira Funabashi (Director, EVP, COO) and Nobuhiko Hoshi (Director, EVP, CINO), who have run this race with us for the past four years.

── Speaking of colleagues, the number of employees also increased from 156 at the end of the 6th fiscal year (ending September 2023) to 361 by the end of the 7th fiscal year.

In the 7th fiscal year, reliable colleagues whom we can confidently entrust our backs to, including Mr. Shimomura from the Corporate Strategy Office and Mr. Sone (EVP, Head of Middle Office, General Manager of Corporate Growth Division), joined the company. And the fact that we didn’t lose our “momentum” from the 6th to the 8th fiscal year has been effective in “gathering companions” through business alliances and recruitment activities. Furthermore, as the range of challenges we could take on expanded with the addition of new colleagues, both the organization and each employee significantly upgraded – indeed, they “awakened”.

── So, many members embodied the 7th fiscal year’s theme of “Awakening”!

That’s right. The number of press releases issued under the leadership of the PR office is one example, and the “VSPO! GEAR”, which was well-received by many, is another result of the entire project team’s awakening. I believe that because colleagues with new values and backgrounds joined, the organization and businesses were able to significantly update. Existing members, positively influenced by the new ones, likely thought, “Let’s challenge more”, “Let’s be bolder” and acted on it. By the way, I was also pleased that the theme of “Awakening” permeated the entire group company more than I expected. It might have even permeated more than our Purpose, Mission, Vision, and Values (laughs).

── I heard the word “Awakening” in various places, not just at the kickoff meeting, but on a daily basis!

Separate from our management policy, we started setting an “annual theme” from the 7th fiscal year. As it was my first time managing at a scale where we set such a theme, I was initially worried if it would permeate or if the message embedded in “Awakening” would get across. However, beyond my expectations, each member embraced the theme of “Awakening” positively and continued to challenge themselves relentlessly, thinking, “I too must continue to awaken”. This made me realize anew the importance of setting a theme and delivering messages from management in conjunction with it. Also, HR initiatives planned mainly by the Group HR Division members, such as meet-and-greets between myself and those who joined that month, have created an environment where each employee can understand our group’s goals and achieve awakening through challenges. Regarding the meet-and-greets, it was my request to the HR members to directly share our history and thoughts with everyone who joined. Moreover, it’s not just me conveying history and thoughts; I also get to hear directly from the new hires about their aspirations for our group, which is very stimulating for me as a manager. Every time we hold these meet-and-greets, I’m reminded that I want to continue managing in a way that makes everyone glad they joined our group. I intend to increase opportunities to deliver messages directly to members in various forms from the 8th fiscal year onwards. Also, the “Adventure System” which promotes challenges, and the “Brave group Award” which honors actions and achievements, are among my favorite HR systems. I hope these systems will permeate the entire group company more, and that more members across the group will raise their hands to take on challenges and be praised for their challenges and growth.

── These are HR systems introduced from the 7th fiscal year, correct? Could you tell us what you like about them?

The first, the Adventure System, truly embodies our group’s Value of “Transcending Limits”, and I believe it’s a system unique to our group. I think many companies claim to offer “an environment and opportunities for challenge” but often lack the substance. In such a context, our group firmly operates this “environment for challenge” as a system, and I want to continue communicating how each individual grows by taking on challenges for higher positions. I also hope more people will challenge for higher positions.

The second, the Brave group Award, is an excellent system that embodies the Value I particularly cherish, “Respect First”. It was a great opportunity for everyone in the group to praise members who achieved good results through continuous challenges. It was also good to hear directly from the praised members about their thoughts on their work, what obstacles they overcame – those so-called “emotional” messages. Of course, listening to everyone’s messages made me, as a manager, feel that I must face the management of the entire group company even more seriously.

Also, on a personal note, I believe we will create many new businesses and more companies will join our group in the future. To support these new businesses and partner companies and help them grow even larger, I’m also thinking of eventually appointing members who have grown through these two systems to future executive roles or important positions, like Mr. Yamamoto, Director of Virtual Entertainment Inc.

── We have high expectations for the Group HR Division to make these systems even better from the 8th fiscal year onwards! Looking back, compared to the 6th fiscal year (ending September 2023), it was a year packed with both external communications and internal initiatives. What did you feel after witnessing the awakening of the business, organization, and each employee?

As I’ve said, I was very pleased that the companies and shareholders surrounding us, as well as those who joined us, thoroughly evaluated Brave group’s expansion and momentum. When I took over the company from the former representative in 2020, I never expected so many people to evaluate the company so highly; it was beyond my imagination. For example, around the time we integrated businesses with Virtual Entertainment Inc. and MateReal Inc. in the 6th fiscal year, I think it was often individual investors who evaluated me, Akira Funabashi, Nobuhiko Hoshi, and other managers personally, rather than the company. Therefore, business alliances with the prominent companies we are currently partnered with felt like a distant dream, something that would happen much further in the future.

── In just over a year, business alliances with various companies have been realized, and many colleagues have joined the group!

The background to this high evaluation, I believe, is that reliable colleagues whom Akira Funabashi, Nobuhiko Hoshi, and I can confidently entrust our backs to, including our group’s executive officers and subsidiary directors, have joined in these few years. And it’s the result of the painstaking efforts of each individual who joined us bearing fruit as achievements. Also, the fact that Akira Funabashi, Nobuhiko Hoshi, and I set high dreams and goals, and each member who somehow kept up with them awakened, has also contributed to Brave group’s evaluation. In summary, I felt it was “a year where everyone belonging to our group awakened more than expected”. Also, witnessing everyone’s overwhelming growth, I myself felt that as president, I must continue to raise my perspective and keep making “unimagined moves” that the industry wouldn’t think of.

── So, you will continue to make “unimagined moves”, including business integrations and capital and business alliances!

Yes. Looking back, I think the business integrations with Virtual Entertainment and MateReal were moves that surprised everyone at the time. For me as a manager, it was a move where I stretched considerably and set a high goal, but I made a firm decision and saw the integration through. I want to continue transcending my own limits from the 8th fiscal year onwards through launching new businesses, business integrations, and overseas expansion.

Noguchi’s Thoughts Behind “Revolution”

── It was a year where we felt motivated to do our best precisely because you and the rest of the management team kept transcending your limits.

That connects to “Revolution”, the theme for the 8th fiscal year. I’ve embedded my own will into this theme: “As a company, we must make bold decisions”. I also believe “Revolution” is nearly synonymous with “Growth” and “Awakening”. To put it differently, it can be expressed as removing the cap on one’s limits, or loosening the screws. For example, I see growth and awakening as figuring out how to turn what you can currently do as “1” into “10”. On the other hand, to turn “10” into “1,000 or 10,000”, I believe we must break down the successful experiences and ideologies we’ve cultivated so far. As a manager myself, and as a company, to turn the “10” we’ve built up by the 8th fiscal year into “1,000 or 10,000”, I believe I will sometimes have to make tough decisions. There will be painful moments, but I chose the strong word “Revolution” to convey the feeling of striving forward without fearing change.

── I see! How did the word “Revolution” come to you?

It came to me as the 7th fiscal year was drawing to a close. Looking back on the period up to the 7th fiscal year, the entire group grew rapidly, and especially our external influence and how we were perceived from the outside changed dramatically. While the number of employees and the scale of business expanded significantly, “growing pains” accompanying rapid growth also began to appear everywhere. For example, I felt a sense of crisis that with our current ways of advancing work and handling information, further growth would be difficult. When I thought about needing to refocus, the word “Revolution” came to me. Actually, it’s partly something I’m telling myself (laughs).

── So, it’s also a message to yourself, Mr. Noguchi!

I’m telling myself that I must break down my successful experiences and ways of thinking as an entrepreneur over the past dozen years, “Revolution” myself, and become a new version of myself. “Awakening” embodied the idea of further leveraging one’s own strengths based on past experiences and thoughts, but “Revolution” embodies the will and aspiration to become a new self, different from before, shedding one or two skins as a manager. I hope that through the example of myself, our group’s management team, executive officers, and subsidiary directors, this “Revolution” will permeate to everyone belonging to our group. And ultimately, I hope that each individual’s “Revolution” will lead to “Revolution” as a company.

Wanting to Gather “Companions” with the Same Aspiration

── I too want to continue challenging myself for my own and the organization’s growth, without fearing the pain that comes with change. Now, at the recent kickoff meeting, you talked about future management policies and the vision we aim for. Could you elaborate on the background and intent?

Once again, I translated “Japanese Adventure, World Wide Romance” into management policies and strategies, and I spoke to our employees about the group of companies we benchmark against and the scale of company we aim for. Among these benchmark companies, I mentioned renowned names like Nintendo Co., Ltd., Sony Group Corporation, The Walt Disney Company, and HYBE Corporation, all of which are global enterprises.

── I noticed that in addition to emerging companies, there were many names of companies with long histories.

While the virtual IP / digital IP field we are challenging is an emerging area, in a broader sense, it’s also part of the fan business and entertainment business domains. The business models and the “must-dos” in advancing such businesses have actually been experienced and pioneered by companies with long histories, like The Walt Disney Company and Sanrio Company, Ltd. – our predecessors. Also, the origins of entertainment, such as manga magazines where IPs like One Piece and Dragon Ball were born, and television where the 1980s idol business emerged, have changed significantly in recent years. While the approach and the devices and platforms for communication have changed greatly since then, the fan business and entertainment business ultimately are businesses “for fans to enjoy”. That’s why I first thought of setting renowned predecessor companies as benchmarks and challenging the world in the emerging field × fan business/entertainment business.

── So, it’s about learning strategies and business approaches from the history of our predecessors!

Exactly. There’s a quote I like: “Fools learn from experience, wise men learn from history”. It’s a saying by Bismarck, the German Imperial Chancellor, and as the words suggest, it means foolish people can only learn from failure (experience), but wise people learn from history (laughs). The members who think about management strategy, mainly myself and the board directors, study the history of our senior benchmark companies and why they are currently successful, applying these lessons to our daily management. Of course, the benchmark companies are still distant at present, but I firmly believe there’s a great possibility of getting closer by continuously setting big dreams and goals, and we want to get even a little closer.

── And to achieve those big dreams and goals, you mentioned at the kickoff meeting that your role as CEO is to gather companions with the same aspirations.

As CEO, I don’t want to slow down this growth rate or speed of expansion. To achieve non-continuous growth, we must advance bold moves and initiatives that were previously unthought of. At Brave group, we primarily conduct business centered on IP Production, IP Platform, IP Solution, and Incubation. I believe people who love these business areas, as well as those interested in the momentum and attitude of a startup challenging globally, are gathering here. Recently, with Mr. Shimomura joining the Corporate Strategy Office, I believe the level of our management strategy towards an IPO has significantly risen. And with Mr. Sone joining the Corporate Growth Division, the system to support businesses operated by each group company has also rapidly begun to take shape. Of course, it’s not just about the executive team; when someone who can be a catalyst, someone who wasn’t previously on the recruitment radar, joins the company, the company and organization change dramatically. I would be delighted if many people who resonate with our group’s dreams and goals, who can bring good stimulation to the organization and company, and with whom we can mutually elevate each other, would join us. Also, many of the companies that have joined our group through business integration so far have been centered on the VTuber business. However, as CEO, I must continue to manage in such a way that companies like the former D1 Inc. (renamed D1-Lab, Inc. in October 2024), which have a tradition and operate non-VTuber businesses, will also choose us.

── And new businesses are being created as new members and companies join!

For example, Brave stores is a business that was realized thanks to new members and Smarprise joining us. For the members currently working in our group, the joining of new talented individuals and new excellent group companies can be a good stimulus and a catalyst for creating new businesses. To create new businesses and get closer to bigger dreams and goals, we must engage in “Revolution”-themed companion gathering, not just a continuation of past recruitment efforts.