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Dentsu Ventures

1-8-1 Higashi-Shimbashi, Minato-ku, Tokyo, 105-7050, Japan

Overview

Corporate venture capital fund specializing in marketing investments.

Founded

2015

Deals · 12mo

4

Links

WebsiteLinkedIn

Stage focus

Series A
Series B
Series C

Geographic focus

Japan
United States

Sector focus

Business Development
Corporate Training
Impact Investing
Venture Capital

Investment portfolio

22rounds
NAMEDATESIZE
KnowledgeWork
Aug 2026Participated
$22 MSeries C
Astrocade AI
May 2026Participated
$56 MSeries A
CULTA
Mar 2026Participated
$4 MSeries A
Fiddler AI
Jan 2026Participated
$30 MSeries C
Forest
Oct 2025Participated
$40 MSeries B
Metagen Therapeutics
Sep 2025Participated
$16 MSeries B
Turing
Jul 2024Participated
$9 MSeries A
Utaite
May 2024Participated
$2 MSeries A
Techtouch
Feb 2023Participated
$14 MOther Equity
Mysten Labs
Sep 2022Participated
$300 MSeries B
Solsten
Aug 2022Participated
$22 MSeries B
UPSIDE Foods
Apr 2022Participated
$400 MSeries C
KnowledgeWork
Aug 2026Participated
$22 MSeries C
Astrocade AI
May 2026Participated
$56 MSeries A
CULTA
Mar 2026Participated
$4 MSeries A
Fiddler AI
Jan 2026Participated
$30 MSeries C
Forest
Oct 2025Participated
$40 MSeries B
Metagen Therapeutics
Sep 2025Participated
$16 MSeries B
Turing
Jul 2024Participated
$9 MSeries A
Utaite
May 2024Participated
$2 MSeries A
Techtouch
Feb 2023Participated
$14 MOther Equity
Mysten Labs
Sep 2022Participated
$300 MSeries B
Solsten
Aug 2022Participated
$22 MSeries B
UPSIDE Foods
Apr 2022Participated
$400 MSeries C
22
Items
...
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Insights

Time horizon

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Deal Distribution

Dentsu Ventures: 22 funding rounds are recorded in the selected participation categories.All available history.
Dentsu Ventures: 22 funding rounds are recorded in the selected participation categories. All available history
Round typeLed dealsParticipated deals
Series A07
Series B16
Series C+05
Other Equity03

Monthly Deal Activity

Dentsu Ventures: 22 deals are recorded across 135 months.All available history.
Dentsu Ventures: 22 deals are recorded across 135 months. All available history
MonthDeals
Aug '151
Sep '150
Oct '150
Nov '150
Dec '150
Jan '160
Feb '160
Mar '160
Apr '160
May '160
Jun '160
Jul '160
Aug '160
Sep '160
Oct '161
Nov '160
Dec '161
Jan '171
Feb '170
Mar '170
Apr '170
May '170
Jun '170
Jul '170
Aug '170
Sep '170
Oct '170
Nov '170
Dec '170
Jan '180
Feb '180
Mar '182
Apr '180
May '180
Jun '180
Jul '181
Aug '180
Sep '182
Oct '181
Nov '180
Dec '180
Jan '190
Feb '190
Mar '190
Apr '190
May '190
Jun '190
Jul '190
Aug '190
Sep '190
Oct '190
Nov '190
Dec '190
Jan '200
Feb '200
Mar '200
Apr '200
May '200
Jun '200
Jul '200
Aug '200
Sep '200
Oct '200
Nov '200
Dec '200
Jan '210
Feb '210
Mar '210
Apr '210
May '210
Jun '210
Jul '210
Aug '210
Sep '210
Oct '210
Nov '210
Dec '210
Jan '220
Feb '220
Mar '220
Apr '221
May '220
Jun '220
Jul '220
Aug '221
Sep '221
Oct '220
Nov '220
Dec '220
Jan '230
Feb '231
Mar '230
Apr '230
May '230
Jun '230
Jul '230
Aug '230
Sep '230
Oct '230
Nov '230
Dec '230
Jan '240
Feb '240
Mar '240
Apr '240
May '241
Jun '240
Jul '241
Aug '240
Sep '240
Oct '240
Nov '240
Dec '240
Jan '250
Feb '250
Mar '250
Apr '250
May '250
Jun '250
Jul '250
Aug '250
Sep '251
Oct '251
Nov '250
Dec '250
Jan '261
Feb '260
Mar '261
Apr '260
May '261
Jun '260
Jul '260
Aug '261
Sep '260
Oct '260

Sector Breakdown

Dentsu Ventures: AI & Machine Learning is the largest displayed sector by deal count (10 deals).All available history.

A deal can appear in multiple sectors, so sector totals may overlap. Capital represents disclosed total round sizes, not fund cheque sizes.

Dentsu Ventures: AI & Machine Learning is the largest displayed sector by deal count (10 deals). All available history
SectorDeals
AI & Machine Learning10
Media & Entertainment5
Enterprise Software4
Networks, Cloud & Communication4
Health & Life Sciences4
Gaming & eSports4
Data, Analytics & IT3
Hardware & Robotics3
AR/VR2
Transportation & Logistics2
Food & Agriculture2
Social & Community Platforms2
Travel & Hospitality1
E-Commerce & Retail1
Clean Energy & Sustainability1
Space & Frontier Tech1
Marketing & Advertising1
Crypto & Blockchain1
Manufacturing1
Professional Services1

Deal Size Distribution

Dentsu Ventures: 22 rounds have a disclosed size in the displayed size bands.All available history.

Undisclosed round sizes are excluded. Capital represents total round sizes, not fund cheque sizes.

Dentsu Ventures: 22 rounds have a disclosed size in the displayed size bands. All available history
Round size band (USD)Deals
<$5M2
$5M-$10M2
$10M-$25M11
$25M-$50M2
$50M-$100M3
$100M-$250M0
$250M-$500M2
$500M-$1B0
$1B+0

Deals By Geography

Dentsu Ventures: United States has the largest recorded deal count among the displayed regions (13 deals).All available history.

Top 4 of 4 regions; European countries are grouped as Europe.

Dentsu Ventures: United States has the largest recorded deal count among the displayed regions (13 deals). All available history
RegionDeals
United States13
Japan7
India1
Europe1
Dentsu Ventures: 20 co-investors are shown, with Lightspeed Venture Partners sharing 4 recorded deals.All available history.

Co-Investors

Bubble size = shared deals

Click a bubble to open that fund in a new tab.

Shows up to 20 co-investors ranked by shared deals. Deals may be shared with multiple funds, so rows overlap. Capital is total round size, not fund cheque size.

Dentsu Ventures: 20 co-investors are shown, with Lightspeed Venture Partners sharing 4 recorded deals. All available history
Co-investorShared deals
Lightspeed Venture Partners4
BRICKS FUND TOKYO3
KDDI3
Lux Capital3
Amazon2
Archetype Ventures2
Canon Marketing Japan2
DNX Ventures2
Felicis Ventures2
Hakuhodo DY Ventures2
LG Technology Ventures2
Mitsubishi UFJ Capital2
Mizuho Capital2
NTT DOCOMO Ventures2
SMBC Venture Capital2
Sony2
Techstars2
7 Global Capital1
8VC1
Acer1

Investment Strategy

Dentsu Ventures: Led accounts for 5% and participating for 95% of round participation.All available history.
Dentsu Ventures: Led accounts for 5% and participating for 95% of round participation. All available history
CategoryDeals (count)Share (%)
Led15%
Participating2195%
Dentsu Ventures: Single-lead accounts for 0% and co-led for 100% of lead dynamics.All available history.
Dentsu Ventures: Single-lead accounts for 0% and co-led for 100% of lead dynamics. All available history
CategoryDeals (count)Share (%)
Single-lead00%
Co-led1100%

Team

Daiji Horibe

General Partner

Daisuke Takemori

General Partner

Katsuyuki (Kevin) Hasegawa

General Partner

Kotaro Sasamoto

Managing Partner & Co-founder

Yu Hirayama

General Partner