BlueArch Inc.
"Leading The World In Ocean Robotics."
University of Tokyo spin-off founded in 2026 that builds the HATTORI Neo, a compact hovering AUV with edge AI, DVL navigation and a hull about 1.5 m long.
BlueArch Inc. (BlueArch Kabushiki Kaisha) is a Tokyo startup that develops, manufactures and sells Japanese-made autonomous underwater vehicles (AUVs/UUVs). It is a University of Tokyo spin-off. The company was incorporated in January 2026 with paid-in capital of 40.5 million yen. Its head office is Room 512 of the Collaborative Research Building on the University of Tokyo's Komaba II Campus (4-6-1 Komaba, Meguro-ku, Tokyo), and it has a branch office in Mizonokuchi, Takatsu-ku, Kawasaki, Kanagawa. BlueArch says its long-term goal is to become the world's leading Japanese AUV maker. It targets three markets: underwater inspection, offshore renewables, and subsea security and surveillance.
The company grew out of a general incorporated association, also called BlueArch, which ran from May 2024 to December 2025. The association developed ROVs and AUVs for blue-carbon surveys and helped coastal groups apply for J Blue Credits. It worked with Kanagawa Prefecture under the prefecture's HATSU entrepreneur-support programme. On 19 December 2025, seaweed-bed carbon absorption measured off Enoshima and Jogashima with a hybrid autonomous/manual underwater drone was certified for J Blue Credits (9.6 t and 33.5 t of CO2). Kanagawa Prefecture said this was the first such certification in Japan using this method. In May 2026 the prefecture announced a follow-on demonstration with BlueArch and Yokohama National University. It uses a wireless autonomous underwater drone launched from shore to survey kelp beds at Jogashima, with no boat or divers, and the prefecture called it a world first.
BlueArch's first product is the HATTORI Neo, a compact, long-endurance hovering AUV about 1.5 m long. It navigates with GPS, an IMU and a Doppler velocity log (DVL), and combines the DVL with a hovering mechanism for precise position control and high manoeuvrability close to the seabed or structures. The vehicle carries edge-AI processing, so it can analyse and classify collected data on board in real time without relying on a support vessel. HATTORI Neo builds on the HATTORI AUV, which Associate Professor Toshihiro Maki's laboratory at the University of Tokyo's Institute of Industrial Science (IIS) has developed and refined for more than ten years. The lab has run sea trials in Kagoshima Bay, the Okinawa Trough, around Ishigaki Island and in Antarctica. BlueArch develops its vehicles through joint research with the Maki Laboratory and uses the underwater-robotics test facilities on the Komaba campus.
The company's roadmap includes three further products: a software platform for operating and managing several AUVs as a fleet, an in-house simulator for virtual testing and mission planning, and systems for coordinated operations with other uncrewed vehicles such as USVs. BlueArch is hiring hardware, embedded/ROS 2, full-stack control-software and field-operations engineers.
The founding team combines telecom, robotics and naval experience. Representative Director and CEO Motoki Muto previously worked at SoftBank Corp. on digital-transformation consulting and smart aquaculture, and founded the predecessor association in 2024. Director and Chief Robotics Officer Yuji Kaida researched AUV-based tracking of swimming animals at the University of Tokyo and later designed autonomous robots at SoftBank. He leads vehicle design and integration. AUV Technical Fellow Yuki Sekimori holds a University of Tokyo PhD, worked on underwater vehicle mechanical design at Cellula Robotics in Canada, and helped run AUV operations off the Totten Glacier with the 66th Japanese Antarctic Research Expedition. Operations and procurement manager Kenji Arimatsu is a former Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force sonar operator who later worked on UUV/AUV maintenance, procurement and R&D at the Maritime Staff Office and the Acquisition, Technology and Logistics Agency. Professor Maki serves as an outside director.
On 11 June 2026, BlueArch announced its incorporation together with a third-party share allotment led by Incubate Fund, its seed investor. The amount was not disclosed. The company said the funds would go mainly to recruiting.
Primary type & automation activities this supplier delivers:
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Contact BlueArch Inc.
WEBSITE
https://bluearch.co.jp/HEADQUARTERS
Japan
Company Facts
Founded
2026
Primary Role
Manufacturer
Company Size
-
Primary Region
Asia-Pacific
Annual Sales
-
Funding Stage
Early-Stage VC
Funding Total
-
