Kudan Inc.
TSE Growth-listed SLAM software developer leading localization and multi-robot navigation for the NEDO-funded Takenaka construction robot platform.
Kudan Inc. is a Tokyo-based developer of spatial perception software, a field it frames as the foundation of Physical AI, with SLAM (simultaneous localization and mapping) as its core technology. The group began as Kudan Limited, set up in the United Kingdom in January 2011; Kudan Inc. was established in Japan on November 19, 2014, listed on the Tokyo Stock Exchange Mothers market in December 2018 and moved to the TSE Growth Market in April 2022 under securities code 4425. Managing Director and CEO Daiu Ko leads the company, and Tomohiro Ohno, founder of Kudan Limited, is a managing director. The head office is at 1-23-14 Jinnan, Shibuya-ku, Tokyo. Group companies are Kudan Limited (Bristol, England), Kudan USA LLC (California), Kudan Vision Inc. (Tokyo) and Kudan Germany in Munich, formerly Artisense, a Technical University of Munich spin-off co-founded by Professor Daniel Cremers that Kudan invested in in 2020 and made a subsidiary in 2021.
Kudan earns most of its revenue by licensing perception software. Its algorithms include Kudan Visual SLAM, Kudan 3D-Lidar SLAM (since 2020) and GrandSLAM, which combines three SLAM methods. Its current offerings fall into three groups:
- Robotics software: a ROS 2 (Humble and Jazzy) navigation stack for x86 and ARM covering localization and mapping, path planning and obstacle avoidance, semantic segmentation, task planning and replanning, and camera, LiDAR, IMU and GNSS fusion. Kudan targets difficult outdoor sites such as construction sites with slopes and level changes, and cites case studies of a GNSS and 3D LiDAR AMR on US construction sites, high-precision localization for construction machinery in the UK and autonomous tunnelling machinery in Japan.
- Robotics solution: a digital-twin-integrated autonomous mobile inspection robot with camera, thermal, vibration, acoustic, gas and odor sensing and an optional arm, aimed at tunnels, bridges, plants, utility tunnels, ports and construction sites. A trial can start about three months after first contact.
- Digital twin: Kudan PRISM, a 3D Gaussian Splatting platform that links site conditions, assets, IoT data and inspection records and connects to CAD and BIM, available as PRISM Cloud, Private Cloud and PRISM Local. In construction it is used to check layouts, transport routes and interference before work starts and to track progress by comparing models. Kudan also distributes XGRIDS mobile 3D scanners and vehicle-mounted mobile mapping systems.
Partners and customers include NVIDIA, Intel, NexAIoT, Vecow, XGRIDS, HPC Systems and Cornell University. NexAIoT's NexMOV-2 AMR runs on Kudan Visual SLAM with NVIDIA Isaac Perceptor, and Vecow's VTK AMR Dev Kit (EDR-1000), launched in March 2026, integrates Kudan's navigation.
In construction specifically, Kudan is a member of the Construction RX Consortium and one of six companies, led by Takenaka Corporation, in a NEDO Post-5G project for fiscal 2025 to 2027 that is building a common software platform for construction robots. Kudan leads the software work, developing standard modules and a reference model for precise self-localization, autonomous movement on constantly changing sites and coordination of multiple robots.
Primary type & automation activities this supplier delivers:
Kudan Autonomous Navigation Software
ROS 2 (Humble, Jazzy) navigation stack for x86/ARM with SLAM localization, path planning and camera/LiDAR/IMU/GNSS fusion for sloped outdoor sites.
Kudan PRISM
Gaussian Splatting digital-twin platform linking BIM/CAD, IoT and inspection data, used for pre-construction checks and progress tracking.
Digital Twin-Integrated Autonomous Mobile Inspection Robot Solution
Autonomous inspection robot with camera, thermal, acoustic and gas sensing and an optional arm, feeding results into Kudan PRISM digital twins.
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Contact Kudan Inc.
WEBSITE
https://www.kudan.io/HEADQUARTERS
Japan
Company Facts
Founded
2014
Primary Role
Software/Algorithm
Company Size
-
Primary Region
Asia-Pacific
Annual Sales
-
Funding Stage
Public
Funding Total
-
