Beyond Next Ventures Inc. (Headquarters: Chuo-ku, Tokyo; Founder CEO / Managing Partner: Tsuyoshi Ito; hereinafter “Beyond Next Ventures”) has joined the Series A funding round of ARK Inc. (Headquarters: Hiratsuka, Kanagawa;Co-Founder / Representative Director & Group CEO: Yosuke Kurihara; hereinafter “ARK”) as the lead investor.

In this round, ARK raised a total of JPY about 1.3 billion through a third-party allotment of shares and debt financing from financial institutions.

About ARK

ARK is a startup that develops, manufactures, and sells technologies, equipment, and materials for land-based aquaculture and provides related services. It also engages in the production and sale of seafood. Guided by its mission, “LET THE OCEAN REST, CREATE YOUR OWN.”, ARK aims to create systems and a culture that enable land-based aquaculture anywhere, by anyone.

Its flagship product, ARK ZERO MATRIX, is a Modular Recirculating Land-Based Aquaculture System (RAS) consisting of grow-out tank units and a filtration system unit. Its modular design supports applications ranging from small-scale trials to full-scale expansion, allowing customers to start at a scale suited to their site and production needs and expand flexibly as their operations grow.

ARK also provides STARBOARD BY ARK, a proprietary application for remote monitoring and management of ARK systems, as well as materials, seed stock, and cultivation expertise to support land-based aquaculture operations. In 2025, ARK began scaling its own Land-Based Seafood Production business, expanding its activities into the production and sale of seafood.

ARK is also advancing its overseas expansion. In June 2026, its demonstration projects in the UAE and Indonesia were selected under Japan’s Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry’s “FY2025 Supplementary Global South Future-Oriented Co-Creation Project Subsidy (Small-Scale Demonstration and Feasibility Study Project).” In addition, ARK has established ARK ASIA PACIFIC SDN. BHD. in Malaysia as a business base for Asia, strengthening its foundation for overseas expansion.

ARK Website: https://www.ark.inc/en/

Background of the Investment

As aquaculture plays an increasingly important role in the global seafood supply, land-based aquaculture remains challenging to commercialise. In addition to significant upfront investment, operators face technical, operational, and economic challenges including water quality and disease management, rearing operations, and energy costs. Because fish require a long grow-out period, validating operating conditions and accumulating reproducible rearing know-how also takes considerable time.

Against this backdrop, what stood out to us was ARK’s approach of starting small and expanding production step by step, rather than requiring large-scale, capital-intensive systems from the outset. By enabling operators to validate operational performance, fish growth, and commercial viability before expanding production capacity, we believe ARK can provide a new option for businesses and regions that have traditionally faced high barriers to entering land-based aquaculture.

ARK’s systems are already being adopted not only by fisheries operators, but also by companies in industries such as construction and manufacturing, as well as universities. We also see significant potential for small to mid-scale, decentralised land-based aquaculture targeting high-value species such as grouper in overseas markets, where species demand and environmental conditions vary considerably by region.

Policy support is also gaining momentum. Under the Japan Growth Strategy formulated by the Japanese government in July 2026, Food Tech was designated as one of 17 strategic fields, with land-based aquaculture identified as one of its key products and technologies. As markets begin to take shape both in Japan and overseas, we are pleased to have the opportunity to support ARK at this stage.

For a more detailed discussion of the rationale behind our investment—including the structural challenges facing the commercialisation of land-based aquaculture, ARK’s distinctive approach, the business potential demonstrated through its growing adoption and overseas expansion, and the founding team whose strengths span aquaculture operations, technology, and management—please read the article by our investment team below.

Why Modular Land-Based Aquaculture, Why Now? — Why We Invested in ARK
https://beyondnextventures.com/insight/ark

Comments from Beyond Next Ventures

Akito Arima (Executive Officer / Partner) / Risa Aki (Senior Associate)
We first met the ARK team about seven years ago. Even then, we hoped that one day we would have the opportunity to take on a challenge together. We were deeply drawn to the passion and distinct personalities of the three co-founders, as well as the trust they place in one another. We are truly delighted to come aboard as the lead investor alongside such an outstanding group of shareholders.

Land-based aquaculture is a challenging field. Fish growth is influenced by countless variables, while testing and validation require both significant upfront investment and long periods of time. ARK has done more than build aquaculture systems: the team has raised fish themselves, turning both successes and setbacks into data and steadily building practical know-how. The three co-founders bring complementary expertise across management, technology, and aquaculture operations, and their ability to work as one team while continuously learning through trial and error is, in our view, one of ARK’s greatest strengths.

We look forward to the day when seafood raised with ARK’s technology, developed and refined in Japan, reaches tables around the world.

About Beyond Next Ventures Inc.

Creating the beyond next society; enabling exceptional people solving global challenges.
Beyond Next Ventures is a deep-tech venture capital firm dedicated to translating scientific breakthroughs into real-world impact and building a virtuous cycle in which the value created fuels the next wave of innovation. We manage JPY 48 billion (approximately US$320 million) in funds focused on deep-tech startups. Through our proprietary company creation capabilities, executive talent matching, and TECHNIUM Global Conference that convenes key stakeholders from Japan and around the world, we strengthen a deep-tech innovation ecosystem and accelerate the commercialization of research outcomes in collaboration with industry, academia, and government.

• Head Office: Nihonbashi Honcho Showa-dori Building 3F, 3-7-2 Nihonbashi-honcho, Chuo-ku, Tokyo
• Subsidiary: Galaxy-Wework, 43, Residency Road, Shanthala Nagar Ashok Nagar, Bengaluru, Karnataka, India – 560025
• Representative: Founder CEO / Managing Partner Tsuyoshi Ito , Managing Director / General Partner Kengo Ueha
• Established: August 2014
• Business: Investment and growth support for deep tech startups in Japan and India, support for the commercialization of research seeds, cultivation and formation of management talent and teams, operation of shared wet labs, etc.
• Website: https://beyondnextventures.com