Sakana AI Secures $135M Series B to Build Sustainable, Japan-Focused AI Models

Tokyo-based Sakana AI has raised ¥20 billion ($135 million) in Series B funding at a $2.65 billion valuation, positioning itself as a key player in the sovereign AI movement. Founded in 2023 by former Google researchers, the startup takes a radically different approach from AI giants—focusing on resource-efficient models optimized for Japanese language and culture rather than competing in the large-scale model race.

The round attracted both Japanese financial leaders like MUFG and global investors including Khosla Ventures and In-Q-Tel. Sakana plans to deploy funds across three areas: advancing R&D on collective intelligence and self-evolving AI systems, expanding enterprise partnerships beyond finance into defense and manufacturing, and pursuing strategic M&A for global growth.

The company emphasizes sustainability through innovation, pioneering techniques like evolutionary model merging and exploring post-transformer architectures. With Japan facing workforce decline and resource constraints, Sakana argues that intelligent, efficient AI, and not resource-intensive scaling, represents the optimal path forward for sovereign AI development.