01
Live in the future,then build what’s missing.
A group of businesses built to last three hundred years — in software, and wherever else the future is missing something.
01Manifesto
The future is not somethingwe wait for.We live in it early,then build what it lacks.
We do not begin with what the market already understands. We begin by imagining how people will live, work, and create in the world ahead.
Then we build what that world is still missing.
02The long game
Three hundred years,not three.
Select is being built as a zaibatsu: a group of businesses meant to stand for three hundred years and longer — well past everyone who started it.
And it does not stop at software. Products, media, research, markets, institutions — wherever the future is missing something, that is where Select goes next.
Where Select works today
- Software
- AI products
- Media
- Research
- Finance
- Entertainment
- Games
03The shift
Building is becoming cheaper.Judgment is becomingeverything.
When anyone can build almost anything, the advantage no longer comes from producing more features.
It comes from knowing what should exist, what should disappear, and how everything should come together.
04How we build
Passion.Intensity.Taste.
02
Intensity
03
Taste
05Taste
When everything can be built,taste becomes the advantage.
Taste is not simply visual judgment. It is the ability to understand how an idea fits within a larger system, what story it belongs to, and how markets, culture, and technology are moving around it.
It is the judgment to ask: if anything can be built, what is the actual goal — and what truly deserves to be built?
What taste is made of
- Aesthetics
- Systems thinking
- Context
- Markets
- Culture
- Technology
- Narrative
- Structure
06Our attitude
Hackthe world.
We do not intend to stay within existing categories, borders, or expectations.
Boilthe oceans.
We choose problems worth dedicating everything to — even when they appear too large to solve.
07Our businesses
Two businesses,already public.
All ten businesses — across product, consulting, media and trading — are on the careers page, with the roles open inside each.
08Common questions
What weget asked.
What is the AI Strategy Research Institute (AI総合戦略研究所)?
A strategic AI transformation partner, helping Japanese companies redesign operations, organisations and growth around AI.
Underneath that sits continuous research: AI technology, companies, products, startups, investment and market movement, in Japan and abroad. Not reprinted news — original research, comparison, data and interviews, turned into reports, articles, databases and events a company can actually decide with.
Are AI総研 and AI総合戦略研究所 the same organisation?
They are. AI総合戦略研究所 is the official name, AI総研 is the everyday short form, and AI Strategy Research Institute is how it is written in English. All three are one organisation.
How does the AI Strategy Research Institute relate to Select, Inc.?
It is a business inside Select, not a subsidiary or a separate legal entity. Select runs ten businesses; two of them — the AI Strategy Research Institute and ShogunAI — are public today.
What does the institute work on?
Redesigning how Japanese companies operate, organise and grow around AI. Researching AI companies, technology and markets in Japan and abroad. Original reports, comparisons and industry maps. Interviews with researchers, founders and operators. A database of AI companies and products. A newsletter, social and events. And products built out of the research.
Who is it for?
Japanese enterprises and their leadership. It works in Japanese and in English.
What is Select, Inc.?
A company in Tokyo being built as a zaibatsu — a group of businesses meant to last more than three hundred years, well past everyone who started it.
It does not set out to serve demand that already exists. It works from how people will live, work and create in the world ahead, and builds what that world is still missing — and that mandate is not limited to software. Select currently works across software and AI products, consulting, media, research, finance and entertainment.
How do I get in touch?
Through the form at the bottom of this page. Partnerships, projects, investment and press all go there; no email address is published.
How do I apply for a role?
The careers page lists all ten businesses and the roles open inside each. Applications go through one form shared across every business, linked from that page — the contact form here is for enquiries.
Live in the future.See what otherscannot see yet.Then buildwhat’s missing.
Live in the future,then build what’s missing.
09Contact
Let’s build somethingthe future is missing.
For partnerships, business opportunities, investment, and media inquiries.