Japan
April 13, 2026
AI-powered Non-GMO and Non-Gene-Edited breeding technology enables climate-resilient crop varieties to be developed at least five times faster than conventional methods. Built on Japan’s world-class fruit breeding heritage, CULTA is expanding globally across Asia, Europe, and the United States.
CULTA Inc.（Headquarters: Koganei, Tokyo; CEO:Shuhei Noaki; hereinafter “CULTA”), a startup pioneering next-generation crop breeding to address climate change, today announced it has raised JPY 700 million in a pre-Series A financing round. The round was led by Archetype Ventures and UntroD Capital Japan, with participation from Nissay Capital, HAKOBUNE, DG Daiwa Ventures, and Dentsu Ventures.
Background
CULTA’s core strength lies in its proprietary AI-based crop breeding process,which enables rapid variety development without the use of genome editing or genetic modification. To date, we have successfully developed new strawberry varieties in just two years–compared to the conventional ten-year timeline–and have commercialized four varieties within three years.
Under its proprietary brand “SAKURA DROPS”, CULTA’s strawberry varieties feature:
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Climate resilience, enabling stable yields and quality even under high-temperature conditions
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Long-shelf life, allowing fully ripened fruit to be harvested and transported while maintaining quality for over 10 days
CULTA operates a vertical integration model in which it partners with growers to produce its proprietary varieties, purchases the entire harvest in principle, and manages sales and marketing in-house. Production is already expanding in Japan and Malaysia, and our strawberries are currently sold at retail stores in Singapore, Malaysia, Hong Kong, and Thailand.
The funds raised will be used primarily for the following initiatives:
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Accelerating Expansion in Japan and Southeast Asia through Vertical Integration
To meet strong demand in Southeast Asia, we will significantly scale production in Japan and Malaysia. In addition, sales in Japan–where demand has been particularly strong–will be launched sequentially
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Expanding New Overseas Production Regions
Building on its operational track record in Japan and Malaysia, we will expand into additional production regions across Southeast Asia and Australia, establishing local production systems. This will enable stable, year-round supply of Japan-quality produce closer to end markets
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Accelerating Strawberry R&D and Expanding into tree Fruits
While four strawberry varieties have already been commercialized, we will further accelerate crop breeding to meet the needs of large-scale agriculture in overseas markets such as Australia, North America, and Europe. In addition, we will initiate crop breeding programs for highly climate-vulnerable tree fruits, including grapes and apples, two of the world’s largest fruit markets
Comment from Shuhei Noaki, CEO of CULTA
CULTA was founded to transform the structure of the agriculture industry itself. While global demand for high-quality produce continues to grow, accelerating climate change is becoming a significant constraint on the sustainability of agriculture worldwide. Across production regions, the reality of “no longer being able to grow crops the way we used to” is becoming increasingly apparent.
Climate change induced transformation of agricultural systems. Over the next decade, as farmers are forced to transition to new varieties, the company that can deliver next-generation crop varieties demanded by both producers and consumers will become the next leading company in this industry.
In addition to strawberries, we have already begun to develop high-speed prop breeding technologies for grapes and apples. We aim to become a global company that works across all fruits and specialty crops.
Our ultimate goal is to pass on this essential global industry–so fundamental to human well-being–to the next generation. By combining breeding technology with Japan’s strength, we will work hard in hand with growers around the world to build agriculture that can withstand climate change.
Comments from Investors
Archetype Ventures Inc. – Partner/GP, Kyohei Mukaigawa
“I want people everywhere in the world to enjoy truly delicious and fresh food.”
I still clearly remember the bold vision Mr. Noaki shared when we first met. Agriculture is a complex industry with many stakeholders and intricate value chains–an extraordinarily difficult to change to take on.
Mr. Noaki and the CULTA team possess not only deep expertise in crop breeding and varietal development, but also a rare, holistic understanding of the entire value chain–from production and logistics to branding and retail–combined with genuine respect for farmers and agricultural professionals.
From achieving world-class results in breeding, producing, and commercializing premium white strawberries to remarkable traction they have already demonstrated, we are excited to support CULTA on its journey toward explosive growth.
UntroD Capital Japan, Inc. – President & CEO, Akihiko Nagata
It has been three years since we first invested in CULTA after meeting Mr.Noaki, whose technology and entrepreneurship are truly outstanding. Since then, the team has continued to achieve milestone after milestone, including building a strong team, developing new strawberry varieties, and expanding partnerships with growers both in Japan and overseas.
We have decided to provide additional support to accelerate CULTA’s next phase of growth. We will continue to back the team wholeheartedly as they tackle global agricultural challenges with their exceptional technology.
NISSAY CAPITAL CO., LTD. – Capitalist, Yuta Takaguchi
CULTA’s appeal lies not only in its ability to rapidly develop multiple-value strawberry varieties using proprietary breeding technology, but also in the fact that the strawberries are genuinely delicious.
Just imagining a near future where people around the world can enjoy these strawberries makes me excited. Establishing a global brand for proprietary varieties and scaling a Vertical Integration is certainly challenging–but we strongly believe that Mr.Noaki and the team can execute on this vision. We are delighted to join CULTA as shareholders and will provide our full support.
HAKOBUNE – Founding Partner, Yusuke Kurishima
Climate change is forcing a fundamental renewal of crop varieties across global agriculture. What convinced us to invest in CULTA is its essential competitive advantage: speed in breeding. Shortening a ten-year development cycle to two years through AI-based crop breeding, and already commercializing four varieties, shows both technical excellence and strong execution.
We were also deeply impressed by CULTA’s Vertical Integration, which creates sustainable industrial value together with growers by covering from breeding to production and sales. We are confident that Mr. Noaki and the team will lead global agriculture’s adaptation to climate change with Japan’s breeding expertise, and we are proud to support this journey.
DG Daiwa Ventures Inc. – Senior Associate, Kota Shindo
We decided to invest in CULTA because we believe the company has strong potential to capture global markets in high-value fruit crops–an area where Japan’s strengths can truly shine.
Global demand for horticultural crops, especially fruits, continues to grow, alongside increasing expectations for quality, yield, and stable supply.
CULTA is addressing a market that combines strong growth potential with clear structural needs.
In particular, their ability to rapidly develop high-demand IP through its proprietary AI-based breeding process–without regulatory constraints–significantly shortens the long timelines that have traditionally constrained fruit breeding.This represents a clear competitive advantage. We look forward to supporting CULTA in establishing a new global standard in fruit breeding originating from Japan.
Dentsu Ventures Fund II – Principal, Itsuki Isayama
We invested in CULTA because we resonate deeply with its vision of tackling the global change of climate exchange through a proprietary AI-based prop breeding process. The varieties, CULTA creates, are intellectual property that Japan can be proud of, embodying uncompromising Japan-quality standards.
One bite of their strawberries makes it clear that they are not merely optimized for productivity and logistics, but are driven by a deep commitment to original, exceptional taste. We will explore ways to support global branding using the Dentsu Group’s expertise to bring the value and emotional impact of these varieties to dining tables around the world. We are proud to accompany CULTA in its mission to create a more sustainable future for producers and richer food experience for consumers.
Company Overview
CULTA is building the world’s fastest AI-based Non-GMO and Non-Gene-Edited crop breeding platform,developing climate-resilient crop varieties with exceptional taste and performance. By integrating genome-driven parent selection, AI-powered performance prediction, and a proprietary three-cycles-per-year plant factory system, CULTA has achieved crop breeding cycles at least five times faster than conventional methods-reducing strawberry variety development from the typical 10 yeast to just 2 years.
Its flagship proprietary strawberry, “SAKURA DROPS”, delivers clear performance advantages, including approx. 1.4x higher sweetness, 1.4x higher yields compared to conventional varieties. Engineered for high-temperature resilience, the variety is already cultivated in Japan and Malaysia and sold in major Southeast Asian markets, including Singapore, with over 100 growers across Japan participating in its production.
Building on the success of SAKURA DROPS, CULTA is advancing international variety registration and expanding the global deployment of its cultivars. While initially focused on fruit categories in which Japan has strong crop breeding expertise–such as grapes, apples, and citrus–CULTA is expanding into additional climate-sensitive crops including coffee and bananas, positioning itself as a next-generation global horticulture platform.
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