- MW has raised approximately $21 million in seed funding to expand its Living Home platform, a housing concept that combines residential construction with AI, robotics and software infrastructure designed for future domestic robot deployment.
- The Tokyo-based company is developing what it calls “Residential Physical AI,” using sensors, AI systems and connected devices to create homes that can perceive their environment, make decisions and coordinate actions with minimal human intervention.
- MW said the funding will support expansion of Living Home projects across Japan, development of residential AI and robotics technologies, construction of a data infrastructure for training AI models and plans to license its housing platform to other builders and developers.
Tokyo startup MW has raised 3 billion yen, or approximately $21 million, in seed funding as it looks to commercialize a new type of housing designed around the assumption that AI systems and robots will become a routine part of daily life.
The round included investments from Alpha; the National Guarantee Innovation Fund and Japan Post Bank Spiral Regional Innovation Fund, both managed by Spiral Innovation Partners; SMBC Edge; FFG Venture Business Partners; Mitsubishi UFJ Capital; Lo Enterprises, a family office led by Jeffrey Lo of the Hang Seng Bank founding family; Minato Financial Partners; and GMO AI & Robotics Trading. Individual investors included Rakuten co-founder Shinnosuke Honjo and former UBS Securities chairman Susumu Omori.
The company said funding will be used to expand MW’s “Living Home” platform, a housing concept that combines residential construction with artificial intelligence, robotics and software infrastructure. The company is also investing in physical AI research, robotics development and a platform it eventually plans to license to other home builders and developers.
Founded by CEO Shuzo Narita, MW is developing what it describes as “Residential Physical AI,” an approach that treats the home itself as an intelligent system capable of sensing its environment, interpreting events and coordinating actions through connected devices and robotic systems.
The company’s premise is that housing has largely been left behind by advances in software and artificial intelligence. While smart home systems have become common, MW suggests that most remain collections of disconnected devices requiring direct user control rather than integrated systems capable of acting autonomously.
Instead, the company envisions homes designed from the ground up to support future generations of domestic robots and AI agents.
“Rather than simply improving the functions that current homes perform, MW is working to redefine the very concept of housing by starting from the question, ‘What should a future home be like, incorporating the evolution of all technologies?'” the company noted in the announcement.
The company said the new funding will support four primary initiatives:
- Expand Living Home deployments: Increase the supply of its AI-enabled Living Home residences, building on more than 10 projects currently underway across urban, regional and resort locations in Japan.
- Advance the Living Home platform: Further develop the company’s residential operating system and architectural designs to create homes that can centrally manage devices, services and future robotic systems through a unified platform.
- Develop AI robotics and physical AI technologies: Accelerate in-house development of residential robots, Vision-Language-Action models and other physical AI systems, while exploring a dedicated data center to collect and use real-world residential data for AI training.
- Scale the platform and organization: Expand plans to license the Living Home platform — including architectural specifications, software and robotics integration tools — to other builders and developers, while increasing hiring across engineering, architecture, real estate, business development and corporate functions.
The company indicated the concept has already begun moving into the market. MW said its first Living Home project in Tokyo’s Himonya district received a purchase offer shortly after sales began and generated more than 1,000 inquiries. The company has also launched a second project in Fukuoka and is constructing three additional homes in Kanagawa Prefecture scheduled for completion later this month.
According to MW, more than 10 projects are currently underway across urban, regional and resort locations throughout Japan.
Image credit: MW
