Among the countless real estate companies out there, why do we carry the name “StandUp,” and why have we chosen AI as our means? Allow me to explain in my own words — it may run a little long.
The resolve behind the name “StandUp”
The name “Stand up” carries a promise we made to ourselves: to raise (Up) the standard (Standard) of our industry. We want to lift the “normal” of real estate to a higher level — not for the profit of a single company, but by raising the baseline of the whole industry, and in doing so increasing the value our clients receive. That resolve is where this name begins.
“Standing up” holds a second meaning, too. Unless someone stands up against unchanging conventions, the industry will never change. We want to be the company that takes on that role ourselves.
Raise (Up) the standard (Standard). And stand up (Stand up) to change it.
An unchanging essence, and the inefficiency that must change
I believe the essence of real estate work will never change: standing beside people at the great turning points of their lives, and building trust over time. The first apartment, the first home, a sale or purchase at a turning point in life — we are entrusted with decisions a client may face only a handful of times in a lifetime. No matter how far technology advances, this essence of facing people will never waver.
At the same time, the field still carries many long-unchanged customs and inefficiencies that depend on an individual’s experience and intuition. First responses to enquiries, drafting documents, managing information, monthly back-office work — the time that should be spent facing clients is consumed by such tasks. That is precisely why I am convinced there is enormous room to grow here.
Two axes — supporting with AI, standing beside people in real estate
StandUp runs its business along two axes.
One is AI-driven efficiency support for real estate operations. Because we ourselves stand in the field, we understand the real challenges — and we design solutions with the power of AI engineering to lighten the work of our peers in the industry. This is our effort to raise the standard of the industry itself.
The other is the real estate business we conduct ourselves — from rental searches to sales and property management. Using AI, we propose properties to each client every day, support them in English and Chinese, and meet the client before us with sincerity. Because we stand on both sides — supporting and serving — I believe we can deliver change that is grounded in reality, not mere theory.
My origins — civil engineering, the environment, and Shanghai
My career did not begin in real estate. After graduating from Nichinan High School in Miyazaki, I studied civil engineering — the work of supporting society from the ground up — at the Faculty of Engineering, Kyushu University. Being drawn to work that supports people’s lives at their very foundations was the beginning of everything.
Wanting to explore further, I majored in Atmosphere and Ocean Environmental System Science at the Kyushu University Graduate School, researching the environment on a global scale. During that time I was selected as an exchange student for the “Campus Asia Program,” aimed at nurturing the next generation of leaders across Japan, China and Korea, and I studied for a degree at Shanghai Jiao Tong University Graduate School. Those days of learning within a different culture became the foundation of how I serve clients across languages today.
After completing the required credits, I turned the rudder from academia toward business. I came to Tokyo and co-founded a real estate brokerage in Shinjuku, experiencing everything from launching the business to running it. The countless moments of “surely this could be done better” that I felt in the field are the direct origin of StandUp’s founding.
StandUp, from here
What we aim for is to remain a “reason to be chosen” — for our clients and for our industry alike. We meet each person before us with sincerity, and build up that small trust. It is precisely on the extension of that path, I believe, that the standard of the industry will truly be raised.
Technology is not the goal; it is the means to win back the time we spend facing our clients. We leave to AI what can be left to AI, and devote our time to the sincere work only people can do. We will continue to treasure a level of care so attentive that people might say it is “not like a real estate company at all.”
I look forward to the day I can speak with you — who have read this page — in person. Whether it is a consultation about finding a home or about AI-driven efficiency, anything is welcome. Please do not hesitate to reach out.