HENNGE K.K. (Headquarters: Shibuya-ku, Tokyo; Representative Director and CEO: Kazuhiro Ogura) announced today the launch of HENNGE AI K.K., effective as of October 1, 2026. Designed to assist organizations in managing the costs and governance of enterprise AI adoption, the new company operates under a forward-looking structure with no dedicated employees besides two directors. By embedding AI agents directly into daily operations, HENNGE AI aims to accelerate decision-making and serve as a proof-of-concept model for next-generation, AI-driven corporate structures.
Background and Objectives of Establishing HENNGE AI
As Japanese companies rapidly advance their adoption of AI, employees in non-IT departments are increasingly building and utilizing AI agents themselves. However, full-scale operational deployment often stalls at the Proof of Concept (PoC) stage due to major barriers, including escalating operational costs for Large Language Models (LLMs) and the challenge of ensuring robust governance and security.
Through HENNGE One—its flagship cloud security service supporting over 3 million contracted users—HENNGE has accumulated extensive expertise in security and identity management within enterprise IT environments. Building on this solid foundation, HENNGE established HENNGE AI to provide powerful support for the secure development and operation of AI agents across enterprises.
Upcoming the AI Gateway Service Overview
HENNGE AI will develop new services designed for the safe and secure operation of AI agents. They will be built on the foundation of “AI Gateway,” an internal system currently operational within HENNGE that allows users to switch between multiple generative AI models and track overall usage.
Key Features of AI Gateway (Planned):
- User-Level Generative AI Model Management: Assigns available AI models by user or group, enabling quick additions, updates, and removals.
- Cost Visibility and Control: Calculates and clearly visualizes usage costs per AI model, allowing organizations to set budget caps and apply usage policies.
- Flexible and Robust Security Settings: Offers adaptable security enforcement matching organization needs, ranging from company-wide rules to granular group- or individual-level permission controls.
- Identity Integration with HENNGE One: Integrates seamlessly with HENNGE One’s Identity Provider (IdP) architecture to deliver advanced Single Sign-On (SSO) and device-level access control.
- [Future Vision] Unified Authentication Platform for Non-Human Identities: Plans to expand the AI Gateway service into an authentication and management platform for non-human identities, including AI agents and bots.
Anticipated Use Cases
The AI Gateway service is designed to offer flexible integration and advanced control tailored to specific business needs. It aims to provide an environment where both technical developers and line-of-business (LOB) professionals can independently build, deploy, and operate AI agents.
- Generative AI Chat Integration (e.g., Claude, ChatGPT): Designed to connect with standard generative AI applications, enabling enterprise-wide AI adoption while precisely controlling usage costs and model selection.
- Development Environment Integration (e.g., Visual Studio Code): Intended to connect seamlessly with primary development tools to enhance developer productivity through secure code completion and generation.
- AI Agent & No-Code Platform Integration (e.g., Dify): Envisioned to integrate with agentic workflow platforms such as Dify, allowing organizations to operate advanced AI applications while optimizing and managing call-level API costs.
Availability and Pricing
The AI Gateway service is scheduled for launch during HENNGE’s fiscal year 2027 (ending September 30, 2027). Details regarding pricing and eligibility terms will be announced prior to the official release.
Distinctive Features of HENNGE AI’s Organizational Structure
The establishment of HENNGE AI represents a bold experiment to answer a fundamental question for the modern enterprise: What is the optimal organization when built from the ground up to maximize AI agent utilization? HENNGE AI will actively explore this frontier, identifying both the distinct advantages and the operational challenges of an AI-driven business model through the following approaches:
- An “Employee-Free,” AI-Collaborative Organization: HENNGE AI operates without dedicated personnel beyond its two board directors. A network of AI agents will directly execute a broad range of operational tasks, including software development, customer support, marketing, and back-office functions.
- Strategic Functional Division with HENNGE Parent Company: While establishing a practical, pioneering framework for human-AI collaboration, HENNGE AI will delegate sales activities and select enterprise back-office operations to HENNGE K.K.
Comment from Takeru Imaizumi, Representative Director of HENNGE AI K.K.:
To solve the critical challenges of cost and governance that hinder corporate AI adoption, we must first understand their true nature by practicing what we preach. HENNGE AI will serve as its own proof of concept—operating an organization where AI agents execute daily operations with zero dedicated employees—and deliver both the operational framework and insights back to our customers. We are committed to realizing a world where enterprise AI initiatives move beyond PoCs and generate real value.
*To learn more about the vision behind establishing HENNGE AI, please read Takeru Imaizumi’s article on the HENNGE note blog.
https://note.com/hennge
Comment from Kazuhiro Ogura, Representative Director and CEO of HENNGE K.K.:
This marks the first time HENNGE has established a domestic subsidiary, representing a new era of ‘HENNKA’ (Change) and ‘CHALLENGE’ for our group. Through HENNGE One, we have led the way in IT adoption and security for the cloud era. As we step into the next phase, our goal is to drive safe, efficient AI adoption and pioneer what the next generation of corporate organizations—working side-by-side with AI—should look like.
About HENNGE AI K.K.
Company name: HENNGE AI K.K.
Address: Daiwa Shibuya Square, 16-28 Nampeidaicho, Shibuya-ku, Tokyo
Representative: Takeru Imaizumi, Representative Director (Executive Officer of HENNGE K.K.)
Yoshiki Nagatome, Director (Director, Executive Vice President of HENNGE K.K.)
Date of Establishment: October 1, 2026
Business Description: Development and provision of AI-related services and AI management tools; consulting services (Forward Deployed Engineering / FDE)
About HENNGE K.K.
HENNGE K.K. is a SaaS company guided by the management philosophy of “liberation of technology to change the world,” dedicated to bridging the gap between advanced technologies and practical application. It develops and sells distinctive services: a cloud security service with the largest market share in Japan, HENNGE One, which offers comprehensive security, including single sign-on (SSO), access management, email security, and secure file sharing, alongside device management and protection based on zero trust principles; a cloud email distribution service, Customers Mail Cloud. Established in November 1996, HENNGE was listed on the Tokyo Stock Exchange (TSE) Mothers (now Growth) in October 2019.
The company name “HENNGE” is a portmanteau of the Japanese word for transformation, ‘HENNKA,’ and ‘CHALLENGE,’ signifying its commitment to embracing every change as an opportunity.
Company name: HENNGE K.K. (securities code: 4475)
Address: Daiwa Shibuya Square, 16-28 Nampeidaicho, Shibuya-ku, Tokyo
Representative: Kazuhiro Ogura (Representative Director, President and CEO)
URL: https://hennge.com/global/
*Ranked No. 1 in the IDaaS Market (Sales and Share by Vendor) for five consecutive years from FY2021 through FY2025 (forecast), based on the ITR Market View: Identity and Access Management/Personal Authentication Cybersecurity Market 2026 by ITR.
– Press Contact
HENNGE K.K.
Corporate Communication Division
Email: hennge-pr@hennge.com
TEL: 03-6415-3660
Person in charge: Ichishima
The names of companies, products, and services mentioned in this press release are trademarks or registered trademarks of HENNGE K.K. or other related organizations.