1H, Fiscal Year Ending March 2024

Financial Results
November 9, 2023

United, Inc.
(TSE Growth: code 2497)© UNITED, Inc.

1

Agenda1 Financial Highlights of 1H FY03/24

p.3

2 Q2 FY03/24 Business Overview

p.10

3 Appendix

p.29

All opinions, forecasts, and outlooks expressed in this presentation reflect the judgement of United, Inc. based on the information available at the time thematerial was created, and actual performance and results may differ substantially due to changes in various factors. Company names and product names aretrademarks or registered trademarks of the respective companies.

2

Business Segments and Their Components

Core Businesses

Business

Earnings Drivers

Investment business

Education business

Personnel Matchingbusiness

Ad Tech/Content business

Provision of capital andhands-on support to startups

Online education service thatallows students to gain digitalskillsMatching of digital talent (including
freelancers, side-job workers, andthose seeking career changes) in linewith the needs of startups

Development and operation ofadvertising products,
media, and apps

Kasooku inc.

LIBASE Inc.

UNITED Marketing Technologies
Inc.

Fogg, inc.

Innoop Inc.

ONX inc.

Brewus, Inc.

International Sports Marketing
Co., Ltd.

Components
Investment Division

KiRAMEX Co.

3

Financial Highlights of 1H FY03/24
Sales and operating profit increased YoY as we have concentrated the sale of investment securities for FY03/24 in 1H.

million (+38% YoY)
9,170
Consolidated
Operating Performance
Operating profit ¥5,368million (+71% YoY)
Sales

¥

Core Businesses
Investment

Sales
Operating profit

Education

Sales
Operating profit¥657 million (-2% YoY)-¥52 million (-¥107 million YoY)

p.18 for details

Sales
Operating profit¥242 million (+11% YoY)-¥273 million (-¥153 million YoY)

p.23 for details

Sales
Operating profit¥2,031 million (-9% YoY)
¥181 million (-43% YoY)

p.26 for details

Personnel Matching¥6,249 million (+78% YoY)
¥6,008 million (+82% YoY)

p.10 for details

Earnings Drivers
Ad Tech/Content

4Overall Strategy for FY03/24
In order to drive medium-term growth for the Personnel Matching business, we will actively invest profits generated
from our other businesses.

Continuous profit generation

Medium-term earnings generation

Investment business

Education business

Upfront
investments

Personnel Matchingbusiness

Ad Tech/Content business

5

Revision of Full-year FY03/24 Forecast due to the Recording of an Extraordinary LossAs the business progress of subsidiaries* within the Personnel Matching business deviated from plans at the time of
their acquisitions, we recorded the unamortized balance of goodwill as an extraordinary loss. Accordingly, we revised
our full-year earnings forecast.
The forecast for dividend per share remains unchanged due to the adoption of a new policy (DOE of 4% or dividend
payout ratio of 50%, whichever amount is larger) in FY03/24.

(Millions of yen)

Sales

Operating profit

Ordinary Profit

Net Income*

Dividend per
share

Previous forecast (A)13,150

5,000

5,000

3,300

¥48

Revised forecast (B)13,150

5,000

5,000

2,650

¥48

Change (B) – (A)

-

-

-

-650

-

Change (%)

-

-

-

-20%

-

* Refers to net income attributable to owners of parent* Kasooku inc., Cocodoru, Inc. (absorption-type merger with Kasooku in June 2023), LIBASE Inc.

6

1H Progress vs. Full-year FY03/24 Forecast
The progress rate for profit items from operating profit and below exceeded 100% versus our full-year targets since wesold securities in 1H, ahead of the full-year schedule.
Since our plan calls for continued investment in the Personnel Matching business in 2H and beyond, we left the fullyear projections for sales, operating profit, and ordinary profit unchanged.
FY03/24 earnings
forecast

Sales¥9,170 million

Progress rate of 70%¥13,150 million

Operating profit¥5,368 million

Progress rateof 107%¥5,000 million

Ordinary Profit¥5,379 million

Progress rateof 108%¥5,000 million

Net Income*¥3,080 million

0%

25%

50%

75%

Progress rateof 116%¥2,650 million

100%* Refers to net income attributable to owners of parent

7

Interim Dividend for FY03/24
Based on our new dividend policy,*1 we have decided as planned to pay an interim dividend of ¥24 per share, which
includes the commemorative dividend in celebration of United’s 10th anniversary.
Details of Annual Dividends
FY03/23*2

FY03/24
InterimYear-End(forecast)InterimYear-End

Record date

September 30, 2023

March 31, 2024

September 30, 2022

March 31, 2023

Dividend per share
(1H)

¥24.0

¥24.0

¥10.0

¥11.5

¥11.5

¥11.5

(DOE 4%)(DOE 4%)

¥10.0

¥11.5

¥12.5

¥12.5

-

-

(1) Ordinary dividend
portion(2) Commemorative
dividend portion

DOE (annual)

9.0% (forecast)

4.6%

Payout ratio(Annual)

71.0% (forecast)

20.5%*1 In FY03/24, we changed our dividend policy from the previous “dividend payout ratio of 20%” to “DOE of 4% or dividend payout ratio of 50%, whichever amount is larger.”*2 The figures factor in the stock split.

8

Agenda1 Financial Highlights of 1H FY03/24

p.3

2 Q2 FY03/24 Business Overview

p.10

3 Appendix

p.29

All opinions, forecasts, and outlooks expressed in this presentation reflect the judgement of United, Inc. based on the information available at the time thematerial was created, and actual performance and results may differ substantially due to changes in various factors. Company names and product names aretrademarks or registered trademarks of the respective companies.

9Investment Business10

Investment Business: Sales and Operating Profit
Because of the nature of this business, quarterly performance is subject to high volatility, affected by the timing of thesale of shares we hold, among other factors. However, we expect full-year sales and operating profit to finish in linewith the plan.
Sales Trend (Millions of yen)

Operating Profit Trend (Millions of yen)

5,813

5,731

3,258

3,206

2,110

2,066
1,398

1,261
435

261
Q1
1Q

277

85

Q2
2Q

Q3
3Q
FY03/23

Q4
4Q

Q1
1Q

Q2
2Q
FY03/24

Q1
1Q

Q2
2Q

Q3
3Q
FY03/23

Q4
4Q

Q1
1Q

Q2
2Q
FY03/2411

Investment Business: Investment Track Record
As of 1H FY03/24, we have invested a total of approximately ¥6.3 billion on a cumulative basis and our gains on sale ofsecurities, combined with unrealized gains, stood at roughly ¥54.7 billion.
Investment Track Record (since January 2013)
Gains on sale of securities(cumulative)

Investment amount(cumulative)

Breakdown of Operational Investment Securities

Unrealized gains on shares
held as of end-September 2023*(Millions of yen)

InvesteeCompanies

5,432

Listed shares• Mercari, Inc.
• Wonder Planet, Inc.
• CyberBuzz, Inc.
• Socialwire Co., Ltd.
• Interworks Confidence Inc.
• Excite Holdings Co., Ltd.

Unlisted
sharesLP
investments

As of September 30,
2023(amount on BS)

Approx.

¥3.3 bn*

79 companies

Approx.

¥3.1 bn

36 funds

Approx.

¥1.6 bn

49,27743,17436,58630,14023,364

4,092

FY03/20

4,485

FY03/215,245

FY03/226,089

FY03/236,340

1H FY03/24*Figures for unlisted shares were calculated based on latest reports from the issuers.

* We have forward contracts for some stocks. Including derivatives in the balance
sheet, the amount was ¥3,934 million as of end-September 2023.
12

Investment Business: Strategy for FY03/24
Drawing on our two competitive advantages, we will boost the number of investment projects in promising startups. We
plan to invest a total of ¥1.0 billion*1 in 20 companies this fiscal year.
As the lead investor*2, we will step up investment execution and bolster our hands-on support.
Competitive Advantages

Number of Investment Projects / Amount of Investment

Number of investment projects (number of investees)

Investments
using own
funds

Investment amount (million yen)

• We can invest with flexibility, without having to limit
the amount of capital provided or the ratio of stakeacquired per project.

1,000

825

• We can invest in business domains that requiretime for growth because, unlike other VC funds,
there is no need to limit the investment period.

750

20

• We have access to a wide range of startups thanks
Reach to a wide
to our track record of numerous investments andrange ofexits, the network we established with venture
startups
capitalists and top management of startups, and ourinvestment in 36 external funds as an LP.

18

FY03/22

FY03/23362

5

FY03/21*1 Equivalent to the scale of a ¥4 billion-plus fund (if committed over three years)*2 The largest investor in the investment round18

FY03/24 (Plan)

13

Investment Business: New Investees (1)We executed investment as the lead investor in Tokuiten Inc., which works on the automation of organic farming,
making full use of technology.
Business Overview

Business
The company grows organic cherry tomatoes, utilizing AI androbots.
Through the automation of farming, it seeks to promote organic
farming and resolve the labor shortages caused by the aging of
farmers.

Company

Tokuiten Inc.

Established

August 2021

Representative

Ryuichiro Toyoshi

Business

Grows organic cherry tomatoes; sells in-housedeveloped robots for use in farming

Investment
executed

August 2023
Farming robot, Titan, leverages AI and remote control to handle farm work independently.

14

Investment Business: New Investees (2)TOUCHSPOT Inc.

UTAITE Co., Ltd.

Established

September 2015

Established

December 2022

Representative

Taichi Mizushima

Representative

Masashi Kurata

Business
Investment
executed

Provides support to elevate and improve
efficiency of the 2B sales processes

Business

Developer and operator of 2.5D IPs

September 2023

Investment
executed

October 2023

O Ltd.

Established
Representative

September 2019a_haruLight-Right Inc.

Established

January 2020

Representative

Ryuta Saito

Business

Developer of a 3D computer graphics
creator tool that uses the metaverse

Business

Operator of “relay,” a businesssuccession matching platform

Investment
executed

July 2023

Investment
executed

August 2023

As of end-October 2023
15

Investment Business: Major Startup Investments

Post IPO

Middle to Later Stage

Seed to Early Stage

As of end-October 2023
16

Investment Business: Major Funds LP Investments
We expect to record gains on distribution from the multiple external funds (36 in total) we invest in as an LP. These
funds also serve as our source of new investment projects, as they allow us to reach out to over 1,000 startups.
Major Funds We Invest in as LP

17

Education Business18

Education Business: Sales and Operating Profit

Q2 sales grew YoY on expansion of the Generative AI course.
The operating loss widened YoY since we temporarily increased our ad investment to bolster student acquisition for
the Generative AI course.
Sales Trend (Millions of yen)

Operating Profit Trend (Millions of yen)

+4% YoY-¥22 million YoY

364
341

66

318

303

316

265

-11

-17
-34

-58

-109
Q1
1Q

Q2
2Q

Q3
3Q
FY03/23

Q4
4Q

Q1
1Q

Q2
2Q
FY03/24Q1Q2Q3
FY03/23Q4Q1Q2
FY03/24

19

Education Business: Strategy for FY03/24
In FY03/24, we will pursue further growth by focusing on LINE Yahoo TechAcademy and generative AI-related courses.

Focus business (1)–Line Yahoo TechAcademy

Focus business (2)–Generative AI-related courses
Began in June 2023

First Prompt Engineering Course

Began in Sep. 2023

(LINE Yahoo TechAcademy)

Students gain practical skills that are based on
LINE Yahoo’s expertise.

LLM Application Development Course

Students gain the skills to utilize AI in
actual work.

20

Education Business: Focus Business (1)—LINE Yahoo TechAcademy
We began accepting student applications to the LINE Yahoo TechAcademy* from October 12, 2023.
Students can obtain skills that would allow those with no previous experience in programming to work as corporate
web engineers. They are also offered support in their career-change activities.
LINE Yahoo TechAcademy was chosen for the Reskilling-based Career Development Support Program led by the
Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry.

(LINE Yahoo TechAcademy)

Practical curriculum

Support from active engineers

Career-change support

Students can gain the skills to work
actively as a web engineer in just fourmonths, taking advantage of the practicaltechnologies of LINE Yahoo.

Personal mentors offer
one-on-one study support.

Dedicated career counselors support
students’ career-change
as web engineers.

* Name changed from Yahoo! TechAcademy

21

Education Business: Focus Business (2)—Generative AI-related Courses
In addition to the First Prompt Engineering Course for those studying generative AI for the first time, we beganoffering a new practical course for engineers who develop applications that use LLM*.

New
Began
in June 2023

Overview

Targetstudents

First Prompt Engineering Course

The course aims to provide students with an understanding of
LLM and have them gain skills that can be used in actual work.

• Those who wish to use generative AI in business• Those who wish to relearn digital skills• Those interested in reskilling

Began
in Sep. 2023

LLM Application Development Course

Overview

The course allows students to learn the basics of Python andgain skills to develop and implement LLM-based applications.

Targetstudents• Engineers involved in development using LLM• Engineers seeking to achieve fusion of data processing andnatural language processing• Engineers seeking to step up from beginner-level skills in
Python* LLM: Short for large language model. A deep learning model that learns language patterns from massive text data and performs text-related tasks, such as text generation and summarization, with highaccuracy
22Personnel Matching Business

23

Personnel Matching Business: Sales and Operating Profit

Although the Innoop Inc. business grew, the integration of Cocodoru, Inc.* did not progress smoothly. Consequently,
quarterly sales and operating profit of the segment as a whole were down YoY.
We have merged Cocodoru, Inc. with Kasooku inc. to pursue business expansion.

Sales Trend (Millions of yen)

Operating Profit Trend (Millions of yen)
-9% YoY

142

139-¥64 million

129

123
113

76
-49
-70
-94

Q1
1Q

Q2
2Q

Q3
3Q

Q4
4Q

FY03/23* Absorption-type merger with Kasooku inc. in June 2023

Q1
1Q

Q2
2Q
FY03/24Q1Q2Q3
FY03/23

-131

-137

-135

Q4

Q1

Q2
FY03/24

24

Personnel Matching Business: Increasing the Number of Registrants and Corporate Users

The number of registrants* increased QoQ as Kasooku inc. strengthened its effort to win registrants.
The number of corporate users was up QoQ thanks to the expansion of Innoop Inc. and the acquisition of ONX inc.
Number of Registrants

Number of Corporate Users(Registrants)(Users)ONX inc.
consolidated

300
Kasooku inc.
consolidated

29,249

+17%
250

+19%

24,926Innoop Inc.
consolidated

23,650200

150

Cocodoru, Inc.
consolidated

100

4,832

5,064

2Q
Q2

3Q
Q3

50

175
0
1Q
Q1

FY03/23* Job seekers registered with our services

4Q
Q4

1Q
Q1

2Q
Q2

FY03/24

2023年3月期
Q1 1Q

2023年3月期
Q2 2Q

2023年3月期
Q3 3Q

FY03/232023年3月期
Q4 4Q

2024年3月期
Q11Q

2024年3月期
2Q
Q2

FY03/24

25

Ad Tech/Content Business

26

Ad Tech/Content Business: Sales and Operating Profit
In the Content business, Q2 sales increased YoY mainly due to business growth at Fogg, inc.
In the Ad Tech business*, Q2 sales and operating profit fell YoY as advertisers’ ad budgets concentrated in 1H FY03/23.
For the segment as a whole, we expect to continue generating profit moving forward.

Sales Trend (Millions of yen)

Operating Profit Trend (Millions of yen)

Ad Technology
Content-42% YoY-7% YoY
195
1,155

1,113

1,079

1,072

1,043
959

140
121

112

112

68

Q1
1Q

Q2
2Q

Q3
3Q
FY03/23*UNITED Marketing Technologies, Inc.

Q4
4Q

Q1
1Q

Q2
2Q
FY03/24Q1Q2Q3
FY03/23Q4Q1Q2
FY03/24

27

Agenda1 Financial Highlights of 1H FY03/24

p.3

2 Q2 FY03/24 Business Overview

p.10

3 Appendix

p.29

All opinions, forecasts, and outlooks expressed in this presentation reflect the judgement of United, Inc. based on the information available at the time thematerial was created, and actual performance and results may differ substantially due to changes in various factors. Company names and product names aretrademarks or registered trademarks of the respective companies.

28

Summary of Consolidated P/L Statement for 1H FY03/24(Millions of yen)

1H FY03/23

1H FY03/24

YoY (%)

Sales

6,637

9,170

+38.2%

Gross profit

4,501

7,062

+56.9%

SG&A expenses

1,365

1,694

+24.1%

Operating Profit

3,136

5,368

+71.2%

Non-operating profit

20

17-16.1%

Non-operating expenses

10

6-43.9%

3,146

5,379

+71.0%

Extraordinary profit

359

-

-

Extraordinary losses

2570+21,302.8%

Profit before income taxes

3,503

4,808

+37.3%Net Income*

2,374

3,080

+29.7%

Ordinary Profit*Refers to net income attributable to owners of parent

29

Consolidated P/L Statement for Q2 FY03/24, by Business(Millions of yen)

Q2 FY23/03

Difference

Q2 FY03/24

YoY (Amount)

YoY (%)

1,861

1,946

+85

+5%

Investment

261

435

+173

+66%

Education

303

316

+12

+4%

Personnel Matching

142

129

-13

-9%

Ad Tech/Content

1,155

1,072

-83

-7%

-2

-6

-4

-

Gross Profit*1

705

821

+115

+16%

Investment

103

319

+215

+208%

Education

100

101

+0

+1%

Personnel Matching

48

40

-8

-17%

Ad Tech/Content

453

365

-87

-19%

-1

-6

-5

-

SG&A Expenses

694

814

+120

+17%

Operating Profit

11

6

-4

-39%

Investment

85

277

+191

+224%

Education

-11

-34

-22

-

Personnel Matching

-70

-135

-64

-

Ad Tech/Content

195

112

-82

-42%

Other

-187

-213

-25

-

Ordinary Profit

21

13

-8

-39%

Net Income*2

-24

-604

-580

-

Sales

Other

Other

* Cost of sales for each business mainly includes advertising, outsourcing, and personnel expenses

30Consolidated B/S Statement

Assets, liabilities, and net assets decreased mainly due to mark-to-market valuation and sale of listed shared held.

(Millions of yen)

End of FY03/23(March 31, 2023)

End of Q2 FY03/24(September 30, 2023)

Difference

27,891

27,324-567

Cash & deposits

13,37016,142+2,771

Operating investment securities

11,236

8,216-3,020 *1

4,426

2,677

-1,748

905

273

-632

Total assets

32,31830,002-2,316

Current liabilities

2,777

3,300

+523

Non current liabilities

2,893

1,218

-1,675

2,838

1,163

-1,674

Total liabilities

5,671

4,519

-1,151

Net assets

26,64725,482-1,164

3,934

1,673

-2,260 *1

Current assets

Non current assets
Amortization of goodwill

Deferred tax liabilities

Unrealized gain on securities*2*1*1 Of this amount, the impact of revaluation (mark -to-market) and disposal of operational investment securities (listed shares) were as follows:
Operational investment securities -¥3,248 million
Deferred tax liabilities -¥910 million
Unrealized gain on securities -¥2,305 million.
*2 Of this amount, the impact of extraordinary losses recorded was -¥570 million

31

Cash flows
Net cash provided by operating activities rose YoY due to an increase in sale of securities.
Net cash used in financing activities fell YoY owing to a decline in expenses associated with the repurchase of shares.

(Millions of yen)

Cash flow from operating activities

1H FY03/23

1H FY03/24

Difference

*1

*2

2,490

4,288

+1,797*3

Cash flow from investing activities-581-1,114-533*4Cash flow from financing activities-1,479-402+1,077

Cash and cash equivalents at
end of period

12,595

16,142+3,547*1 The amount factors in ¥3,275 million from sale of operational investment securities and -¥1,057 million from income taxes paid
*2 The amount factors in ¥6,187 million from sale of operational investment securities and -¥1,251 million from income taxes paid
*3 The amount factors in ¥1,000 million spent on purchase of investment securities*4 The amount factors in -¥1,001 million from share repurchase and -¥402 million from cash dividends paid

32

Purpose
People who push themselves forward.
Businesses that move society forward.
The betterment of society is driven by people andbusinesses with willpower.
Strong willpower is the source of energy thatchanges society for the better.
UNITED will maximize this energy and willpower.

Maximize willpower andaccelerate the betterment of society.

We will provide knowledge and opportunities topeople with willpower.
We will provide funds and know-how to businesses
with willpower.
And when both parties meet, their mutual growth
will spark even further growth.
This cycle of growth will enrich society.
We will move society in a better direction fasterwith willpower.
We will maximize willpower and accelerate thebetterment of society.
33Collaboration of the Core Businesses
We will create synergies by strengthening collaboration of our core businesses.

Supply trained digital
personnel

Education business

Match personnel who cancontribute to growth ofinvestee companies

Personnel Matchingbusiness

Develop and improveeducational curriculum

Investment business

Provide access to staffing
needs at startups

34

Growth Mechanism
We will build a unique growth mechanism where the growth of each core business will lead to mutual enhancementof competitive strengths and KPIs.

Education business

Personnel Matching business

Investment business

Increase the levelof skills gained

Improvematching rate

Expand investment
opportunities

Expand/improveeducation service

Expand/improvetalent pool

Discover superior
growth companies

Widen reach to growthcompanies

Accumulate
skills/know-how

Increase matching
opportunities

KPI The number of individual users

KPI The number of corporate users

Build investment
track record

KPI The number of investment projects

Growth of core businesses as a whole35

Significance of Pursuing the Investment BusinessWe provide funds and know-how toentrepreneurs with willpower in order toraise the success rate of startups.

⚫ Fostering startups is vital to the Japanese economy.
⚫ United will raise the success rate of startups andaccelerate their growth by providing funds and support.

36

Investment Business: Initiatives
In keeping with our purpose statement, we focus on investment in seed- to early-stage startups.
We seek to enhance the value of startups by stepping up our efforts to provide hands-on support.
Reason behind our focus on seed- to early-stage startups

Hands-on support

The ratio of new business launches and the percentage of people aspiring to start
their own businesses are both low in Japan. To create new industries, it is crucial
to invest and provide support from an early stage.
Percentage of people who consider
entrepreneurship as a desirable
career option*2

Ratio of new business launches*1

Japan

U.S.

67.9%
9.9%

10.1%
9.5%

9.2%

9.2%

Examples of support offered by UVS*3,
our investee support organization
Formulation of business strategy/plan, financing support,
formulation and execution of organizational strategy,
digital marketing support, etc.

9.3%

Matching of talent and startups throughbusiness collaboration
5.6%

5.6%

5.2%

5.1%
4.4%

2015

2016

2017

2018

24.6%

Collaboration with the Personnel Matching business

4.2%

2019

2020

Japan

U.S.

Source:*1 2022 White Paper on Small and Medium Enterprises in Japan and 2023 White Paper on Small and Medium
Enterprises in Japan by The Small and Medium Enterprise Agency*2 Collection of Basic Data regarding Startups by the Cabinet Secretariat, Government of Japan*3 UNITED Venture Success. Investee support organization comprised of venture capitalists and consultants

37

Investment Business: Market Environment
The Japanese government has set forth “the enhancement of support toward startups” as a major agenda in its socalled Big-Boned Policy and formulated the Startup Development Five-Year Plan, which targets ¥10 trillion in startup
investments by fiscal 2027. Seeing this as a chance to expand investment opportunities, we are executing investments
at an accelerated pace.
Three pillars of the Startup Development Five-Year Plan

Amount invested in domestic startups/government target

10,000(Billions of yen)

Develop human resources and put in place networks that
Pillar 1 enable establishment of startups
Roughly 10-foldincrease

Pillar 2 Strengthen funding for startups and diversify exit strategies
867.6

Pillar 3 Promote open innovation

945.9

555.4

2020

2021

2022

2027
(government target)

Source: Japan Startup Finance 2022, “Amount of Funds Raised by Domestic Startups,” by Uzabase, Inc.
Japan Startup Finance 1H 2023 (Latest Edition) by Uzabase, Inc.
Source: Startup Development Five-year Plan (draft) by the Cabinet Secretariat, Government of Japan38

Significance of Pursuing the Education BusinessWe provide an environment for growthto people with willpower.
We enrich society with opportunities and people
who continue to pursue self-actualization.
⚫ As the pace of changes in society accelerates, it becomes increasingly
difficult to survive with knowledge and skills in just one area.
⚫ We provide an environment that fosters wisdom so that individuals canrealize what they aspire with strong will.
⚫ Rather than simply providing wisdom, we also provide a place wherethat wisdom can be applied, thereby creating opportunities forindividuals to achieve continued growth.

39

Education Business: Initiatives
To solve the shortage of digital talent, we seek to improve the skillsets of prospective talent by providing education andpractical work opportunities.
By focusing on Generative AI, we provide the learning necessary for the future era.

Educate prospective digital talent

Provide practical work opportunities

Provide learning that can be applied
to the coming era

We offer a wide range of courses
from introductory courses for non-engineers tocourses involving practical training.

We support skill enhancement and career change by
providing practical work opportunities.

We provide the learning that one needs
in a society where the spread of technology/AI is
progressing rapidly.
First Prompt
Engineering Course

An online school that teaches programming
and app development to individualand corporate customers.

Service where graduates and mentors
collaborate on corporate development projects

LLM app development course

卒業生とメンターが共同でStudents
gain
the skills to utilize Generative AI
企業の開発案件に対応するサービス
in real-life work。

(LINE Yahoo TechAcademy)Service that allows students to acquire
practical skills based on Yahoo's expertise

卒業生とメンターが共同でStudents gain
knowledge on deep learning and企業の開発案件に対応するサービス
machine learning necessary for building AI.

We plan on implementing new initiatives such as
the launch of a course on how to incorporate
Generative AI in businesses.

40

Education Business: Service Overview & Business Model
We operate the online school TechAcademy, where students can learn programming and app development, and weoffer TechAcademy Works, which provides practical work opportunities for acquiring hands-on skills and supports
career changes.
Service Overview

Business Model

Online programming school for individuals andcorporations

TechAcademy/
Yahoo! TechAcademy

TechAcademy

Online tutoring

Online tutoring¥

Tuition fees¥

Tuition fees

(LINE Yahoo TechAcademy)Service that allows students to acquire practicalskills based on Yahoo's expertise

Individuals
aspiring tobecome digitalprofessionals

TechAcademy WorksTechAcademy Works
Project-based
compensation

Worker* referral¥¥

Companies
aiming for
growththrough digitaltechnology

Outsourcing fees

Service where graduates and mentors collaborate
on corporate development projects*TechAcademy graduates working on TechAcademy Works projects
41

Education Business: Market Environment
In 2030, the pool of digital talent in Japan will be short by about 800 thousand people.
With the AI market expanding, the need to foster digital talent will rise.

Expanding shortage of digital talent
Digital talent in Japan

Outlook on the AI systems market in Japan

Shortage of digital talent in Japan(10,000 people)

11,034(Billons of yen)

Roughly 3-foldincrease

79
41
3,883

106

113

2020

2030
(Projection)

Source: 2008 Survey on Infrastructure Development and IT Personnel Supply and Demand related to Japan’s Data-driven
Society, a report by Mizuho Information & Research Institute, Inc.

2022

2027
(Projection)

Source: Japan Artificial Intelligence Systems Forecast, 2023–2027 by IDC Japan42

Significance of Pursuing the Personnel Matching BusinessWe create opportunities where people
with willpower and businesses withwillpower can come together.
⚫ We contribute to the creation of new industries byintroducing superior talent to startups.

⚫ In anticipation of Japan’s shrinking workforce, we promote
optimum allocation of human resources by boosting
employment mobility.
⚫ We provide opportunities where individuals can improvetheir skills through various work and gain experience as abusinessperson.

43Personnel Matching Business: Initiatives
We focus on startups, and match personnel based on contractual arrangements (career change, side job, freelancing,etc.) that suit the startups’ needs.
We seek to boost employment mobility and contribute to the creation of new industries by offering job seekers work
opportunities of diverse formats.
Startups

We introduce talent who can assist business-stage-appropriate growth of startups,
under suitable contractual arrangements.

Career change

Side job

Freelancing

Designer-focused
crowdsourcing service

Recruitment support business

Matching service for those seeking side jobs
and career changes

Matching of HR professionals andcompanies

We create opportunities for people to improve skills and gain experiences suitable to their career plans byproviding employment opportunities that cater to diverse work styles.
Job seekers

44Personnel Matching Business: Business Model & Overview
As the core company of the Personnel Matching business, Kasooku inc. focuses on matching digital professionals in
the areas of career changes, side jobs, and freelancing with growth-oriented companies.
Business Model

Business Overview

Side-job worker referral¥

Kasooku inc.
Side job and career change matching platform"Kasooku"

Referral fees

Consolidation started in December 2022
Service registration/
job application

Matching side job workers/
career change talent

Job change talentreferral¥

LIBASE Inc.
Designer-focused crowdsourcing service "JOOi"

Referral fees

Consolidation started in June 2021

Job seekers¥

Service registration/
job application

Designer referral

Project-based
compensation

Outsourcing
expenses

Designer matching¥

Start up
ONX inc.
Freelance HR matching service “Carry Up”
Consolidation started in July 2023

Outsourced recruiting
messaging services

Recruiter messaging services
for job seekers¥

Agency fees

Innoop Inc.
Recruitment support business "offerBrain"
Consolidation started in August 2022
45

Personnel Matching Business Market Environment
The population of side-job workers and freelancers has increased on the back of workstyle reforms and widespread
adoption of remote work.
The ratio of workers changing jobs is rising due to work style diversification and a change in people’s values
concerning work. We expect to see employment mobility expand moving forward.
Side-job and freelance population
Side job & freelance
population

Ratio of workers who have changed jobs during the year

Population of those who have no side-job
experience but have the intent to work side jobs

7.6%

(10,000 people)

7.0%

7.0%

1,784

5.3%

4.9%
4.2%
3.7%

2,482
1,470

2015

1,775

1,882

1,895

1,854

1,770

2016

2017

2018

2019

2020

2021

Sources:
New Freelance Fact-Finding Investigation Report 2021–2022, “Segment-specific Trends,” by Lancers, Inc.
Freelance Fact-Finding Investigation Report 2021, “Increase of Side-job and Multiple-job Workers,” by Lancers, Inc.
Freelance Fact-Finding Investigation Report 2018, “Trends in the Economic Scale and Population of Side-job
Workforce,” by Lancers, Inc.
”CrowdWorks Conducts Survey on Side Jobs,” by CrowdWorks, Inc.

2016

2017

2018

2019

Source: 2023 Survey on Job Change Trends (2022 Results) by Mynavi

2020

2021

2022

46

Sales and Earnings (FY03/13–FY03/24)(Millions of yen)

Recorded gains on the saleof securities accompanying
the listing of Mercari, Inc.

Sales
Operating profit

Designated corebusinesses in line with
our purpose statement

22,31816,267

13,14012,714

12,60913,15011,084

8,385

8,383

5,552
5,101

4,325

3,955

5,606

5,738

5,823
5,000

2,530
1,509
2
FY03/13138

370

FY03/14

FY03/15

FY03/16

1,395

FY03/17

1,648

FY03/18

FY03/19

FY03/20

FY03/21

FY03/22*

FY03/23

FY03/24(Forecast)*We adopted the Accounting Standard for Revenue Recognition (ASBJ Statement No. 29) and the ASBJ Guidance No. 30 (Implementation Guidance on Accounting Standard for
Revenue Recognition) from FY21. In this document, we applied this standard to the past earnings of the Ad Technology business in order to make the comparison easier.

47

Number of Consolidated Employees and Directors
Temporary employees
Headquarters divisions full-time employees
Ad Tech/Content full-time employees
Personnel Matching full-time employees
Education full-time employees

Investment full-time employees
Officers (Directors and corporate auditors of parent, including outside directors/auditors)(Numbers employed)

334
48

30

335

331

54

58

28

170

167

29

26

28

163

24

325
56

24

165

21

325
51

340

331

67

54

20

21

359

355

72

65

22

24

172

173

23

22

45

45

346

69

22

22

169

171

167

168

21

23

22

25

46

45

45

45

42

46

44

45

7
8

6
8

6
8

6
8

7
11

6
11

6
11

6
11

14
11

15
11

FY22-1Q
Q1

FY22-2Q
Q2

FY22-3Q
Q3

FY22-4Q
Q4

FY23-1Q
Q1

FY23-2Q
Q2

FY23-3Q
Q3

FY23-4Q
Q4

FY24-1Q
Q1

FY24-2Q
Q2

FY03/22

FY03/23

FY03/2448

49