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In Search of 'Universal Value'—Music Industry Hitmaker Develops Meeting Production App to Accelerate Business Communication[2025 ICT Startup League Member Interview: Numéro.8 Inc.]
Music has always been a primary form of entertainment and culture, enriching people's lives in every era. Numéro.8 Inc. is a company founded by Naoki Oka, who entered the music industry at a young age.
Mr. Oka began his career as a composer and arranger, producing numerous songs for popular artists like AKB48 and Aya Matsuura, as well as the ending theme for the anime "Dragon Ball Kai." In the process, he chose the path of entrepreneurship, wanting to "pursue higher quality music production."
His pursuit of quality extended beyond the conventional scope of a musician, leading him to engage in music business consulting and solution development. Of course, he continues to be prolific in his core work of music production, handling sound creation for TETSUYA of "L'Arc~en~Ciel" and music for the idol-training smartphone game "Tokyo 7th Sisters." As a "sound specialist," he is advancing creation and business in a wide range of fields.
Participating in the ICT Startup League symbolizes the next challenge for Numéro.8 and Mr. Oka. Their selected project is the "Development of an online meeting system utilizing ICT." While this might not sound music-related on the surface, it involves developing "ScenarioDip," an app that brings the effect of "sound" to online meetings. We asked Mr. Oka just what kind of application this is.
Mr. Naoki Oka, CEO of Numéro.8 Inc.Bringing "Production" to Online Meetings: A New Idea to Boost Appeal with Sound and Visuals
Is it correct to imagine "ScenarioDip" as an online meeting app that plays music, like background music?
Oka: While the appearance is quite different, we are developing it by adding sound production effects on top of existing online meeting software, so that's basically correct. However, it's less about music playing for no particular reason and more about BGM, alerts, and sound effects that match the atmosphere and content of the moment. It's software that uses these sounds to enhance the production effects of speeches and presentations in meetings.
Please tell us about the development background.
Oka: I've been involved in music production for over 20 years, and I strongly feel that music and sound often have an impact on people's emotions and the atmosphere of a place. While there isn't scientific evidence or proof, through my work, I've established my own methods for "what kind of sounds tend to evoke specific emotions in people."
On TV news, some programs intentionally avoid playing music so that viewers don't form preconceptions or biases about the news content. This seems like the opposite of that.
Oka: That's right. I use this method in my music production, and it has actually yielded certain reactions and effects. I've had many experiences where "applying this sound in this situation creates a multiplier effect, getting a big response," and I'm more familiar than most with its utility. When I thought about what market I could leverage this strength in, I arrived at online meetings.
Production effects are crucial for successful presentations and negotiations.
Oka: That's why ScenarioDip incorporates visual effects as well as sound. Existing online meetings are, in essence, video calls. And screen sharing to display documents. Most online meetings today consist only of these two things. So, what if, during a video call, a graph floated next to your face, or your name appeared in a stylized caption during your introduction, or the agenda remained displayed while you were speaking? That might boost the presentation's appeal. In other words, it's about enhancing visual immersion.
And sound is added to that.
Oka: Yes. We create a multiplier effect with visual and sound effects. So, the key feature of ScenarioDip isn't about playing music you like; it's about easily using production-oriented sound and visuals specifically to boost appeal.
An image of the ScenarioDip interface, developed by Numéro.8 Inc.Why is a Musician Creating a Business Tool? The Winning Potential of "Sound" Found in a Mature Market
I'm interested in why you, a music producer, decided to take on a project like ScenarioDip.
Oka: I received piano and ear training from a young age and also played instruments. So, I believe I understood the value of continuing to be a music player. However, considering the music industry's market environment after the COVID-19 pandemic, the number of users paying for music has been decreasing. It's not that the number of young people aiming for the music industry has suddenly dropped, and I don't think the market will disappear, but...
It's not like the CD bubble of the past, but I don't get the impression that people—from children to the elderly—are enjoying music itself any less.
Oka: I agree. In this situation, I spent more time contemplating my role and started asking myself, "What do I really want to do?" I realized that, although I come from a player background, what I love most is "making music." And my greatest joy is "providing that music to the world and making people happy." From there, the desire was born to try creating a new product that could use music to serve the world.
So you didn't have the idea for "ScenarioDip" from the very beginning.
Oka: I think I spent a good year and a half conceptualizing a new product. Creators tend to think, "I have to make something new, something the world has never seen." However, looking at it calmly from a business perspective, things that are too novel require significant initial investment. Without financial leeway, the probability of success is low. It's even uncertain if the imagined demand will ever materialize. That led me to feel I had a better chance of success by thinking of something where the sound I create could have value within a mature, established market.
That's a very level-headed analysis.
Oka: As a creator, I definitely feel more joy in highly innovative things, so in a way, I'm contradicting myself (laughs).
So, after all that research and simulation, you landed on online meetings and music.
Oka: That's right. As an infrastructure, it has a global market, not just a domestic one. Consequently, I can use existing systems, which keeps the initial investment low. And most importantly, there's almost no "production" using sound and visuals yet. I was fine with a new product starting in a niche field, so for "ScenarioDip," it's enough for now if people with a certain high level of literacy use it. With that, I could see a path to success.
Could you be more specific about "people with a certain high level of literacy"?
Oka: People who are sensitive to sound and design. In the business market, this might be sales professionals who have high-end users as clients. People involved in consulting or branding—both they and their clients—often have a very refined aesthetic, so I think they would be likely to use it.
True, creative professionals, for example, seem like they would be particular about their presentations and would want unique production elements.
Oka: Also, people in problem-solving businesses. The easiest example is a tutoring school for young children. I think it could be easily adopted for online classes. How do you get children, who have trouble sitting in front of a screen for long, to become immersed in the screen? That's where ScenarioDip can shine. There's likely a need for that.
An image of the ScenarioDip interface, developed by Numéro.8 Inc.Beyond the "Individuality" Barrier: Delivering New Musical Value Through a "System"
Your profile mentioned you were interested in management and business as well as music. What was the origin of that?
Oka: It's not something I've been exposed to since childhood like music, but I've always liked reading books on management. However, it was less about business and more that I liked books about historical figures, like Date Masamune, and found the "management" aspects within them interesting.
Warlords expanded their territory while managing their domains. As a result, they are often used as examples for managers or in organizational theory.
Oka: Yes. As part of that reading, I started coming across books by classic business leaders like Konosuke Matsushita and Soichiro Honda, and my reading expanded.
What aspects of management interested you?
Oka: I started my career in the music industry as a player, but at my core is a desire to "create and pursue things with universal value, rather than success from a passing trend or temporary profit." For example, in the entertainment market of the past, I would have wanted to be involved in creating a "national hit song." However, that's extremely difficult in today's changed music environment. When I thought about it, I realized that to fulfill this desire to "touch universal value," starting a company was the only way.
In this era, a "hit song that everyone of all generations knows" hardly exists. Amidst this, if ScenarioDip becomes a standard for online meetings and many people can enjoy its value, that would mean you are involved with "sound" that has "universal value."
Oka: Yes. That's why I still have many other ideas for providing my "sound" to the world, not just ScenarioDip. This business of "delivering sound solutions to the world," like ScenarioDip, has now become a business pillar for Numéro.8, alongside traditional music production.
Providing music with "universal value" in a different place, within business, separate from traditional music production. That must be why you are putting as much effort into business as you are into music production.
Oka: Work in the music industry, including music production, is very artistic and heavily dependent on the individual. "Systematizing" it is practically difficult. Honestly, I felt it was a huge barrier. It's not just the individual-dependent factors; everyone involved has different values and outlooks on life. It's a world where someone who could do the job of a producer earning 10 million yen a year would rather play guitar for 1,000 yen an hour. When I thought about that, it was a big realization that my career advancement as a business owner and my pursuit of "sound with universal value" should happen outside the music industry, not within it.
Becoming Someone VCs Want to Fund "Next": A Creator's Roadmap for the Future
Could you tell us about the future development of "ScenarioDip"?
Oka: Right now, development is 90% complete, and we're just a little way off from finishing the initial requirements. There were many difficulties during development, and it took longer than planned, so honestly, as a company business, we went through some tough times. However, because it took longer, we ended up being selected for the ICT Startup League. Knowing that "there are people who find the project itself interesting" has been a great source of support (laughs).
I see. So, what about those other ideas for providing "sound with universal value"?
Oka: Within what I can say, for example, sound effects and BGM designed for "sound spaces." In the process of creating ScenarioDip, I personally had many new realizations about the power of "sound" and "frequency." In ScenarioDip, we applied that to online meetings, but I think a smartphone app that extracts and provides just the sound effects could also be interesting.
Specifically?
Oka: For example, I've felt that some sound effects have the power to calm a mind irritated by unpleasant environmental noise. Using that sound, we could provide a sound you listen to when you have to study in a noisy environment to help you concentrate... something like that. So, on the surface, it's a B2C music player app. We've actually already started development.
Finally, what are your expectations for the ICT Startup League?
Oka: ScenarioDip was selected in a way that doesn't involve a subsidy. What we're primarily seeking is hands-on support. I'm someone who has built a career in the music industry, so I'm not familiar with the online meeting market. To scale up the ScenarioDip business within that market, including brushing up the app, I feel we need significant help from people who have different knowledge than I do.
The academies and events are also opportunities to meet people.
Oka: In that sense, rather than having expectations for the academy, I'm receiving motivation, a sense of "this is how I must be." Watching the various startup founders, I'm struck by how they all give off a strong sense of excitement, making you wonder, "What will this person create next?" I felt that I want to become that kind of person, that it's my mission. In that sense, while it's a given that I'll apply the ICT Startup League's support to ScenarioDip, my future goal is to become someone that VCs (venture capitalists) will always want to invest in, whatever business or product I'm conceptualizing. That might be the ultimate goal.
Editor's Postscript Eccentric, moody, or lax for better or worse. It's common for creators, not just musicians, to show personalities and behaviors in daily life that are out of the ordinary, as if it's the price for their overflowing talent. But Mr. Oka is a completely different type of creator, far from that stereotype. His gentle demeanor and polite, unhurried way of speaking convey his excellence as a businessperson as well. In fact, he's mindful of production schedules in his music work, taking care not to let it become too much of an individualistic, artistic job. You could call him a "craftsman." However, thinking about it calmly, for a music producer with a proven track record to chase "music with universal value" and jump into a completely different field armed with his own sound is a pretty reckless challenge. And Mr. Oka speaks about it calmly, as if it were a matter of course. Perhaps, after all, this man is just another one of those eccentric musicians.
Numéro.8 Inc. SNS Video
@startupleaguejp Pioneering a new online meeting market! We asked for details about joining the league ✨ Video interview with Mr. Oka of Numéro.8 Inc. #StartupLeague #Startup ♬ original sound - Startup League Info Hub [Official]
■ICT Startup League
This is a support program that began in FY2023, originating from the Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications' "Support Program for R&D in Startups with Potential."
The ICT Startup League supports startups through four pillars:
①R&D Funding / Hands-on Support
Provides up to 20 million yen in R&D funding as a subsidy. Additionally, the selection committee members involved in choosing the league members stay on to provide hands-on support and promote growth. For companies that a committee member "absolutely wanted to select," a "cheering" (osshi-katsu) style support system is built, where the committee member themselves continuously provides advice on the business plan and offers growth opportunities.
②Discovery & Nurturing
We provide opportunities for learning and networking to promote the business growth of league members.
We also work to discover those who aim to start businesses in the future, aiming to expand the base.
③Competition & Co-creation
It serves as a place for positive competition, much like a sports league, where startups learn together and spur each other on in a system to win the funding they truly need (up to 20 million yen). We also provide a place for co-creation, where league members can collaborate and expand their businesses through various opportunities, such as sessions with the selection committee members.
④Promotion
We collaborate with media to publicize the initiatives of our league members! By getting the word out about their businesses, we aim to expand opportunities for new matching and chances.
■Related Websites Numéro.8 Inc. ／ Numéro.8 Inc. (LEAGUE MEMBER) ／ ICT Startup League
