# Takeshi Homma

> Takeshi (Ted) Homma is the founder and CEO of HOMMA Group, a Palo Alto smart-home designer, developer and builder he started in 2016. Descended from a Japanese family with fifteen generations in the building trades, he spent years at Sony and Rakuten before setting out to build what he calls a 'housing version of Tesla' - turnkey homes with proprietary, AI-driven technology woven into modern architecture. HOMMA has delivered pre-configured smart-home communities in Portland and proof-of-concept units in Boston, and partnered with a Mitsubishi Corporation subsidiary to scale the idea.

- **Role:** Founder and CEO at HOMMA Group, Inc.
- **Organizations:** HOMMA Group, Inc., Portland Japanese Garden (Board nominee), Rakuten (former), Sony (former), Yellnet (former)
- **From:** Japan
- **Nationality:** Japanese
- **Education:** Chuo University, Tokyo
- **Known for:** Founded HOMMA Group, a smart-home designer, developer and builder based in Palo Alto., Raised roughly $4.1M in seed funding in 2016, an unusually large round for a Japanese-led startup, with total funding reported around $23.7M., Delivered HOMMA HAUS Mount Tabor, described as the nation's first pre-configured, multi-family smart-home community.

## Career timeline

- **1995** — Began working as a student entrepreneur in web design and development during the early internet era.
- **2002** — Sold Yellnet, the internet startup he founded while at Chuo University.
- **2008** — Joined Sony Corporation and relocated to California.
- **2012** — Joined Rakuten Corporation as Executive Officer for Global Digital Content.
- **2016** — Founded HOMMA in Palo Alto and raised $4.1M in seed funding.
- **2021** — HOMMA raised a Series A round (approx. $4.85M reported in October 2021).
- **2023** — Partnered with Diamond Realty Investments, a Mitsubishi Corporation subsidiary, and delivered a Boston high-rise smart-home proof of concept.
- **2024** — Completion targeted for the HOMMA HAUS Woodstock townhouse project in Portland, Oregon.

## Achievements

- Founded HOMMA Group, a smart-home designer, developer and builder based in Palo Alto.
- Raised roughly $4.1M in seed funding in 2016, an unusually large round for a Japanese-led startup, with total funding reported around $23.7M.
- Delivered HOMMA HAUS Mount Tabor, described as the nation's first pre-configured, multi-family smart-home community.
- Secured investment from NTT DOCOMO Ventures and partnership with Mitsubishi Corporation's Diamond Realty Investments.
- Held senior roles at Sony and served as Executive Officer for Global Digital Content at Rakuten.
- Nominated to the Board of Trustees of the Portland Japanese Garden.

## Latest updates

- **2023-04** — HOMMA announced a partnership with Diamond Realty Investments, a subsidiary of Mitsubishi Corporation, to create built-in intelligent smart homes.
- **2023-09** — HOMMA transformed a traditional Boston high-rise apartment unit into a smart-home living proof of concept.
- **2024-01** — Featured in Forbes coverage of Silicon Valley's Japan Innovation Campus supporting Japanese startups scaling globally.

## Links

- Website: https://hom.ma
- LinkedIn: http://www.linkedin.com/in/takeshi
- Twitter/X: https://twitter.com/HommaInc
- YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@hommainc
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thonma/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/hommainc

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Profile page: https://yespress.io/takeshi-homma
Published by YesPress — https://yespress.io
Last updated: 2026-07-24