# WHILL

> WHILL designs and manufactures intelligent personal electric vehicles - sleek power chairs and an autonomous mobility service - that reframe the wheelchair as a piece of consumer technology. Founded in 2012 by three Japanese engineers from Nissan, Sony and Olympus, the company sells the Model C2 and Model F directly to consumers and operates an autonomous fleet service at airports including Haneda, Narita and Winnipeg.

- **Founded:** 2012
- **Headquarters:** San Mateo, California (US HQ); Yokohama, Japan (global HQ)
- **Founders:** Satoshi Sugie (Co-founder & CEO (former Nissan)), Junpei Naito (Co-founder & CDO (former Sony R&D)), Muneaki Fukuoka (Co-founder & CTO (former Olympus))
- **Team size:** ≈350 employees
- **Products:** WHILL Model C2, WHILL Model F, WHILL Autonomous Service, WHILL Mobility Service
- **Notable:** CES 2022 Best of Innovation Award - Accessibility (Model F), Good Design Gold Award (Japan), iF Design Award winner

## Products & services

- **WHILL Model C2** — Next-gen portable power chair with omni-wheels that handle gravel, hills and light snow; disassembles in 3 steps for transport.
- **WHILL Model F** — Foldable smart electric power chair, sub-53 lb, folds in under 3 seconds, app-controlled. CES 2022 Best of Innovation - Accessibility.
- **WHILL Autonomous Service** — Fleet of self-driving personal mobility units operating at airports, hospitals and venues; user rides to destination, chair returns itself.
- **WHILL Mobility Service** — Short-term rental and onsite fleet management for venues, airports and senior communities.

## Achievements

- CES 2022 Best of Innovation Award - Accessibility (Model F)
- Good Design Gold Award (Japan)
- iF Design Award winner
- Satoshi Sugie named to Silicon Valley Business Journal 40 Under 40
- 700,000+ autonomous rides delivered worldwide
- Permanent autonomous deployment at Tokyo International Airport (Haneda)

## Latest updates

- **2022-04** — Closed strategic growth round led by Woven Capital, Toyota's growth-stage CVC.
- **2022-01** — Model F wins CES Best of Innovation Award in Accessibility.
- **2023** — Expanded autonomous mobility trials at San Jose, Atlanta, Dallas and Houston airports.
- **2024** — Crossed 700,000 cumulative autonomous service rides worldwide.

## Links

- Website: https://whill.inc
- LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/whill
- Twitter/X: https://twitter.com/_WHILL
- YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/user/WHILLinc
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/whill_official/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/teamWHILL

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Profile page: https://yespress.io/whill
Published by YesPress — https://yespress.io
Last updated: 2026-05-22