About Tomodachi

Tomodachi started with people getting lost.

It is the Japanese friend we wish every visitor had: calm, patient, and still there when the signal is not.

Tomo, a friendly blue robot, waving hello

Why it exists

Christian is an American who lives in Tokyo. He works in film and theatre, as an actor and a producer, and he studies Japanese every day.

Living here, he kept seeing the same thing. Friends and visitors arrived full of plans, and then got lost at a station exit. Or stood on a street corner with no signal. Or sat in a restaurant, unable to read the menu.

Each time, he wished they had a Japanese friend beside them. Someone who knew the way, never made them feel silly for asking, and did not need the internet to help.

So he built one. That friend is Tomo.

Alex lost and worried at a station exit, then smiling with the way out on his phone
The wrong exit, then the right one.

What Tomo is for

The small moments that can spoil a day in Japan: the wrong exit, the empty signal bars, the menu you can't read. Tomo handles them quietly, so the day stays yours.

What we hold to

Tomo at a laptop with a cup of coffee

Bring a friend to Japan.

Plan your trip in about two minutes. Tomo will be there when you land.

Plan my trip

Open my trip

Use the trip code and PIN from the Tomodachi app.