In today's world, overflowing with information and countless options, we spend our days constantly surrounded by all sorts of stimuli and expectations. At the same time, it can be difficult to take the time to check in with our feelings and our mental and physical well-being amidst the hectic pace of everyday life. This has sparked increasing interest in how music can help individuals quietly connect with their inner selves.

That is where Estlaughtive Co., Ltd. comes in. Based in Tokyo's Nakano Ward and a fiscal year 2024 graduate of the NEC Social Entrepreneurship School (a program established by NEC to nurture young entrepreneurs), Estlaughtive is an organization engaged in the development and deployment of soundefine, an app designed to help users "rediscover who they truly are without being hindered by society or others" through their reactions to music. Using music as a stepping stone, Estlaughtive is dedicated to creating a society where people can be attuned to their own feelings and live authentically.

NEC is a company whose Purpose is to "create the social values of safety, security, fairness and efficiency to promote a more sustainable world where everyone has the chance to reach their full potential." One practical application of this is the NEC Pro Bono Initiative, a program that brings NEC employees' professional expertise to the front lines where societal issues are being addressed.
As part of this program, NEC began offering pro bono support to Estlaughtive over a two-term period starting in March 2025. During the first term, NEC assisted the company in clarifying its direction and evaluating the value of the services it provides based on the soundefine concept. The support team tasked with this addressed the challenges that Estlaughtive was facing, including how to effectively communicate the app's inherent value and overcome the psychological hurdles to mental health care. Painstakingly compiling information on user perceptions and needs related to music experiences and mental health care through NEC Group employees participating in app testing and completing questionnaires, NEC and Estlaughtive explored ways to create an experience that allows individuals to connect authentically with their feelings.

Based on the evaluations carried out through this pro bono support activity, NEC continued working alongside Estlaughtive to address challenges in preparation for entering the next phase, which involves articulating the value of the business, identifying the target audience, and determining how to deliver that value.

Pinpointing the value of the business to pave the way to the next step

A total of seven NEC Group employees participated in this pro bono activity from December 2025 to March 2026. All members, including CEO Remi Kitahashi from Estlaughtive, gathered for periodic meetings to share progress updates and ensure everyone involved was on the same page. Meanwhile, extensive discussions were held by the support team with regard to each theme. The support provided focused on two primary themes: support of the crowdfunding planning process and support for improving the functionality of the app.

Envisioning a plan to deliver value

The first support theme focused on engaging in dialogue with Estlaughtive to prepare for the launch of a crowdfunding campaign to secure funds for developing the soundefine app and future initiatives. To begin, multiple crowdfunding platforms were compared to determine which one would best align with the project's vision. Collaborating closely with Estlaughtive, the team analyzed the support objectives, product compatibility, the ease with which the crowdfunding goal could be achieved, operational support systems, and other factors to select the ideal platform for this project.

Efforts were also made to specify the target user profile, which forms the basis for designing messages in crowdfunding campaigns. After reaching out to NEC Group employees to ask for their cooperation, the team interviewed a total of six individuals. Listening carefully to the feedback received about how these interviewees experience music and the ways in which they find music valuable, the team worked with Estlaughtive to refine the scope of the experience they seek to offer app users.

Shaping the experience of "rediscovering who you truly are"

As for the second support theme of evaluating ways to improve the functionality of the app, efforts began with streamlining the experience for current soundefine app users. Upon reexamination of the conventional experience, in which users listen to music on the app and then submit feedback, the team discovered that "becoming attuned to one's own feelings," something that Estlaughtive deeply values, was not fully incorporated into the process.

Based on this discovery, the team engaged in ongoing discussions with Estlaughtive to consider new hypothetical functions for visualizing feelings and to explore proposals for modifying existing functions. At the center of this was a desire to envision an app that would more naturally and tangibly convey the "experience of rediscovering who one truly is" that is so integral to the soundefine concept.

One of the hallmarks of this pro bono support activity was the fact that numerous discussions were held while keeping in mind a structured approach that would ensure the concept and the actual experience could be organically linked.

The value generated through a pro bono support activity where both parties explore ideas together

In this recent project, members of the NEC Pro Bono Team diligently worked side by side with social entrepreneurs, fully committed to addressing the challenges they face every day. By engaging in the process of formulating hypotheses for questions without clear-cut answers and gradually giving shape to value through extensive discussions and evaluations, NEC Pro Bono Team gained valuable insights and learned many lessons.

This project also allowed Estlaughtive to lay the groundwork for future business expansion by gaining a clearer understanding of their target audience and positioning themselves within the expanding mental health care market. Going forward, Estlaughtive plans to work on developing and testing a user interface (UI) that truly embodies the experience of "rediscovering who one truly is" while further narrowing down their target audience based on the results of the abovementioned interviews.

NEC remains committed to working alongside those on the front lines where societal issues are being addressed through pro bono activities that leverage the professional expertise of its employees. In addition to supporting Estlaughtive's efforts to use the soundefine app to broaden the range of options for people to connect with their feelings through something as familiar as music, NEC will continue to create social value by putting its Purpose into practice.

Related Links

The NEC Social Entrepreneurship School was launched in 2002 through a collaboration between its organizer, the nonprofit organization ETIC, and NEC, an official partner. This program is dedicated to supporting young entrepreneurs tackling social issues.

In 2010, NEC became the first company in Japan to launch a pro bono program. 
A decade later, in 2020, employee volunteers from the NEC Group established the NEC Pro Bono Club, a pro bono community helping to address challenges faced by local communities, NGOs, NPOs, educational institutions, and others. Today, the NEC Pro Bono Club comprises approximately 900 employees.