Yokai Eat Your Worries! University Student-Developed AI Counseling App 'Tasokare Kotodama Nakagai-jo' Released for Free
First off Projects, a business community for high school and university students, has announced 'Tasokare Kotodama Nakagai-jo,' an AI counseling app where yokai reframe users' unspoken feelings. The app allows users to confide their anxieties and complaints to yokai, who respond with unique perspectives, fostering self-acceptance.
📋 Article Processing Timeline
- 📰 Published: June 12, 2026 at 17:30
- 🔍 Collected: June 12, 2026 at 08:51
- 🤖 AI Analyzed: June 12, 2026 at 16:52 (8h 1m after Collected)
Top Screen of 'Tasokare Kotodama Nakagai-jo'
First off Projects, a business community for high school and university students, has announced 'Tasokare Kotodama Nakagai-jo,' an AI counseling app where yokai reframe users' unspoken feelings.
■Tasokare Kotodama Nakagai-jo
https://tasokare.studymeter.jp/
'Tasokare Kotodama Nakagai-jo' is an AI counseling app where users can confide feelings that are difficult to express to others, such as anxieties and complaints, to yokai. The confessed words are received with the completely different values of the yokai world, returning with an unexpected perspective.
'I have to be proper, but I can't.'
'I can't tell anyone about this.'
'I hate myself for not being able to try harder.'
These feelings, difficult to voice in the human world, are all listened to with amusement by the yokai. Because they are inhabitants of a world where the concept of 'being proper' doesn't exist, they can accept you as you are, even when you can't do things or feel inadequate. The app aims to be a place where you can think, 'It's okay to be myself.'
The app's name, 'Tasokare,' is derived from 'tasokare' (誰そ彼), meaning twilight when faces become indistinguishable. It carries the sentiment that people sometimes lose sight of their true selves while acting out the roles society expects. The name signifies a place to vent one's emotions before returning to the human world.
Gameplay Screen
Mechanism of Reframing by Yokai
When users express their anxieties and negative feelings in words, AI yokai respond. Yokai possess unique values that exist outside the 'shoulds' of human society, and they reframe the user's worries from their own perspective without denial or preaching.
This reframing is supported by a proprietary database built by the developers based on yokai legends from across Japan. For each yokai, their 'image in the human world' and 'image in the yokai world' are organized and digitized. The reframing of worries is based on the difference in perception between these two worlds. This release features a lineup of 100 yokai.
The goal is not to provide solutions or advice. Feelings that were held as self-blame take on a completely different meaning in the yokai world. This shift in perspective itself is the experience provided by this app.
Furthermore, conversation logs are saved only on the user's device, such as PCs and smartphones, and are not stored on the server side. Because it's a place where no one else can see, users can feel secure writing about their unspoken feelings.
Developed by University Students - A Design Philosophy of Stepping Down from 'Correctness'
'Tasokare Kotodama Nakagai-jo' was developed by a first-year university student participating in First off Projects. When the developer was in junior high school, their exam studies were not progressing well, leading them to feel like 'I'm not a proper person' and to spend days blaming themselves for their inability to do anything. During a walk in a dark forest with overgrown vegetation near a cemetery, in an atmosphere that felt like yokai might appear, they suddenly thought, 'What if I just became one of those beings?'
From that day on, they reframed themselves as 'a yokai who has infiltrated human society.' Even when making mistakes or not fitting in with others, they reasoned, 'It's natural for my species not to fit into the human world's system.' By accepting this, they finally felt a sense of relief, were able to attend school, and could recover from failures. They, who had lost their value as a human, were allowed to exist as a yokai. This reframing was the developer's first 'reframe.'
Based on this experience, they wanted to spread the feeling of 'It's okay to be myself, even if I'm flawed,' rather than 'the self society demands,' and conceived this app where one can talk to yokai who exist outside human values.
'Tasokare Kotodama Nakagai-jo' is not an app for solving problems, but one that values the experience of 'having your true feelings listened to with amusement.' By stepping away from the human world's 'I must be proper' and safely venting weaknesses, users can feel 'It's okay to be here.' The app aims to be a refuge, like a shelter in the twilight.
About First off Projects
First off Projects is a business community for high school and university students. It serves as a research arm for Study Meter Inc., a company that provides IT training services for corporations. In exchange for funding and learning opportunities, members develop services based on their interests and create learning reports, providing the company with insights into new technologies and examples of new business creation.
Study Meter Inc.
Study Meter Inc. supports digital human resource development, planning and development of online learning services, and new business development to guide individuals, companies, children, and the future of society one step forward. With the vision of realizing a 'world that inspires challenges,' they support those who want to take a new step.
[Company Overview]
Location: 9F, Toho Hibiya Building, 1-2-2 Yurakucho, Chiyoda-ku, Tokyo, Business Airport Hibiya
Representative: Asahi Minowa
Established: July 7, 2020
Company URL: https://studymeter.jp/
Business Activities: Training of IT and Digital Human Resources | Provision of Online Learning Services | Planning and Development of Education-Related Businesses
First off Projects, a business community for high school and university students, has announced 'Tasokare Kotodama Nakagai-jo,' an AI counseling app where yokai reframe users' unspoken feelings.
■Tasokare Kotodama Nakagai-jo
https://tasokare.studymeter.jp/
'Tasokare Kotodama Nakagai-jo' is an AI counseling app where users can confide feelings that are difficult to express to others, such as anxieties and complaints, to yokai. The confessed words are received with the completely different values of the yokai world, returning with an unexpected perspective.
'I have to be proper, but I can't.'
'I can't tell anyone about this.'
'I hate myself for not being able to try harder.'
These feelings, difficult to voice in the human world, are all listened to with amusement by the yokai. Because they are inhabitants of a world where the concept of 'being proper' doesn't exist, they can accept you as you are, even when you can't do things or feel inadequate. The app aims to be a place where you can think, 'It's okay to be myself.'
The app's name, 'Tasokare,' is derived from 'tasokare' (誰そ彼), meaning twilight when faces become indistinguishable. It carries the sentiment that people sometimes lose sight of their true selves while acting out the roles society expects. The name signifies a place to vent one's emotions before returning to the human world.
Gameplay Screen
Mechanism of Reframing by Yokai
When users express their anxieties and negative feelings in words, AI yokai respond. Yokai possess unique values that exist outside the 'shoulds' of human society, and they reframe the user's worries from their own perspective without denial or preaching.
This reframing is supported by a proprietary database built by the developers based on yokai legends from across Japan. For each yokai, their 'image in the human world' and 'image in the yokai world' are organized and digitized. The reframing of worries is based on the difference in perception between these two worlds. This release features a lineup of 100 yokai.
The goal is not to provide solutions or advice. Feelings that were held as self-blame take on a completely different meaning in the yokai world. This shift in perspective itself is the experience provided by this app.
Furthermore, conversation logs are saved only on the user's device, such as PCs and smartphones, and are not stored on the server side. Because it's a place where no one else can see, users can feel secure writing about their unspoken feelings.
Developed by University Students - A Design Philosophy of Stepping Down from 'Correctness'
'Tasokare Kotodama Nakagai-jo' was developed by a first-year university student participating in First off Projects. When the developer was in junior high school, their exam studies were not progressing well, leading them to feel like 'I'm not a proper person' and to spend days blaming themselves for their inability to do anything. During a walk in a dark forest with overgrown vegetation near a cemetery, in an atmosphere that felt like yokai might appear, they suddenly thought, 'What if I just became one of those beings?'
From that day on, they reframed themselves as 'a yokai who has infiltrated human society.' Even when making mistakes or not fitting in with others, they reasoned, 'It's natural for my species not to fit into the human world's system.' By accepting this, they finally felt a sense of relief, were able to attend school, and could recover from failures. They, who had lost their value as a human, were allowed to exist as a yokai. This reframing was the developer's first 'reframe.'
Based on this experience, they wanted to spread the feeling of 'It's okay to be myself, even if I'm flawed,' rather than 'the self society demands,' and conceived this app where one can talk to yokai who exist outside human values.
'Tasokare Kotodama Nakagai-jo' is not an app for solving problems, but one that values the experience of 'having your true feelings listened to with amusement.' By stepping away from the human world's 'I must be proper' and safely venting weaknesses, users can feel 'It's okay to be here.' The app aims to be a refuge, like a shelter in the twilight.
About First off Projects
First off Projects is a business community for high school and university students. It serves as a research arm for Study Meter Inc., a company that provides IT training services for corporations. In exchange for funding and learning opportunities, members develop services based on their interests and create learning reports, providing the company with insights into new technologies and examples of new business creation.
Study Meter Inc.
Study Meter Inc. supports digital human resource development, planning and development of online learning services, and new business development to guide individuals, companies, children, and the future of society one step forward. With the vision of realizing a 'world that inspires challenges,' they support those who want to take a new step.
[Company Overview]
Location: 9F, Toho Hibiya Building, 1-2-2 Yurakucho, Chiyoda-ku, Tokyo, Business Airport Hibiya
Representative: Asahi Minowa
Established: July 7, 2020
Company URL: https://studymeter.jp/
Business Activities: Training of IT and Digital Human Resources | Provision of Online Learning Services | Planning and Development of Education-Related Businesses
FAQ
Who can benefit from this app?
It is primarily beneficial for young people who have unspoken worries or anxieties and wish to enhance their self-esteem. Users can gain new perspectives through conversations with yokai.
What was the motivation behind its development?
The motivation stemmed from the developer's personal experience in junior high school of finding relief from the pressure to 'be proper.' The app was created with the desire to provide a space where one can accept themselves as they are.
Is privacy protected?
Yes, conversation logs are stored only on the user's device and are never saved on the server, ensuring secure usage.
How do yokai help resolve worries?
Yokai do not solve worries but reframe them from their unique perspectives. Without judgment or preaching, they find amusement in the user's feelings and offer new viewpoints.
What is 'First off Projects'?
It is a business community for high school and university students, supported by Study Meter Inc. Members contribute insights into new technologies and business creation through service development and report writing.