AI storm Co., Ltd. (TSE: 3719) said on August 10 that ES Next Godo Kaisha, a limited liability audit corporation, has resigned as its statutory auditor, effective the same day, under a mutually agreed contract termination. The company said ES Next asked to end the contract after learning, following its own appointment, of allegations that predated its tenure and concerned possibly improper used-truck sale transactions in the current and prior periods. AI storm said maintaining the audit quality and controls the profession requires had become difficult for ES Next once it became aware of the matter.
The allegations are the subject of a Special Investigation Committee, an advisory body to AI storm's Audit and Supervisory Committee, established on May 15, 2026, after an external tip. The committee's review of the used-truck transactions continues, and AI storm has not disclosed findings.
To replace ES Next, AI storm's Audit and Supervisory Committee appointed Frontier Audit Corporation as temporary accounting auditor, also effective August 10. Frontier is a familiar name at the company: it audited AI storm from May 2009 through the fiscal year that ended in December 2025. On January 26, 2026, Frontier told AI storm it wanted to step back from the audit, citing a shortage of manpower that had delayed the company's account closings. Frontier's term formally ended when ES Next took over at the conclusion of AI storm's annual shareholder meeting on March 30, 2026. AI storm said it has since added administrative staff and pointed to Frontier's independence and audit-quality track record as reasons for bringing it back now.
Neither side raised objections to the latest switch: ES Next offered no further opinion on the change, and AI storm's audit committee called the arrangement appropriate. ES Next has agreed to help hand over its audit files to Frontier as the investigation into the used-truck transactions proceeds.