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Japan Times
LIFE
Dec 31, 2006

Shaping our future along with robots

Yoshiyuki Sankai is a professor of engineering at Tsukuba University in Ibaraki Prefecture and a front-runner in the field of "cybernics," which combines robotics with a wide array of academic disciplines, including neurology, information technology, behavioral science and psychology. Now aged 48, he...
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World
Oct 13, 2021

China isn't the AI juggernaut the West fears

China's AI isn't so much a tool of world domination as a narrowly deployed means of domestic control.
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / Our Lives / The Big Questions
Dec 22, 2019

Vision for automotive tech merges safety, creativity

Those who wander into TRI-AD's Nihonbashi office would be hard-pressed to miss the Toyota Winglet — a personal mobility device that resembles an electric scooter.
Japan Times
Jul 17, 2018

TSUNEISHI SHIPBUILDING Holds a Meeting to Present Results of Joint Research with Carnegie Mellon University

- The Future of Shipbuilding with Advanced Robotics -
Japan Times
JAPAN
Mar 30, 2018

Robots making inroads in Japan's elder care facilities, but costs still high

Paro the furry seal cries softly while an elderly woman pets it. Pepper, a humanoid, waves while leading a seniors' exercise group. The upright Tree guides a disabled man taking shaky steps, saying in a gentle feminine voice, "right, left, well done!"
Japan Times
BUSINESS / Tech
Oct 31, 2016

Honda opts for Tokyo over Silicon Valley as home for AI research center

Honda Motor Co. will spearhead its artificial intelligence efforts out of a new lab in Tokyo so researchers can work closely with its engineers to commercialize the technology.
Japan Times
WORLD
May 15, 2013

China's cyberspies outwit model for James Bond's Q

Among defense contractors, QinetiQ North America is known for spy-world connections and an eye-popping product line. Its contributions to national security include secret satellites, drones and software used by U.S. special forces in Afghanistan and the Middle East.
Japan Times
LIFE
Mar 10, 2013

Will robots end up creating jobs or end them?

At Massachusetts Institute of Technology, a management robot is learning to run a factory and give orders to artificial coworkers, and a BakeBot robot is reading recipes, whipping together butter, sugar and flour and putting the cookie mix in the oven. At the University of California at Berkeley, a robot...
Japan Times
JAPAN / Science & Health / NATURAL SELECTIONS
Jul 10, 2011

Up close and personal with MIT robots

I'm in a lab surrounded by computer and video equipment, toys, and robots. Lots of robots. I'm like a kid in a candy shop. It's the modern equivalent of an Aladdin's cave for otaku (geeks).
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / Our Lives / WORDS TO LIVE BY
Mar 10, 2011

Robocon founder Dr. Masahiro Mori

Dr. Masahiro Mori, 84, is a specialist in robotics and Emeritus President of the Robotics Society of Japan. Mori is the founder of Robocon, the robotics contest he started in 1981 when he was a professor at the Tokyo Institute of Technology. Since then, Robocon has developed into the world's most famous...
LIFE / Digital
Mar 25, 2009

Programmed for combat or for pleasure

While Japan is a technological powerhouse, it is usually a follower and not a pioneer.
Japan Times
BUSINESS
Oct 18, 2022

Rise of delivery robots leaves drivers fearful of job losses

Growing numbers of delivery robots — from pavement-driving pods to flying drones — are being rolled out in urban areas, boosted by a surge of interest during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Japan Times
BUSINESS / Companies
Jun 29, 2021

SoftBank pulls the plug on its flagship Pepper 'humanoid' robot

The u00a5198,000 robot was a project Masayoshi Son once personally championed as a symbol of his conglomerate's ambitions in AI and technology.
COMMENTARY / Japan
Jan 28, 2020

Japan's rise as a space power

Nation emerges as a key leader in the peaceful exploration of the cosmos.
Japan Times
Nov 13, 2019

Yamaha Motor Net Sales Up Slightly, Earnings Down in First Three Quarters of FY Ending in December

IWATA, November 13, 2019 - Yamaha Motor Co., Ltd. (Tokyo: 7272) announces consolidated business results for the first nine months.
BUSINESS / Regional Voices: Fukushima
Sep 13, 2019

Fukushima Prefecture sets sights on flying cars to boost recovery and local industry

The Fukushima Prefectural Government is leading a collaborative effort involving companies from different industries and a robotics testing field to invent a flying car.
Japan Times
BUSINESS / Tech
Apr 24, 2018

Amazon reportedly working on another big bet: home robots

Ten years ago, Amazon introduced the Kindle and established the appeal of reading on a digital device. Four years ago, Jeff Bezos and company rolled out the Echo, prompting millions of people to start talking to a computer.
Japan Times
BUSINESS / Tech
Oct 28, 2016

Mum Pepper's mood swings keep Son's robot dreams on hold

Japan's obsession with robots isn't just a cliche. Companies have been trying to drum up enthusiasm for them for years, with little success.
Japan Times
BUSINESS
Aug 16, 2016

Japan well placed to lead in artificial intelligence, expert says

Japan lags Silicon Valley in conventional internet services but could become a global leader in the deep-learning technology of artificial intelligence, a leading AI expert has said.
Japan Times
WORLD / Science & Health
Oct 12, 2014

Rattlesnake repertoire boosts snakelike robot's skills

How do you make a better snake robot? You study snakes, of course.
A screen shows an image of Chinese People's Liberation Army soldiers in Beijing in August last year. The PLA's newspaper recently explained to its readers how ChatGPT can be used for military purposes.
COMMENTARY / World / Geoeconomic Briefing
Sep 12, 2023

Will generative AI hold power in international relations?

The technology has the ability to create influential text and imagery, giving it power to potentially sway public opinion.
Nio workers inspect a vehicle on an assembly line at the automaker’s factory in Hefei, China. China misjudged the rapid expansion of its electric vehicle sector, leaving a shortfall of skilled technicians as young people shun manufacturing careers.
BUSINESS / Companies
Dec 11, 2023

China’s electric car factories can’t hire fast enough

A frenzy of construction and expansion of factories has made electricians and robotics specialists a hot commodity.
Jeff Bezos — the world’s second-richest person, according to the Bloomberg Billionaires Ranking — is investing in a business that’s developing human-like robots.
BUSINESS / Tech
Feb 24, 2024

Bezos and Nvidia join OpenAI in funding humanoid robot startup

The startup Figure AI is raising about $675 million in a funding round that carries a pre-money valuation of roughly $2 billion.
The Saitama Institute of Technology is aiming to nurture engineers knowledgeable in self-driving vehicles.
JAPAN
Jun 7, 2024

Technology institute to launch Japan's first autonomous driving major

The Saitama Institute of Technology will introduce the major next April, aiming to nurture engineers knowledgeable in self-driving vehicles.
Despite current limitations, the progression toward practical humanoid robots is anticipated, driven by advancements in technology and artificial intelligence.
COMMENTARY / Japan
Sep 1, 2024

The future of robots is coming on two legs

Unlike traditional robots, which have already transformed industries with their transport capabilities, bipedal robots are still in the early stages of deployment.
The current focus on autonomous vehicles has obscured something else: AI has already de-skilled driving as a profession.
COMMENTARY / World / The Year Ahead
Jan 2, 2025

Our AI near-future

We can look forward to many years of instability as AI technology continues to make rapid progress.
Tiangong Ultra, a humanoid robot, runs across the finish line while securing the first position during the E-Town Humanoid Robot Half Marathon, in Beijing on Saturday.
ASIA PACIFIC / Science & Health
Apr 19, 2025

In China, humanoid robots stride into the future with world's first half-marathon

The 21-kilometer event is billed as a groundbreaking effort to test the limits of bipedal robots.
Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba receives a gift from Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang at the start of their meeting at the Prime Minister's Office in Tokyo on Monday.
BUSINESS / Tech
Apr 22, 2025

Nvidia CEO urges LDP to build up Japan’s AI infrastructure

Japan has pledged to increase government and corporate funding in AI to over ¥50 trillion ($350 billion) in the next 10 years.

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