Fourteen prominent research institutions from the United States, Europe, and Japan have agreed to participate in a Japan-led project to develop "Physical AI," the Yomiuri Shimbun reported on July 14.
According to the report, the project will involve research teams from the University of Cambridge in the U.K., Carnegie Mellon University in the U.S., and Japanese institutions including the Institute of Science Tokyo, Osaka University, Waseda University, and Keio University. Renowned AI scholar Professor Yoshua Bengio of the University of Montreal is also set to join the initiative.
The project will be spearheaded by the National Institute of Advanced Industrial Science and Technology (AIST), which operates under Japan's Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry, with a total of 200 personnel mobilized for the development, the newspaper reported.
The research outcomes will be utilized for AI development by Noetra, a company established by Japanese firms including SoftBank.
Noetra plans to provide these models to Japanese companies.
Through this initiative, Japan aims to secure a leading position in the global competition for the development and commercialization of Physical AI.
Japan has formulated a strategy to gain an advantage in the field of "Physical AI"—AI that interacts with the physical world—by leveraging its vast manufacturing data, which is considered one of the country's key strengths.
The Noetra development project involves approximately 30 major Japanese corporations and manufacturers, including SoftBank, NEC, Honda, Sony Group, Fujitsu, and Asahi Kasei, as investors and participants.
The Japanese government has selected Noetra as a recipient for its national research and development project funding, pledging 387.3 billion yen (approximately 3.55 trillion won) in support this year.
(Photo: AP, Yonhap News)