Yasuo Kuniyoshi
Professor
Graduate School of Information Science and Techology, The University of Tokyo

Since its launch in 2018, the program “Co-Creating a New Society with Advanced Technologies” has supported various initiatives centered on the co-creation of the society by digital technologies, such as AI, and humans.
The COVID-19 pandemic in 2020 created an opportunity for digital technologies based on mainly online platforms to penetrate deeply into our daily lives. Recently, innovative technologies such as generative AI are eliciting significant changes in human intellectual activities and are greatly reshaping the nature of society itself. To respond to this turning point of our time, this program has established a new “Individual Research” category in FY2022 to support innovative and pioneering initiatives. In addition, this year, in response to the growing adoption of generative AI, the application requirements have been revised. For example, the upper limit on development expenses has been removed, and indirect costs incurred by research institutions are now covered by the program, enabling the program to continue evolving in line with present requirements. 

The applications received this year clearly showed a high level of interest in generative AI. The total number of applications reached a record high of 93 (62 joint research and 31 individual research applications), almost double the number for the previous year. Ultimately, six joint research projects and three individual research projects were selected. The number of selected projects for both categories is the same as last year. 

While the number of applications doubled, the composition of research teams tended to be skewed toward the same academic fields at universities and research institutes. Those proposals mostly pertained to generative AI. Although they could be evaluated to a certain extent as academic research, some proposals were, to some extent, deficient in originality and distinctive features. More importantly, some projects addressed social issues only from a limited perspective and did not sufficiently consider how their outcomes would be communicated to society. To address the wide-ranging challenges posed by digital technologies, the program emphasizes the integration of liberal arts and sciences, encouraging collaboration among diverse stakeholders beyond the conventional boundaries of academic research. However, many proposals did not fully consider these objectives. We hope these issues will be addressed in the coming year, and that the nature of “co-creation” of the human society and digital technologies will be explored with the participation of various stakeholders, leading to original and ambitious initiatives.

Below, we introduce a joint research project and an individual research project from the selected projects.

Joint Research Project
D25-ST-0046 Tomoko Fukuyama (Professor, Department of Architecture and Urban Design, College of Science and Engineering, Ritsumeikan University)

“Unraveling the Black-box Nature of Construction 3D Printers: Establishing a ‘Common Language of Quality Control’ through Internal Visualization Technology and Social Co-creation”

This project addresses the emerging social issue of the “black-box nature of product quality” associated with the rapid adoption of 3D printers in construction by visualizing internal structural features and developing an interface that enables intuitive understanding of safety and risk levels by even nonexpert users. The project is notable for its original and ambitious goal of enabling diverse stakeholders, including citizens, engineers, and government officials, to use this system as a “common language,” building consensus through citizen participation. By transforming “invisible anxieties” into “visible data” and creating mechanisms for sharing that information across the society, the project is expected to serve as a model for the responsible and effective implementation of technology in real-world contexts.

Individual Research Project

D25-ST-0090 Hikaru Igarashi (Technology Advisor, Women’s Eye, A nonprofit organization)
Living Lab Kesennuma: “Prototyping the Future of Living Together” - Exploring the Possibilities of Introducing New Technologies in Local Communities

This project identifies that externally driven initiatives to introduce advanced technologies (such as generative AI and blockchain technologies) into local communities are increasingly disconnected from the realities of local life, resulting in ineffective or dysfunctional outcomes.
Based on this, it plays a crucial role in examining the “reconnection” of people and technology through practical application. This ambitious project emphasizes a perspective grounded in everyday life and aims to identify the conditions under which advanced technologies are accepted by local communities as well as the mechanisms that enable co-creation. It is expected to generate actionable insights and offer new perspectives emerging directly from local communities.