March 29, 2021
Keio University
Aiming to realize a Humanity 2.0 society (*), where humans and AI coexist, Keio University will establish the "Research Center for Human-AI Symbiotic Society" at the Keio University Global Research Institute (KGRI) from April 2021. This center will promote research and development centered on next-generation AI through strategic industry-academia-government collaboration. Unlike conventional AI, which has been a "tool used by people," we aim to create an "AI with a mind that possesses autonomy and proactivity to coexist with humans." This AI will be capable of understanding human intentions, demonstrating high adaptability by responding to the atmosphere of a situation, and possessing high versatility to handle situations it encounters for the first time.
In Japan's super-aging society, creating an AI that can think for itself, be considerate of others, and act proactively like a human—serving as a workforce alongside people and as a reliable daily companion—is an absolute prerequisite for AI to become a member of human society. It is also a pressing issue not only for establishing DX in society but also for supporting development, especially in the future "with-COVID" society. We will vigorously promote these long-term, forward-looking initiatives through a collaborative research and development framework across industry, academia, and government.
* This is a proposal that embodies the idea of "realizing a new human society that coexists with AI," following the spirit of Society 5.0, which aims for a super-smart society, while being strongly conscious of each individual human who makes up society. It aims to upgrade from Humanity 1.0, the human society of the past, to Humanity 2.0.
Please see below for the full press release.