What’s going on with Japan’s new railgun? Why is Japan proceeding with AI Governance protocols, and with whom? Will Japan get AI to raise the children?

Follow on X: @MRBigelow

SHOW NOTES
SUPPLY CHAIN WAR　

Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force (JMSDF) Unveils Electromagnetic Railgun Installed on Test Ship JS Asuka

Japan Receives New F-35 Lightning Fighters From US

Japan flexes defense ambitions at arms show

Xiaomi launches new advanced in-house mobile chip

SOCIETY 5.0 

Diet passes cyberdefense law to collect data in peacetime

30% of local governments in Japan use generative AI in workplace: survey

Learning using generative AI begins at all metropolitan schools

AI Governance in Japan: Global Leadership Through Responsible Innovation

Fujifilm to release AI endoscopy to detect suspected pancreatic cancer as early as 2025

[Report on the latest trends in AI use in manufacturing] About 60% of companies feel that their productivity has improved through the use of AI in manufacturing

The next generation AI flying camera has finally come true. "HOVERAir X1 PRO/PROMAX" now on sale in Japan

Nara City begins Japan's first demonstration experiment of hybrid child-rearing consultation service using AI and experts

What is ChatGPT Gov? A complete explanation from basic performance to implementation and use cases

LOONEY BIN 

Japan to launch offshore 'blue carbon' study for CO2 capture, storage

Is Japan’s reliance on foreign AI-tech making the country un-Japanese? How are Japan’s and China’s AI Ships similar and different? Would you like get into a Japanese University only to have your lecturer be an AI program?
Go to matthewpmbigelow.com for show notes.

Dive into "AI Music Special 1: Trumpets and Grooves" on The Japan Wut Podcast, where we explore cutting-edge AI-generated instrumentals from Tokyo. This episode features gritty trumpet melodies, funky basslines, and cool grooves crafted with pocket drums, heavy compression, and tape saturation. Infused with hairy synthesizers, CrunchWave beats, minor chords, 7th chords, and Soviet Wave vibes, we unpack the tech behind AI music production and Japan’s experimental sound culture. Perfect for fans of electronic, synth, and avant-garde music, join us for a deep dive into the future of instrumental beats! #AIMusic #JapanMusic #TrumpetGrooves

How is Japan bolstering its defenses in the Supply Chain War? Can the Japanese afford SDGs? Do you want your body injected with nano-tech interfacing with the cloud?

SHOW NOTES

Japan Wut 211 Song

SUPPLY CHAIN WAR

Japan's KDDI and NEC to partner on supply chain, infrastructure cybersecurity

Japan back-end chip companies form alliance to upgrade supply chain

Japan to add undersea cables and satellites to critical supplies list

Japan to ship CO2 emissions to Malaysia for storage underground

The Other Nuclear Race

Toyota hydrogen boss warns that China will outpace rest of the world on H2 vehicle supply chains

China urges Japan, South Korea and Asean to deepen cooperation amid trade war turbulence

China auto parts makers triple in Thailand on EV battery rush

Manila, Beijing swap accusations over South China Sea incident

Chinese coastguard claims ‘sovereign jurisdiction’ of Sandy Cay in South China Sea

Apple’s trying to build more iPhones in India, but China isn’t cooperating: report

North Korean spy slips up, reveals ties in fake job interview

SOCIETY 5.0　

Ray Kurzweil says we'll merge with AI non-invasively by the 2030s, using nanoscale sensors in the bloodstream that connect to the neocortex

OpenAI offers to help countries build AI systems

A session on creating the future through AI, entrepreneurship and globalization with Google

Sakana AI Wins Award at US-Japan Competition for Defense Innovation

Chappie (@Chapmano_TV) joins the podcast to discuss his boots on the ground analysis of the Osaka Expo 2025, and how it may be a training ground for our technocratic future. Do you want to live in a cashless society where the advanced technology is sequestered by the elites, the plebs are forced to eat soymeat okonomiyaki burgers, and everything is tracked by Blackrock-funded blockchain companies real time?

Why are Japan’s automakers doing so poorly? Is it wise for Japan to use seized Russian assets to fund Ukraine? How will facial recognition be used to personalize your cancer medication?

SHOW NOTES

JAPAN 

Nissan to post biggest ever loss in fiscal 2024 amid restructuring

Toyota truck arm Hino posts record net loss for FY 2024 on data fraud

Quality scandal sends Toyota global output down for 1st time in 4 years

Mazda to seek early retirement volunteers as industry shifts

China's fast-growing EV makers pursuing varied routes to global expansion

BYD to introduce mini EV model designed for Japan in 2026

SUPPLY CHAIN WAR

Moscow slams 'treacherous' Japanese loan to Ukraine using frozen Russian assets

U.S. Deploys Anti-Ship Missiles Near Taiwan in the Luzon Strait

Japanese warships dock at Cambodia's Chinese-renovated naval base

China Tests Novel Non-Nuclear Hydrogen Bomb - Generates Intense Fireball

China's Huawei to mass-produce new AI chips - sources

SOCIETY 5.0　

US unicorn venture ElevenLabs establishes Japanese subsidiary to strengthen Japanese language support for voice generation AI and as base for expansion into Asia

With Al removing accents

Artificial Intelligence in Telemedicine Market Projected to Grow from $18.7B to $157.3B by 2033, with CAGR of 26.7% Over Next 10 Years to Power Telemedicine and Diagnostic Solutions

NEC establishes secure cancer vaccine manufacturing process using facial recognition technology that does not store facial information

Japan's NTT Data partners with OpenAI to offer AI business tools

AI experiment to ease traffic congestion: Cameras detect vehicles and encourage detours　

New bill to promote AI development and utilization passed by House of Representatives plenary session, heads to House of Councillors

British self-driving AI company Wave opens development center in Yokohama, exploring collaboration with Japanese manufacturers

Turing, an autonomous driving tech company, borrows 1.3 billion yen from Mizuho Bank

Is the Osaka Expo being used as a technocratic training ground? How can supply chains can be weaponized asymmetrically? Would you talk to an AI-resurrected family member at their funeral?

SHOW NOTES

JAPAN DEPOPULATION / MIGRATION 

Japan’s Population Declines for Fourteenth Straight Year: Over-75 Cohort Continues to Grow

Japan faces severe shortage of carpenters as home prices soar

Teacher helps Myanmar people learn Japanese, escape hardships

SUPPLY CHAIN WAR

Japan 'deeply concerned' about global economic fallout from Trump's trade tariffs: Kato

Japan protests to Russia over ship restrictions near disputed islands

China says it detected salmonella in imported American poultry meats and bone meal

SOCIETY 5.0 / AI MARKETS

Osaka-Kansai Expo to be a springboard for widespread adoption of cashless payments and facial recognition

AI revives the deceased: new services emerge, even for funerals

Seven Bank's ATM facial recognition service strengthens measures against deep fakes and launches a year late

Waymo, which has begun to slowly roll out in Japan as a self-driving taxi

Shocking facts revealed in an experiment where an AI agent books a hotel room: How does an AI view online ads?

"That's what an AI agent will do": The background to hosting an AI agent hackathon at AWS Summit Japan 2025

DXYZ Introduces Facial Recognition Platform "FreeiD" to Chuetsu Pulp Industry's Tokyo Headquarters

AI semiconductors evolve surveillance cameras: NTT develops new camera that can detect up to 150 meters ahead

4 arrested in Japan for selling explicit AI-created posters

Where are the treacherous A.I. dogs coming from? How do N. Korean IT scams affect Japan? Are Japan’s business leaders asleep at the wheel?

ECONOMY 

Japan bankruptcies in FY2024 top 10,000

SUCKERS & TRAITORS

2 Japanese men suspected of aiding N. Korean IT impersonator

Taiwan jails four soldiers, including three who worked in presidential office, for spying for China

Intel and Microsoft staff allegedly lured to work for fake Chinese company in Taiwan

SUPPLY CHAIN WAR

Japan MoD and MHI sign contract for the development of new standoff missile

U.S. forces to deploy large reconnaissance drones in southern Japan

SOCIETY 5.0　

'Firms asleep at the wheel won't survive': Biz leaders sound alarm on Japan's global decline

Fukui Prefecture uses artificial intelligence (AI) to identify cracks and holes in roads to reduce the burden of maintenance

Bird Buddy, a smart home company, has launched the "Smart Feeder Pro," a smart bird watching camera equipped with high-performance AI.

Airports begin testing self-driving buses and facial recognition boarding systems

J21: Launch of retrofit side collision warning system combining radar and AI camera

TOPPAN Edge, Sinumy, and Mitsubishi HC Capital

begin demonstration experiments of smart authentication that combines face recognition and proprietary Bluetooth® technology

Salary payments via cashless apps struggle to gain traction in Japan

Japan Airlines’ new AI app will make it easier for cabin attendants to report inflight events with Microsoft’s Phi‑4 small language model

Manefo to introduce AI agent to improve business efficiency for small and medium-sized businesses

Microsoft shutters AI lab in Shanghai, signalling a broader pullback from China

Remote Access Backdoor Discovered in Chinese Robot Dog Unitree Go1

Can Japan escape its boomer trappings? How does control of the Panama Canal affect Japan’s long-term interests? Why are Japanese Farmers protesting in favor of rice-price hikes?

SHOW NOTES

JAPAN ECONOMY

Bank of Japan survey says big manufacturers gloomier

Japan enforces food supply emergency law amid soaring costs

Farmers march in downtown Tokyo, demand income security

20-40% of new apartments in the city center are purchased by foreigners. 

XRP For Real Estate? Leading Japanese Company Says Yes!

SUPPLY CHAIN WAR/SOCIETY 5.0

Toyota facing supply chain snarls

Japan-Australia flagship hydrogen project stumbles

White House weighs executive order to fast-track deep-sea mining, sources say

OpenAI says it raised $40 bil in new funding round

Chinese brain chip project speeds up human trials after first success

Japan's Rapidus gears up for test production of next-generation chips

Test operations under way for autonomously navigated vessels

China, Japan, S Korea will jointly respond to U.S. tariffs, Chinese state media says