Honda Research Institute Japan Co., Ltd. (HRI-JP), a Honda R&D subsidiary, has established a project team with the Graduate School of Informatics, Kyoto University and began joint research this month to further accelerate research of artificial intelligence (AI).
Since its foundation, driven by a passion to provide people everywhere with the joy of expanding their life’s potential, Honda has been striving to evolve mobility and improve the daily lives of people all around the world with its products including motorcycles, automobiles and power products.
In the midst of this pursuit, and with the advancement of digital technologies, Honda began to see a growing possibility to create value in a wider range of fields beyond its current businesses. Responding to such changes in the business environment, in addition to its continuous pursuit of the art of making things (Mono-zukuri), Honda will take on new challenges in enhancing brand story creation about the new value and experiences (Koto-zukuri) Honda can provide through the art of making things. In this way, Honda will strive to make people’s lives more enjoyable.
Honda believes that AI will be one of the technologies that will make people’s lives more enjoyable, and therefore, Honda is striving to develop “AI that collaborates with people,” which 1) is capable of understanding and relating to the emotions of people, 2) accommodates and grows together with people and 3) expands the potential of people who play the leading role.
In order to accelerate the development of such new AI, HRI-JP started the project and began joint research with the Department of Intelligence Science and Technology, Graduate School of Informatics, Kyoto University. Professor Takatsune Kumada, who specializes in psychoinformatics, will represent this project and Professor Hisashi Kashima, the department head, also will personally participate in this project, with a goal to establish a concept under which AI that collaborates with people will be broadly accepted and utilized in society.
Honda is envisioning a future society where mobility products and robots equipped with such AI are trusted just like family members and are useful as part of people’s everyday lives. In order to continue providing people everywhere with the joy of expanding their life’s potential, Honda will continue to strive to create more and more innovations.
