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July 02, 2026
 

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AI

Cameron Schuler, chief commercialization officer at the Toronto-based Vector Institute, during an interview in Tokyo on June 2
JAPAN
Jun 13, 2026
Japan and Canada can do more to accelerate AI adoption, expert says
“AI will be the technology that will power the future,” said Cameron Schuler, chief commercialization officer and vice president of industry innovation at the Vector Institute.
A record 101,045 consultation requests on social media-related issues were made to consumer affairs centers in Japan last year, nearly double the level in 2021.
JAPAN / Society
Jun 12, 2026
In a first, consumer consultations in Japan about social media top 100,000
Those in their 50s and older accounted for more than half of the total social media-related consultations to consumer affairs centers.
Kioxia Holdings has surged more than 670% this year, making it the best performer on the MSCI World Index.
BUSINESS / Companies
Jun 12, 2026
Kioxia becomes Japan’s most valuable firm as AI mania goes on
Shares of the Japanese memory chipmaker surged 7.6% Friday, lifting its market value above ¥44 trillion ($274 billion) just 18 months after its stock market debut.
A Ukrainian soldier controls a drone during a training flight in eastern Ukraine.
WORLD
Jun 12, 2026
Ukraine’s AI drones have given Kyiv a fresh edge on the battlefield
The latest models are more resistant to electronic jamming and have autonomous targeting capabilities that allow them to hit targets up to 150 kilometers beyond the front lines.
Japan’s real challenge in the age of artificial intelligence is not technological progress but rebuilding the trust and human connections that help young people feel heard, supported and safe.
COMMENTARY / Japan
Jun 12, 2026
Japan’s real AI problem is not technology. It is trust.
People who feel they matter are more likely to seek help when they need it because they trust that someone will listen. People who feel invisible often remain silent.
Artificial intelligence may reshape millions of jobs, but retraining alone is unlikely to protect workers from the economic and social disruptions that could follow.
COMMENTARY / World
Jun 12, 2026
What if AI retraining is just a comforting lie?
The risk is that “reskilling” becomes the excuse that makes mass unemployment politically palatable and, basically, the victim’s fault.
The tension between OpenAI CEO Sam Altman and Anthropic CEO Dario Amodei is the driving force in today’s biggest technological revolution.
BUSINESS / Companies / FOCUS
Jun 11, 2026
Anthropic v. OpenAI: Behind the bitter battle for the future of AI
The companies are racing to market, viewing a first listing as a way to frame how investors will value the companies and establish their CEO as the leading voice of AI.
The Shanghai skyline. As AI spreads across workplaces, China is also having to contend with chronic weakness in the jobs market.
BUSINESS
Jun 11, 2026
AI sparks alarm in China with call to protect worker rights
The Workers’ Daily urged government agencies to mount an active response as new threats emerge to the rights of employees.
Anthropic CEO Dario Amodei speaks during the World Economic Forum's annual meeting in Davos, Switzerland, in January.
BUSINESS
Jun 11, 2026
Japan financial firms to join NEC-Anthropic AI collaboration
The partnership aims to improve the quality of financial services for customers using AI and to strengthen measures against cyberattacks.
TDK sees Fabric8Labs' 3D-printing technology as an efficient way to process pure copper into cold plates connecting to semiconductors inside data center servers.
BUSINESS / Companies
Jun 11, 2026
TDK buys U.S. 3D-printing startup to amp up AI ecosystem bet
The Tokyo-based supplier of iPhone batteries is optimistic about Fabric8Labs’ 3D-printing technology for data center server applications.
Bang Chun-ja, a 78-year-old South Korean woman living alone, holding Hyodol, an artificial intelligence-powered healthcare doll designed for the elderly, during an interview at her home in Yongin in April.
ASIA PACIFIC / Science & Health
Jun 11, 2026
In aging South Korea, AI dolls are caring for the elderly
Authorities are providing AI care devices to seniors living alone, including in districts of Seoul and in Yongin, south of the capital.
A group of high school students arrested over allegedly trying to extort money from a boy in western Tokyo may have used ChatGPT to decide how much to demand, police said.
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
Jun 11, 2026
Teenagers in Tokyo allegedly used ChatGPT to decide extortion amount in assault case
Five teenagers were arrested in January over the alleged assault and attempted extortion of ¥150,000 from a high school student in the city of Hachioji.
Anthropic is balancing a safety-focused image while rapidly advancing autonomous AI like Mythos, a powerful system some worry could be dangerous.
COMMENTARY / World
Jun 11, 2026
Anthropic’s latest AIs are making some customers uneasy
Anthropic staff have access to the technology and say it is more human than its forerunners.
Several countries have been considering ​tightening rules around AI use as well as social media use for children.
WORLD
Jun 11, 2026
Canada moves to ban social media for children under 16 and regulate AI chatbots
Companies could face penalties of 3% ​of global revenue or up to C$10 million ($7.2 million), whichever is more, for failing to comply.
A medical student poses questions to a surgical support software tool that uses artificial intelligence.
JAPAN / Science & Health
Jun 10, 2026
Japan rushing to develop AI tools to aid surgeons
One surgery support software tool analyzes images of organs and blood vessels using generative AI and creates step-by-step procedures and points requiring caution.
SoftBank Group's efforts to secure at least $6 billion through a margin loan backed by its OpenAI stake have stalled after the company lowered its fundraising target.
BUSINESS / Companies
Jun 10, 2026
SoftBank’s attempt to get $6 billion OpenAI margin loan stalls
The development comes just weeks after the Japanese conglomerate cut its initial target from $10 billion.
A stock index board in the Lujiazui financial district of Shanghai. The oil shock and the AI boom have revived inflationary pressures among factories in the world’s second-biggest economy.
BUSINESS / Economy
Jun 10, 2026
China’s inflation split widens as AI and war stir up factory prices
Years of weak demand and excessive supply have contributed to bruising competition among Chinese industrial firms that’s keeping a lid on consumer prices.
Gantry cranes stand near stacked shipping containers at Yangshan Port outside Shanghai on May 7.
BUSINESS / Tech
Jun 9, 2026
China rides AI wave as exports surge past forecast
A surge in global AI investment has helped the world’s top manufacturer offset the export hit many had expected from the Middle East turmoil.
Former Yomiuri Giants manager Shinnosuke Abe was referred to prosecutors on suspicion of assaulting his eldest daughter, though it is believed the police attached a recommendation for leniency.
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
Jun 9, 2026
Former Giants manager Abe referred to prosecutors over alleged assault
The Metropolitan Police Department is believed to have attached a recommendation for leniency to the papers they sent to prosecutors.
Fujikura CEO Naoki Okada says the company is fielding orders from almost all U.S. hyperscalers for fiber-optic cables.
BUSINESS
Jun 9, 2026
Fujikura is raising prices on data center cables to beat outlook
The company, whose disappointing forecast triggered a selloff of Japanese tech stocks last month, is fielding orders from almost all U.S. hyperscalers for fiber-optic cables.
Japan triples departure tax in push to combat overtourism
Tourists in Yanaka Ginza, Tokyo, on Wednesday. Japan tripled its International Tourist Tax (departure tax) to ¥3,000 from ¥1,000 on Wednesday for all travelers leaving Japan, regardless of nationality.
More facilities in Japan placing sanitary bins in men’s restrooms
A sanitary bin with an awareness sticker placed in a men's restroom in the Nagasaki Municipal Government building
Inside Japan’s rigid adoption system, a British family finds a way
James Benstead, his wife, Jesse, and their three children. Their adopted son is in the rear stroller.
Life inside Japan’s largest prison for women
Western-style rooms spanning the size of four tatami mats with hardwood floors, a toilet and soft mattresses on bed frames are designated for foreign nationals and those with health conditions at Tochigi Prison.
‘My dream is broken’: Japan visa rules push out foreign residents
A man orders from a kebab shop in the Okubo district in Tokyo.
Six of the best: rikishi of note in each sumo division
Kazuma (right) faces off against future <i>yokozuna</i> Onosato during the All Japan Amateur Sumo Championships at the Ryogoku Kokugikan in Tokyo in December 2020.
Some startups see opportunity in an aging Japan
Yasmin Baba, CTO of Amilis, wins the Grand Prize at the Pitch2Tokyo Grand Final on Feb. 19.
Japan’s fertility system offers few safe paths for same-sex couples
A Tokyo Pride parade participant holds a sign that says "we want to be a married couple, not a couple."
Life inside Japan’s largest prison for women
Western-style rooms spanning the size of four tatami mats with hardwood floors, a toilet and soft mattresses on bed frames are designated for foreign nationals and those with health conditions at Tochigi Prison.
Inside Japan’s rigid adoption system, a British family finds a way
James Benstead, his wife, Jesse, and their three children. Their adopted son is in the rear stroller.

Podcast

One of the many entrances to the Kabukicho neighborhood in Tokyo’s Shinjuku Ward.
Kabukicho: Tokyo’s ‘stadium of desire’

Longform

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What Yokoze can teach Japan about rural revival
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