University of Tsukuba Holds Cross-Pacific Meeting for Japan-U.S. Collaboration in AI

University of Tsukuba Holds Cross-Pacific Meeting for Japan-U.S. Collaboration in AI

Main participants: From the front row, left to right: Mr. Suzuki Hirofumi (NVIDIA), Professor Sakurai Tetsuya (University of Tsukuba), Ms. Anne Szeto (Amazon), President Nagata Kyosuke (University of Tsukuba), Ms. Tricia Serio (University of Washington)

Representatives from University of Tsukuba (UT), the University of Washington (UW), NVIDIA, and Amazon met on August 21 and 22 to discuss how they can collaborate in the field of artificial intelligence.

This was based on the Japan-U.S. agreement for a partnership in AI between those parties, signed on April 9 at the U.S. Department of Commerce in Washington, DC. The agenda included discussions on the partnership framework, operating model, and collaboration agreement.

Discussions were held in Tokyo and at the University of Tsukuba. UT President Nagata Kyosuke and UW Provost Tricia Serio signed a letter of intent on the second day to promote cooperation between the two universities in research and education.

Participants in this visit included Provost Tricia Serio and other officials from the University of Washington, Anne Szeto from Amazon, and Suzuki Hirofumi from NVIDIA. In attendance from University of Tsukuba were President Nagata Kyosuke, Vice President for Research Shigeta Yasuteru, and Professor Sakurai Tetsuya of the Department of Systems and Information Sciences, who is responsible for overseeing this partnership.

They reconfirmed the significance of this partnership between the Japanese and the U.S. universities, and the support from the U.S. companies. They also held in-depth discussions to promote specific collaboration.

President Nagata stated: ” The challenges we are facing are very complex, including issues such as CO₂ emissions, gender equality, and the existence of disparities and divisions. We, as scientists, will endeavor to address these challenges through the application of science and technology. To this end, we need a real and collaborative partnership with you in the city of Seattle. ”

The three parties also made the following statements.:
Tricia Serio, the University of Washington:

“It’s a real privilege for us to be here today at the University of Tsukuba surrounded by academic leaders and our corporate partners as we work to advance this cross-pacific effort in artificial intelligence. This is such a wonderful fit for the mission and focus of the University of Washington. We have longstanding expertise in artificial intelligence. Sharing our expertise will enable us to have a long, outstanding, and broad impact in many important fields, from health care to robotics to climate change. And that’s what I’m most excited about this partnership.”

Anne Szeto, Amazon:

“What initially brought us to this initiative was the understanding that each of our institutions brings their unique strengths and capabilities. But I think what I discovered from our conversations that will make this partnership thrive is actually our commonalities. We are all curious about grand challenges that will make a difference to our society at large regardless of borders. We all care about future talent and making sure there are thriving students who build and are capable of facing the future. And we all care about innovation. We all care about progress on hard technical problems. I’m
excited by this partnership and look forward to what we will accomplish together.”

Suzuki Hirofumi, NVIDIA:

“Artificial Intelligence is a new generation of computer science that is powering a new industrial revolution. Realizing the potential of this technology to innovate and provide solutions to some of humanity’s most pressing challenges will require collaborations between academia, the private sector, and governments. Through this partnership and NVIDIA’s best in class accelerated computing solutions, we are enabling an ecosystem of researchers and students to advance this technology and develop real-world applications for AI. “

UT Professor Sakurai, who leads the project, says the program will focus on two main areas. The first area involves research initiatives aimed at solving challenges in such fields as robotics, climate change, healthcare, and an aging society. The second focuses on community projects such as student exchanges, entrepreneurship education, and tutorials.

Furthermore, the University of Tsukuba is looking to set up an AI education and research hub to further promote the objectives laid out by Professor Sakurai.