The future of robotics at Waseda University

In this talk

1. 0:04

   Bringing engineering and ICT together

   Ohkata says Waseda built the world’s first humanoid robot in 1973. He describes robotics as a combination of mechanical engineering and information technology, and says the university’s ICT and Robotics Hub brings researchers from those fields together. The hub has involved around 70 professors, including researchers connected to the US Aurora supercomputer project.

2. 1:32

   Building research partnerships

   Waseda and the Technical University of Munich held a two-day symposium on cognitive robotics, with researchers organized from Japan and Europe. Ohkata says the event was well received, and that another symposium was being planned for 2022 at a new innovation center. The hub has also sent 36 students to work with leading researchers for several months, contributing to joint research published or accepted in top journals.

3. 2:42

   Developing robots for everyday and care settings

   Ohkata says Waseda graduates are advancing ICT and robotics at companies and startups, while continuing to support the hub’s work. A new project was selected for Moonshot Goal 3, which aims for a world where AI robots coexist with people. Its representative robot, named AIREC, is part of a project to help people in everyday spaces and medical and welfare settings by 2050, with international collaboration that includes ethical and social questions.

4. 4:08

   Including society in robotics research

   Ohkata argues that robotics and digital transformation raise issues beyond engineering, including public acceptance, job concerns, safety, ethics, law, and policy. He invites humanities and social science faculty and students to join the hub’s activities so those perspectives can inform the work.