Tadakazu Nakamura from The Mainichi:
Emirates resumed flights of the superjumbo at Kansai International Airport on June 1, with daily round trips between Kansai and Dubai International Airport. Airlines had paused flights of A380s to Kansai as passenger numbers plummeted amid the coronavirus pandemic.
Love the big sky whales.
From The Mainichi:
Japanese police on Wednesday stressed to the public that riders of electric motorized suitcases must have a driver's license after a Chinese woman became the first person to be referred to prosecutors for unlicensed riding.
I have never heard of this kind of luggage but I think I need to invest in a fleet now.
Julian Ryall from South China Morning Post:
Japan has announced plans to construct a network of hi-tech, automated conveyor belts to transport goods more than 500km between Tokyo and Osaka as a solution to a looming cargo logistics crisis.
The proposed network of massive conveyor belts, dubbed the Autoflow-Road, would use tunnels beneath major highways that link Japan’s two largest cities, as well as above-ground tracks in the middle of the roads. it is the brainchild of a panel at the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism.
This is such a cool idea and a great way to get a lot of freight traffic off of roadways. Whether it actually gets built is another matter. 回転貨物。
From The Mainichi:
The plane is Japan Airlines' second Myaku-Myaku jet designated to fly abroad from Japan. On the aircraft, drinks are served in paper cups with the Myaku-Myaku design on them. The plane will fly until August next year to promote the expo to the world.
It is worth it to look up photos of this nightmare fuel. I can't believe that this character design made it past any kind of committee.
From Kyodo:
Argentina has decided to withdraw its participation in the 2025 World Exposition in Osaka, the third country to do so among those who were set to build their own pavilions, Japan's minister in charge of the global event said Friday.
This is following Estonia and Mexico’s withdrawal to build pavilions previously. As a fan of World Expos, it is disappointing to see countries pull out, but things like this are huge investments with no guarantee of return. Still though, the soft power gains could have been worth it. Osaka EPCOT will still live on.
From Kyodo:
Google LLC said Wednesday it will collaborate with the University of Tokyo to launch an initiative that uses generative artificial intelligence to address challenges faced by local communities in Japan, such as a shrinking workforce, with successful models to be rolled out nationwide by 2027.
This reeks of a solution looking for a problem. AI is not going to be the savior for anything issue that society face. Could it help in very specific ways, sure. But these collaborations and announcements are for the press releases only.
In Osaka, the focus will be on resolving employment mismatches due to skews in the types of professions that job seekers prefer. A successful model, for example, would be able to suggest positions that job seekers themselves may not have realized were suitable, or illustrate ideal career paths leading to a desired job.
Replacing the job counselor and recruiter, the true scourges of society. I'm sure the usefulness of this program will definitely offset the environmental damage training this AI model will take.
From The Mainichi:
Heavy rain battered wide areas of Japan on Tuesday, disrupting bullet train services between Tokyo and Osaka and prompting the weather agency to urge caution for landslides and floods.
Kyoko Hariya from Nikkei:
Holders of an all-access pass will be able to use facial recognition by registering their photo and a payment method in advance. The system will enable them to enter the event and make purchases at shops and cafes by just scanning their faces.
The organizer expects the registration of about 1.2 million accounts, making the Expo one of the largest events to use the technology.
If it works, it is interesting tech. I remember the first time I boarded an airplane in Hong Kong with just my face and it felt that I was cheating by not booping my paper ticket on the laser machine. But, as with any biometrics, privacy is the killer app. It takes almost to the end of the article before the p-word is mentioned.