SORACOM Discovery 2026: IoT Platform Expands Reach, Launches AI Agent
SORACOM is proving that in the AI era, its decade-old IoT platform remains central by embedding AI into its core offering, rather than shifting away from IoT.
ASCII.jp
Industry
NEOWIZ Appoints Former Wargaming CPO Chris Chung in Restructuring
The restructuring formalizes NEOWIZ's effort to build a sustainable global portfolio around Lies of P and new IPs, led by a veteran of Wargaming and NCsoft.
GameBusiness.jp
Jinbay's GenOCR AI-OCR Produces Results in Fuchu City Government Verification
The verification demonstrates that a generative AI-OCR tool can be effectively deployed in a local government setting, with staff accepting it easily, offering a practical model for other municipalities facing similar paper-digital integration challenges.
ASCII.jp
STYLY Phases Out Personal HMD Apps to Focus on LBE and Smartphone AR
STYLY's decision to phase out personal HMD apps in favor of LBE and smartphone AR reflects a strategic reallocation of resources toward growing demand for location-based and mobile AR experiences, mirroring a broader industry shift away from consumer VR headsets.
PANORA
Netflix to Host Videos From BuzzFeed, Variety, and Other Publishers Starting August 3
The deal lets Netflix test viewer appetite for short-form, low-cost web-style content as it competes with YouTube and TikTok and tries to retain subscribers between seasons of its original series.
GIGAZINE
B4A Announces B4A-I Project With 30 AI Features Per Year
B4A is positioning its cloud-based clinic management tool as an AI-driven platform, with a roadmap of 30 features per year starting with voice-to-SOAP charting.
ASCII.jp
JNI and Farrant Group Join Forces for Strategic Communication in Indo-Pacific
The partnership signals that traditional public relations and crisis management are no longer seen as sufficient, and that intelligence-driven strategic communication is becoming a standard requirement for governments and corporations operating in the Indo-Pacific region.
ASCII.jp
Michi Iijima, Former SMAP Manager, Named HYBE JAPAN Executive Producer
The appointment brings a veteran architect of SMAP's multi-talent model into HYBE's Japan operation, signaling a deeper push to develop J-POP IP using local production expertise rather than direct K-pop transfer.
KAI-YOU
angleReserve Launches Beta TNFD Advisory Service for Management Decisions
The advisory targets the common corporate failure to treat TNFD as a strategic tool rather than a compliance report.
ASCII.jp
Tax Accountant Without Programming Experience Builds Apps in Half a Day Using Claude Code
This case illustrates that non-technical professionals can create custom business applications with AI coding tools, potentially reducing dependency on external IT and outsourcing.
ASCII.jp
AccordSystem Launches ECops for Safe EC Data Use With AI Tools
ECops addresses a key security and management barrier to AI adoption in e-commerce by providing a platform that allows operators to use AI tools without exposing API keys, with granular permissions and audit trails.
ASCII.jp
AI Hack and Priv Tech Join Agentic Commerce ONE, Launch Readiness Diagnosis
The partnership and diagnostic tool give companies a structured way to assess readiness for AI-driven commerce, moving the concept from theory to measurable practice.
ASCII.jp
Solafune Signs UNDP Contract for Climate-Adaptive Agriculture in Togo
The contract gives Solafune a concrete application for its satellite data and AI technology in international development, with the project positioned as a TICAD-aligned initiative using Japanese tech for African climate resilience.
ASCII.jp
Unseed Selected for Ehime Tourism DX Project With AI Maintenance Platform
The selection applies specialized AI to a regional tourism challenge, aiming to turn facility maintenance from a reactive cost into a predictive, labor-saving operation.
ASCII.jp
AIX Deploys Generative Ai and Ai Agents for Plus by Plus Support Desk
The deployment pairs AI agent technology with a structured DX package that takes projects from concept through on-site implementation, offering a concrete test case for midsize Japanese software firms looking to automate customer support.
ASCII.jp
xAI Renames to SpaceXAI After SpaceX Acquisition
The renaming formalizes xAI's absorption into SpaceX, shifting from an independent AI startup to a product line within Musk's space company, as planned after the February acquisition.
GIGAZINE
Kong AI Gateway 3.14 Adds Agent-to-Agent Communication Support
The update gives Kong a unified governance layer for the full AI data path as agent-to-agent communication becomes standard in enterprise architectures.
ASCII.jp
ALGO ARTIS Production Planning DX Solution Goes Live at FILWEL
The deployment targets a common manufacturing bottleneck by consolidating fragmented Excel-based planning into a single system, with a stated goal of cutting planning time to one-third.
ASCII.jp
Crunchyroll Co-Founder Kun Gao Launches AniBiz Anime Licensing Marketplace
The platform formalizes anime licensing into a structured marketplace, potentially lowering the entry barrier for new licensees and expanding the global anime economy.
Anime News Network
DPN Books Opens Permanent Submission Portal for Two New Comic Labels
The permanent portal replaces one-off submission windows, giving DPN Books a continuous pipeline of original works from Nola's large writer base for its two new comic labels.
ASCII.jp
Cynthia Co. Representative Kunimoto to Speak at Data Cross Conference 2026
The session targets a common corporate pain point-AI tools introduced but not adopted-and positions Cynthia's consulting approach as a practical pathway from pilot to full-scale operation.
ASCII.jp
Emaqi Launches Monthly Subscription Service for Manga
The subscription model gives Orange Inc. a recurring revenue stream and a competitive position in the digital manga market, with a growing library from major publishers.
Anime News Network
Midjourney Demands Hollywood Studios Disclose Internal AI Usage in Copyright Fight
Midjourney is trying to turn the studios' own AI practices into evidence that unauthorized training on copyrighted works is standard industry behavior, which could reshape the legal boundaries of fair use for generative AI.
GIGAZINE
IVS 2026 Panel Examines Tokens' Shift From Marketing Gimmick to Business Tool
The panel signals a maturation of the token space, where industry players are now prioritizing practical infrastructure over speculative marketing.
4Gamer.net