Japan

Intelligence for Better Decision Making

AI Driver-Assist Trials Advance on Japan’s Shared Railway Tracks

Nov. 27, 2025 | Transportation & Logistics

Innovative AI-driven driver-assist technology is undergoing trials on shared sections of Japan’s railway network.

**Keihan Holdings and Keihan Electric Railway have teamed up with Tokyo-based IT firms BeCore and Various Robotics to test an AI-driven driver-assist system on shared-track sections of the Otsu Line.**
This initiative combines machine learning models with on-board hardware to boost situational awareness where trains and road traffic share the same right-of-way, addressing safety challenges in mixed-traffic environments as part of a broader push to apply advanced digital technologies to railway operations.

**A cab-mounted camera continuously captures video of the track and adjacent roadway, while real-time AI analysis detects potential hazards such as cars, bicycles, and pedestrians encroaching on the shared right-of-way.**
When the system identifies a risky situation, it alerts the driver through synthesized voice prompts and warning lamps on the console. An additional module monitors traffic signal statuses and notifies operators of changes, helping them comply with road signal indications and supporting safer train movements at intersections and crossings.

**The demonstration covers the shared-track segments of the Keishin Line and the Ishiyama–Sakamoto Line, where rail vehicles and road users operate in close proximity.**
These sections present higher operational risks and place a constant psychological burden on drivers, who must balance vigilance for trespassers with strict adherence to schedules. By automating hazard detection, the AI solution aims to reduce operators’ cognitive load and lower the likelihood of collisions with non-rail traffic.

**Strict data-privacy measures govern all video imagery.**
Keihan Holdings, Keihan Electric Railway, BeCore and Various Robotics personnel are the only parties with access to raw footage, and the system forbids facial recognition or extraction of individual images. The project team will share video data externally only if legally required, ensuring compliance with privacy regulations and maintaining public trust in AI technologies.

**The trial runs through the end of March 2026, during which the project team will evaluate system performance metrics such as hazard detection accuracy, false alarm rates, and driver response times.**
If the results meet expectations, the stakeholders plan to expand the AI-based assistance system to other shared-track corridors and potentially to additional segments of the Keihan network.

Prime Minister Takaichi Launches Push for Sustained Wage Growth at Government–Labor–Management Forum

Nov. 27, 2025 | Macroeconomics & Growth

Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi opened the first government–labor–management meeting of her term on November 25, urging cooperation to achieve wage increases in the 2026 spring labor negotiations at levels “not inferior” to the more than 5 percent growth recorded in 2024 and 2025.

**At the relaunch of the tripartite forum established under the Abe administration, Takaichi called on government, business and labor leaders—including Keidanren chairman Yoshinobu Tsutsui, Japan Chamber of Commerce and Industry chairman Ken Kobayashi and Rengo chair Tomoko Yoshino—to link improved corporate performance with higher wages and stronger consumption.**
She set a target for wage gains roughly on par with previous years, despite forecasts of slower corporate performance and a private economist’s projection of a 4.88 percent increase for 2026—the first sub‐5 percent rise in three years. Earlier in the month, during a Diet session, Takaichi had also refrained from commenting on earlier administrations’ ambitions to raise the weighted average minimum wage first to 1,000 yen and later to 1,500 yen, and she acknowledged practical difficulties in meeting such benchmarks.

**Takaichi emphasized the need for sustainable wage growth by presenting measures designed to ensure pay hikes go beyond cost pass‐throughs.**
She proposed optimizing price pass‐through—extending it to government procurement—streamlining transaction processes and supporting growth‐oriented investments by small and micro businesses. The government will incorporate preparations for wage increases into its growth strategy, to be drafted next summer, and revised Corporate Governance Code guidelines will urge firms to boost personnel and research and development expenditures.

**Experts at the meeting stressed that labor shortages constrain Japan’s economic growth and called for labor‐market reforms alongside stronger price‐pass‐through mechanisms from large corporations to small and medium‐sized enterprises.**
The government’s basic economic policy aims to institutionalize wage growth that exceeds price rises by about 1 percent annually through fiscal 2029. Representatives from all three sides agreed on the necessity of continued wage increases, reflecting the policy trajectory initiated under the Abe administration of promoting pay growth through supportive economic measures rather than direct mandates.

**The government announced roughly one trillion yen in economic support measures to help SMEs and small‐scale business operators raise wages through growth investments.**
Takaichi said these funds will underpin sustainable wage growth without simply transferring the burden onto employers and noted that municipal subsidies would further facilitate local-level wage hikes.

**In their responses, Keidanren chairman Tsutsui expressed interest in reinforcing the momentum behind wage growth.**
Chamber chairman Kobayashi voiced concerns about the weak yen’s impact on SMEs through higher import costs and urged attention to exchange‐rate issues. Rengo chair Yoshino confirmed alignment on the goal of exceeding 5 percent wage increases and requested continued government support while opposing any relaxation of work‐hour regulations that could harm worker health and well‐being.

**The supplementary budget for the current fiscal year, expected to receive Cabinet approval shortly after the meeting, incorporates the announced economic measures to support wage increases among SMEs through growth‐oriented investment assistance and municipal subsidy schemes.**

Monitored Intelligence for Japan - Nov. 28, 2025

News
Media
388

Government
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49

City/State
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120

Embassy
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0

Foreign
Service
Advisories
0

Academic/
Think
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18

Podcasts
0

Videos
0

Social
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0

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0

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Support groups rally against moves to tighten restrictions on foreigners in Japan

The Mainichi | English | News | Nov. 28, 2025 | Regulation

On November 26, 2025, supporters of foreign nationals in Japan, including members of the Solidarity Network with Migrants Japan and the nonprofit Heval, rallied inside a Tokyo parliament building to protest xenophobia and proposed stricter restrictions on foreigners. They called for the creation of a basic law to guarantee the human rights of foreigners and ethnic minorities, amid rising public debates fueled by reports of visa overstays and alleged abuse of public services.

The rally came shortly after a government ministerial meeting, held for the first time under Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi, focusing on foreigner-related policies. Participants criticized the government's approach, stating that measures aimed at harmonious coexistence instead increased control and surveillance of foreigners. Yasuko Morooka, a lawyer, emphasized the need for a clear legal framework to protect foreigners' human rights.

Tatsuhiro Nukui, head of Heval, highlighted the forced deportation of many Kurds since summer 2025, noting challenges faced by children returned to their parents' home countries who struggle with language barriers and access to education. Nukui expressed the desire for continued peaceful coexistence with the Kurdish community in Japan.

People in Japan's Aso area urged to remain on weeklong alert after Tuesday quake

NHK | English | News | Nov. 28, 2025 | Natural Disasters

Residents in the Aso region of Kumamoto Prefecture, southwestern Japan, are being urged to stay vigilant following a magnitude 5.8 earthquake that struck shortly after 6 p.m. on Tuesday. The quake registered an intensity of upper 5 on Japan’s seismic scale in Ubuyama Village, with lower 5 intensities recorded in Aso City and Taketa City in neighboring Oita Prefecture.

Seismic activity has continued in the region since the initial quake, with 29 aftershocks of intensity 1 or higher observed by Wednesday morning, including one with an intensity of 4 late Tuesday night. The Japan Meteorological Agency noted that the area has experienced similar successive quakes in the past and advised residents to remain cautious for about a week due to the risk of another quake potentially reaching an upper 5 intensity.

Authorities also warned of increased risks of falling rocks and landslides due to ongoing seismic activity combined with possible rain in the area, urging residents to monitor conditions closely.

Philippines seeks more retired MSDF patrol aircraft, navy chief says

Japan Times | English | News | Nov. 28, 2025 | Geopolitical Conflict and Disputes

The Philippine Navy is seeking to acquire five retired TC-90 patrol aircraft from the Japanese Maritime Self-Defense Force to enhance its maritime surveillance capabilities. Vice Admiral Jose Ma Ambrosio Ezpeleta stated that a joint visual inspection team will be sent to Japan by the end of the year to evaluate the condition of the available aircraft.

This potential acquisition comes amid ongoing discussions between Tokyo and Manila regarding the transfer of used Japanese destroyer escorts. The Philippine Navy aims to address significant gaps in its maritime domain awareness by incorporating these additional patrol aircraft into its fleet to improve monitoring and patrol operations.

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