North Columbus News

Industry, higher education, and government officials from the United States and Japan recently convened for a two-day workshop to strengthen cooperation in critical and emerging technologies. The U.S.-Japan Digital Innovation Hub and Advanced Technology Workshop was held on The Ohio State University campus on September 11-12.

The event featured discussions with American and Japanese experts on semiconductors, quantum information science, artificial intelligence (AI), and space exploration. Key topics included current and potential partnerships as well as workforce development to meet the growing demands of these technologies.

“At Ohio State, we are excited to bring people and ideas together from all over the world to create opportunities to collaborate at a scale few others can match,” said Ohio State President Walter “Ted” Carter Jr. during his closing remarks on the first day of the workshop.

Japanese university presidents, leadership, government officials, researchers, academics, and industry representatives joined their American counterparts for keynotes and panel sessions. Hiroyuki Fujita, former chair of Ohio State’s Board of Trustees, and Shuzaburo Takeda, an Ohio State alumnus with a doctorate in physics, played significant roles in organizing the event.

Attendees explored how emerging technologies could benefit workforces in both countries. Topics included using AI as a partner rather than a competitor in human endeavors and creating innovations in the space industry to support manufacturing economies. An interactive poster session allowed attendees to engage with students from both nations.

This marked the eighth iteration of the workshop, which alternates between the U.S. and Japan. It was also the first time it was hosted on a university campus; Columbus was the first Midwestern city to welcome the event.

Ohio State has a long history of collaboration with Japan, including a partnership with Honda that has generated millions in research funding. A battery cell research and development center is scheduled to open in 2025.

The event was hosted by Ohio State’s Enterprise for Research, Innovation and Knowledge along with its Board of Trustees office. The university conducts research across each highlighted field and has been selected as the research home for Starlab’s George Washington Carver Science Park Terrestrial Lab. It is also establishing an education and research center for semiconductor fabrication while pursuing a multidisciplinary approach to AI.