Japan scientists invent electronic device that is biodegradable
Scientists here have created a biodegradable paper-thin sensor device that connects to the internet of things (IoT) system to transmit data.
Internet of Things
IoT
Australian coal mines ride self-driving wave
BHP Group and Mitsubishi Corp. are spending an estimated 50 billion yen ($455 million) on autonomous haul trucks and communications infrastructure to slash production costs and improve efficiency at mines, aiming to insulate themselves from price swings.
SoftBank and Indonesia's Lippo partner on smart city development
In a partnership of sprawling conglomerates, Japan's Softbank Corp. on Thursday announced it will work with the real estate arm of Indonesia's Lippo Group to promote smart city projects.
Toshiba to form IoT alliance with SoftBank, KDDI and others
Japanese electronics conglomerate Toshiba will launch an "internet of things" platform next spring that will include companies like SoftBank Group, wireless carrier KDDI and utility Tokyo Gas.
Toyota cars' real-time wiper data to help improve rain forecasts
Toyota Motor Corp. and weather information provider Weathernews Inc. have started tests to improve the accuracy of rain forecasts by using real-time data from networked cars’ windshield wipers.
Hitachi to help Frasers residences and malls operate smarter
Japanese technology group Hitachi has partnered with Thai conglomerate TCC Group to install building control systems powered by "internet of things" across the Asia-Pacific region, Nikkei has learned.
Vietnam developer and Sumitomo join to build $4bn smart city
Leading Vietnamese developer BRG Group and Japanese trading house Sumitomo Corp. will spend 450 billion yen ($4.21 billion) to develop a smart city on the outskirts of Hanoi, the partners said Sunday.
SoftBank-backed Mapbox finds its way into Japanese smart industry
The company, which provides digital map services to the likes of Foursquare and Lonely Planet in its home market, now counts one of Japan's biggest construction conglomerates as a customer. The shift is part of Mapbox's bet on automation and smart industry as future opportunities for growth.
Hitachi offers preventive healthcare in China -- for excavators
Hitachi Construction Machinery will bring an artificial intelligence service designed to predict excavator malfunctions to China, as the Japanese company looks to build on its group's partnership with Chinese internet giant Tencent Holdings.
SoftBank's Vision Fund 2: more firepower, bigger questions
Bill Huang likes to think in hundred-year cycles. A former telecoms engineer, Huang founded CloudMinds in 2015, driven by the belief that the unstoppable rise of artificial intelligence and the widespread adoption of robotics will outpace the capabilities of computer chips. His solution: to build a "cloud brain" that connects millions of robots in homes, offices and factories with the vast computing power of remote servers. CloudMinds' pitch, with its huge ideas, long-term vision and its worldview centered on the rapid evolution of artificial intelligence, was almost guaranteed to appeal to Masayoshi Son, founder and CEO of SoftBank Group.