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The Mainichi
29-06-2025
- The Mainichi
Fukuoka Pref. girls' school wins national AI championship with summary app
FUKUOKA -- To solve a problem encountered in school life, the "AI club" at an all-girls high school in Fukuoka Prefecture developed an app that automatically summarizes study materials, a project that earned them top honors in the national AI championship. The AI club at Fukuoka Girls' Commercial High School in the prefectural city of Nakagawa won the "research-theme AI" division of the "GEN-AI Koshien" championship held in the city of Yamagata in March 2025. It achieved victory despite being only in its second year. Such clubs are uncommon in Fukuoka Prefecture. The eight-member club, consisting of first- to third-year students, learns the fundamentals and practical applications of AI with guidance from an external coach at an IT company in the city of Kitakyushu. Initially, members worked on developing AI to predict disasters from rainfall data, but faced difficulties completing the project. They then shifted their focus to addressing common school life issues. Third-year student Nene Takeshita, 17, revealed, "I write down what's taught in class in my notebook, but had trouble understanding it when I looked back at it later." A survey conducted on all students at the school revealed that many others also experienced the same problem, which led the club to focus on creating summaries. In about six months, they developed the unique web app "AI Yoyaku-kun." Users can upload photos of notebooks and textbooks or audio recordings, and the app automatically summarizes the content without requiring any written instructions. The app also paraphrases difficult terms and even generates review questions on its own. The members introduced this app at the fifth GEN-AI Koshien held on March 20, where they competed against nine other schools in the "research-theme AI" category, in which students present the results of their efforts in solving everyday problems. On June 24, the members visited the prefectural government office to report their achievements. Fukuoka Gov. Seitaro Hattori praised them, saying, "I believe you reached victory through trial and error, sharing ideas and working as a team. I believe in the limitless potential each of you hold, and I want to fully support your efforts." The app still has some issues, such as not using line breaks in its responses, which the team apparently plans to address. Third-year student Akane Narisue, 17, stated, "I want to fully understand the risks of AI and become proficient in using it."
09-05-2025
- Automotive
Nissan Abandons Plan for EV Battery Plant in Japan
News from Japan Economy May 9, 2025 15:40 (JST) Fukuoka, May 9 (Jiji Press)--Nissan Motor Co. said Friday that it has decided to abandon its plan to build a battery plant for electric vehicles in the city of Kitakyushu, Fukuoka Prefecture, southwestern Japan. The company said it gave up the new battery plant construction after careful consideration over the effects of its investment. The decision was made at a time when Nissan is pursuing a large-scale restructuring program to revive its business in response to serious financial difficulties. Nissan President and CEO Ivan Espinosa conveyed his company's intention to cancel the plant construction in a meeting with Fukuoka Governor Seitaro Hattori and Kitakyushu Mayor Kazuhisa Takeuchi at the prefectural office. In January, Nissan concluded a pact with the Fukuoka prefectural government and the Kitakyushu municipal government. It planned to invest about 150 billion yen for the plant construction. [Copyright The Jiji Press, Ltd.] Jiji Press
