Narashino: A consortium of Japanese companies has launched a data center to train physical artificial intelligence on human tasks for deploying humanoid robots in factories and logistics operations. The facility, located in Narashino, Chiba Prefecture, east of Tokyo, is managed by J-HRTI, a partnership of five companies, including Tsumura and Co., a manufacturer of Chinese herbal medicine, and Yamazen Corp., a machinery trading company.

According to Thai News Agency, the partners in this initiative are pooling resources to gather vast amounts of work data and train AI, a task that would be challenging for a single company to undertake alone. This collaboration is aimed at making humanoid robots viable for practical use in industrial settings. The data center is designed to accommodate up to 40 Chinese-made humanoid robots, with operators who use virtual reality headsets to control the robots and collect necessary data. Additionally, the facility features spaces that mimic actual work environments to test potential applications.

J-HRTI is targeting the deployment of these robots for simple tasks, such as material transport, by the end of fiscal 2026, which concludes next March. Shoichi Kumagai, an executive officer at Tsumura, stated on Wednesday, "Automation and unmanned operations will be necessary to maintain stable supplies (of products) as falling population makes it increasingly difficult to secure workers."