JAPAN TO LAUNCH DRIVERLESS CAR SYSTEM IN TOKYO BY 2020

A self- driving car service could be on Tokyo’s public roads in time for the 2020 Olympics as Japan looks to drive investment in new technology to drive economic growth, according to a government strategic review announced on Monday. The strategy, presented at a meeting chaired by Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, also includes plans to allow the development of virtual power plants by the fiscal year ending March 2022. The proposals are part of a larger package of fiscal and economic policies the government aims to compile by the end of the month.

The review said the government plans to begin testing a driverless car system on public roads sometime this fiscal year with the goal of launching a self- driving car service for the 2020 Tokyo Olympics. The government will then try to commercialise this system as early as 2022. Economists see enormous potential in the development of autonomous vehicle and artificial intelligence technologies, which could help businesses cope with an ageing and declining workforce. However, Japanese companies have struggled to keep up with their Chinese, European and US counterparts in implementing such innovations into their work practices. The government also plans to change regulations for universities to make it easier for students to earn multidisciplinary degrees needed to work in artificial intelligence. —