Visit of HEC Montréal MBA Students to NICT

On October 3, 2025, a group of 18 MBA students from HEC Montréal, accompanied by 2 faculty members, visited the National Institute of Information and Communications Technology (NICT) as part of their study tour focused on Society 5.0 and digital transformation.

The visit was led by Professor Thierry Warin, an expert from the Global Partnership on AI (GPAI). Following a welcome address by Dr. TOKUDA Hideyuki, President of NICT, Dr. HARAYAMA Yuko, Secretary General of the GPAI Tokyo Expert Support Center, introduced the concept of Society 5.0. Subsequently, Dr. OIWA Kazuhiro, Executive Director of the AI Research and Development Promotion Unit at NICT, presented NICT's AI research initiatives and international collaborations. Lastly, Q&A session was held.

The students actively inquired about the current state of AI research and development at NICT and the significance of "human-centered innovation" advocated by Society 5.0. This visit facilitated a lively exchange of ideas on NICT's activities and Japan's direction in science and technology for societal transformation.