Association Overview
- Name
- AI Robot Association（AIRoA） / 一般社団法人AIロボット協会
- Objective
- By integrating robots and AI, the Association aims to revolutionize the technologies used in robot development and thereby promote the use of robots across society.
- Main Activities
- Advancement of AI Robot Development
1. Collecting, storing, managing, and publicly disclosing data necessary for foundational model development
2. Developing, operating, and publicly sharing foundational models and individual models
3. Facilitating a vibrant development
Promotion of AI Robots in Society
1. Measuring and publicizing the efficiency gains achieved by AI robots
2. Assessing and publishing AI robot safety evaluations
Other Activities
Any additional endeavors required to fulfill the Association’s objectives
Access
Tokyo R&D Lab (TRD)
Tokyo Ryutsu Center (TRC) Bldg. A, AW4-5/4-6,
6-1-1 Heiwajima, Ota-ku, Tokyo 143-0006
By Train:
* Ryutsu Center Station (Tokyo Monorail): 5 min. walk
By Bus:
* Take the bus from JR Omori Station or Keikyu Heiwajima Station.
* Get off at "Ryutsu Center-mae" bus stop: 8 min. walk
Registered Office
Nagase Hongo Building 5-24-5 Hongo, Bunkyo-ku Tokyo-to, Japan 113-0033
* Hongo-sanchome Station: 3 min. walk (Toei Oedo, Tokyo Metro Marunouchi Lines)
* Kasuga Station: 9 min. walk (Toei Mita Line)
Executive
Board of Directors / Chairperson
Tetsuya Ogata
Professor, Faculty of Science and Engineering, Waseda University
Joint Appointed Fellow, Artificial Intelligence Research Center, AIST
Visiting Professor, Research and Development Center for Large Language Models, NII
Board of Directors
Yutaka Matsuo
Professor at the University of Tokyo, Graduate School of Engineering / Department of Technology Management for Innovation
Board of Directors
Tadahiro Taniguchi
Professor, Graduate School of Informatics, Kyoto University
Board of Directors
Yoshitaka Ushiku
NexaScience, Inc. CEO／OMRON SINIC X Corporation Vice President for Research
Board of Directors
Genki Sano
Telexistence Inc. Co-founder, CTO
Board of Directors
Hiroshi Bito
Research Lead, Research unit for Advanced robotics, R-Frontier Div., Frontier Research Center, TOYOTA MOTOR CORPORATION
Board of Directors
Eriko Nogi
Manager, Special Situations Group, Matsuo Institute, inc
Board of Directors
Yousuke Okada
ABEJA, Inc.CEO
Special Advisors
Teruo Fuji
President of the University of Tokyo
Auditor
Masashi Baba
EDiX Professional Group
Partner CPA
Executive Director
Ryutaro Okada
Administration Office
Chief Technology Officer
Tatsuya Matsushima
Assistant Professor. Graduate School of Engineering, the University of Tokyo
Message
Message from the Chairperson
I am pleased to announce the establishment of the AI Robot Association (AIRoA). AIRoA is a non-profit organization dedicated to driving innovation in robotics technology by integrating AI and robotics. It ultimately strives to create a society where robots play a more active role across various domains. In this message, I would like to share the background, objectives, and vision guiding our efforts.
In recent years, AI technology has made remarkable progress, particularly with the development of foundation models such as large language models (LLMs) and vision-language models (VLMs). These advancements have been primarily driven by corporations with substantial financial and computational resources, leveraging vast datasets for training. As user feedback—crucial for improving foundation models—remains concentrated within these companies, barriers to entry for new players and broader participation have become increasingly significant challenges.
Since 2023, this trend has extended into the field of robotics. Research on "robot foundation models," which leverage large-scale motion data collection to enable more adaptable and flexible robotic control, has been accelerating. Particular attention has been given to their application in everyday tasks. However, much like in AI development, well-funded corporations lead this area.
The development of general-purpose AI-powered robots faces considerable challenges worldwide. These challenges include the scarcity of high-quality, large-scale datasets and the slow progress in data-sharing frameworks among research institutes and companies. To promote the advancement of robotics through global cooperation, it is essential to establish publicly accessible, versatile datasets of robotic actions and to develop foundation models that can benefit both researchers and businesses.
AIRoA is committed to addressing these challenges through the following key initiatives:
First, we will develop a high-quality, general-purpose dataset within a short timeframe and use it to create advanced robot foundation models. Second, we will make these datasets and models openly available to the global community, fostering a collaborative "robot data ecosystem" where diverse stakeholders can contribute and benefit. The accumulation of data and the iterative improvement of models will accelerate by themselves, paving the way for more advanced general-purpose robots. In the long term, this initiative will facilitate the integration of robots into fields such as healthcare and construction, addressing critical societal challenges worldwide.
To achieve these objectives, AIRoA will operate as a public-interest platform. We are committed to ensuring transparency and accessibility in data collection, sharing, and publication, providing a secure environment where researchers and organizations worldwide can confidently participate. Moreover, we will build upon existing research achievements to expedite the development of datasets and models, advancing our projects efficiently and effectively.
AIRoA’s mission extends beyond technological development; we aim to contribute to solving pressing societal issues. As many regions face labor shortages and increasing demands for efficient healthcare and infrastructure, adopting general-purpose robots offers a viable solution. Through our initiatives, we seek to maximize the potential of AI and robotics, striving for a sustainable and prosperous future for all.
We sincerely invite your support and collaboration in this groundbreaking endeavor. Together, let us shape the future of AI and robotics.
Tetsuya Ogata
Chairperson, AI Robotics Association (AIRoA)
