As the capabilities of computers have expanded, it has been suggested that they might one day exceed the abilities of the human brain, but is that really true? Computers have already surpassed the human brain in terms of the speed of searching data and performing calculations, but there are limits to the ability of computers to understand context and the meaning of sentences. It is important for humans and computers to cooperate and evolve together, rather than competing against each other. This roundtable discussion will focus on the behavior of the human brain when collaborating with computers. For example, there are optical illusions where the brain can be tricked into believing that a landscape photograph is in miniature scale, or where color variations give the impression of movement. Also, the behavior or appearance of robots can trigger human emotions of attachment or affection. The panel will discuss computer-human collaboration and the evolution of virtual reality and robots, from the perspective of deception of the human brain by computers.

This roundtable panel discusses the possibilities for university-based ventures and the issues they are facing. The panelists are graduates from Faculty of Science and Technology of Keio University who have started up ventures, and one of the persons involved with Keio University’s venture capital fund.
Although technology transfer from industry to universities through collaboration and self-startups is desirable, there are known to be several difficulties with incubating ventures in Japan. These include few success stories with regard to commercializing technology despite its potential, a lack of mechanisms for making angel investments, and an absence of mentors from whom to obtain entrepreneurial expertise. Furthermore, universities are being left behind due to insufficient knowledge about how to incubate ventures.
Keio Leading-edge Laboratory of Science and Technology (KLL) has been pursuing these goals for many years in Keio University, which is one of the leading private universities in Japan. In order to actively promote startups, in 2016, KLL began to provide a financial grant that is unique among science and technology universities in Japan. This grant assists students who wish to establish a venture for the first time at their own risk to secure venture capital by enabling them to envision the process of taking an idea, building a simple prototype, developing a business model, starting a business, and developing the business. This incubation program is in cooperation with the Keio Innovation Initiative (KII), a venture fund established by Keio University, and the Mentor Mitakai alumni association of Keio University.
KLL believes that greater cooperation and collaboration beyond the boundaries of universities will promote technological development and enrich society, which is the approach taken by the top private universities in the United States.