Rakuten and the University of Tsukuba Launched the Future Store Design Research Project

Heading towards the realization of a future store design and new shopping experience using Artificial Intelligence (AI) technology, we promote research and technology development and demonstration test.

Rakuten, Inc. and the University of Tsukuba signed a special joint research venture agreement and are excited to announce the launch of a "Rakuten Institute of Technology Future Store Design Research Project", a special collaborative research project that will promote research and technology development and demonstration test, heading towards the realization of a future store design and new shopping experience using AI technology.

Rakuten, Inc. and the University of Tsukuba launched The Future Store Design Laboratory as a joint research center in our university on November 2016, and have been conducting wide-range research from prototyping to demonstration test on shopping experience under the collaboration among Rakuten Institute of Technology, the School of Art and Design, and the Graduate School of Comprehensive Human Sciences of the University of Tsukuba with the combination of information in research and development of stores of the future using the internet and design thinking.

We have high expectations that this special collaborative research contract will be a great opportunity to further widen research fields aiming to provide a future-oriented shopping experience using AI technology and related technologies. Specifically, it will allow us to tackle multiple speculations by using knowledge and technology in the internet business field held by Rakuten and mixing up with a perspective from wide-range academic fields through the collaboration with the Center for Artificial Intelligence Research (C-AIR).

For the future, we will promote innovative research and development and demonstration test with a concept-oriented approach, through cross-disciplinary research utilizing both knowledge.