Join the Cyber Policy Center October 22nd, from 1 PM-2 PM, for the next seminar in our Fall Seminar Series. Sessions will run October through December and will be moderated by Nate Persily, co-director of the CPC. Hiroki Habuka, Research Professor at the Graduate School of Law, Kyoto University, and the CEO of Smart Governance, and Tatsuhiko Inatani, Professor at Kyoto University Graduate School of Law, joins us for their talk Japan's Approach to AI Governance: Shaping a Future of AI-Human Interaction.

Stanford affiliates are invited to join us at 12:40 PM for lunch, prior to the seminar. Please note the change in time this fall.

About the Seminar

As the implementation of AI technology rapidly advances across all sectors, countries around the world are developing regulations and standards for AI governance. In 2024, the European Union enacted a comprehensive AI Act, and other regions, such as California, New York, the United Kingdom, and China, have either established or are actively debating AI regulatory frameworks.

In this global landscape, Japan has consistently demonstrated its commitment to establishing rules that promote the development and utilization of AI. This stance is shaped by Japan's societal needs, such as addressing labor shortages due to an aging population, and a cultural background that has long embraced the idea of human-robot coexistence through mediums like manga and anime. Instead of perceiving AI as a threat to humanity, Japan focuses on how AI can enhance human well-being through human-AI interaction. A key question is how to update our governance model to materialize the rule of law to maximize the positive impact of AI while mitigating the risks acceptable to the society. To address this, Japan has advocated for an agile, multi-stakeholder governance model and has proactively implemented various legal reforms to welcome AI into society. Moreover, as the G7 chair in 2023, Japan launched the Hiroshima AI Process, leading the efforts to establish international norms for AI governance. Today, the Hiroshima AI Process stands as a major international AI governance framework, with the support of over 50 countries and regions

In this seminar, professors from Kyoto University, who have played a pivotal role in shaping Japan’s AI policy, will explain Japan's approach to AI governance and introduce cutting-edge research on the legal frameworks surrounding human-robot interaction. The discussion will also explore how Japan's insights can contribute to the development of global AI governance.

About the Speakers

Hiroki Habuka is a Research Professor at the Graduate School of Law, Kyoto University, and the CEO of Smart Governance. He specializes in agile governance, a multi-stakeholder and distributed governance model that integrates regulation, corporate governance, and system risk management, particularly in the field of AI. In addition to his research on agile governance, he serves as an expert advisor to the government and as a director of the AI Governance Association. In 2020, the World Economic Forum's Global Future Councils on Agile Governance and Apolitical named him one of the World’s 50 Most Influential People Revolutionising Government (Agile 50). Hiroki holds a Master’s degree in Law (LL.M., Fulbright Fellow) from Stanford Law School, a Juris Doctor from the University of Tokyo Law School, and is qualified to practice law in Japan and New York State. He is an author of the book "Introduction to AI Governance: From Risk Management to Social Design." (2023, Hayakawa Books)

Tatsuhiko Inatani is a professor at Kyoto University Graduate School of Law. He specializes in criminal law (criminology and criminal policy) and law and technology. In particular, his research focuses on corporate crime and the legal governance of advanced science and technology. He employs a research methodology based on an interdisciplinary approach, applying knowledge from adjacent fields such as philosophy, cognitive science, and economics. He is also the PI of the research team on Artificial Intelligence and Law at the Center for Interdisciplinary Studies on Law and Policy, Kyoto University. He is also a visiting researcher at RIKEN AIP. He has served on various committees of METI, Digital Agency, IPA-DADC, WEF, etc., and has conducted joint research with several companies and with several foreign universities.