Ory Research Institute Co-Founder and Representative Director Ory Yoshifuji said at the ceremony, " I have decided to open a permanent experimental store.I would like to talk about my best friend and secretary, Yuta Banda.He was in a car accident and was unable to move from the neck down.He is unable to move and cannot go out. He said, ``The biggest handicap is not having encounters and discoveries.''
He made money by remotely controlling OriHIme, but he said, ``The world is a body supremacy.'' Today's society is designed on the premise of "carrying the body." Together with Yuta Banda, I was thinking about whether it would be possible to do manual labor by telework, and it was "Avatar Robot Cafe". However, as long as people live, it will be difficult for them to go out somewhere. We don't have role models for how to live after being unable to move. Through this avatar robot cafe, I would like to explore how I can continue to live like myself even if my body stops moving.
Banda passed away three years ago, but this avatar robot cafe is where comrades gather. What we are aiming for is "de-fragmentation". I would like to work with the people who have created the cafe together, and create a society where people can have a sense of camaraderie. We have changed many things that were said to be “impossible” to “possible”. I want to be able to work even if I'm in a remote location," and called in the remote-controlled "OriHime D."
One of the avatar robot pilots, Fumiko Miyoshi, who lives in Matsue City, Shimane Prefecture, remotely operated "OriHime D" and gave a greeting. Mr. Miyoshi said, "I never thought I would be able to work until now. Working at a cafe has increased my connections and I have come to think that there is nothing I can't do. Everyone should work while interacting with other people. I want to create a society where people take it for granted."
Finally, Mr. Yoshifuji said, ``We will not leave the inconvenience that we feel to the next generation. I would like to continue to work with you. I would like to ask for your continued attention.”
"Providing a large number of failures" is the contribution of this experimental storeContinuing, advisor Mr. Hiromasa Ototake took the stage. Mr. Ototake has been involved in the avatar robot café since the first one, and said, "25 years ago, when I was a freshman in college, I thought that I wanted to work part-time. There are jobs that I can do and jobs that I can't do. I was good at talking, so I thought that I could make a phone appointment, but I failed three companies in a row.I realized that it is difficult for people with disabilities to work.
Fortunately, many people read the book I published when I was in college, so I am able to continue working. This is because, as Mr. Yoshifuji said, "moving the body" is the premise of society. People who cannot move their bodies by themselves become a minority. This avatar robot cafe has changed that situation," he said, recounting an episode he experienced when he received customer service at a cafe. “I am overwhelmed by the fact that it has become a permanent store, and it gives me hope for my own old age,” he said.
Mr. Hiromasa Ototake, Advisor of the Alternate Robot CafeIn addition, representatives from three special sponsors, Nippon Telegraph and Telephone Corporation, Biogen Japan Corporation, and Mitsui Fudosan Co., Ltd., took the stage. Mr. Madoka Ikeda, head of the Diversity Promotion Office at Nippon Telegraph and Telephone Corporation, said, "NTT supported the avatar robot cafe when it opened in Otemachi in 2019, and this is the second time. At that time, I was also a pilot for the first time. I was able to meet everyone in the hospital.I heard a person who had been in the hospital for many years say, 'I never thought I would be able to work again,' and I thought what a wonderful way to use ICT." said.
From 2020, the NTT Group has been fully introducing "OriHime-D" and reception work by people with disabilities to the reception work at the head office. At this cafe, we will also conduct a demonstration experiment to realize NTT's communication infrastructure concept. We aim to reduce the pilot's stress with low-latency technology and expand the application area of robots.
Mr. Madoka Ikeda, General Manager, Diversity Promotion Office, Nippon Telegraph and Telephone Corporation Supporting various initiatives to enable people living with intractable neurological diseases to pursue their dreams and hopes.A pharmaceutical company with a vision of making the impossible possible.With the same vision as Ory Laboratories. I hope that this avatar robot cafe will be successful."Ajai Sulekh, President, Biogen Japan Co., Ltd.Hiroshi Saegusa, General Manager, Life Science Innovation Promotion Department, Mitsui Fudosan Co., Ltd., said, "Our company is cooperating in the form of providing this place. We are bustling with people in Nihonbashi. We want to create new life sciences, and we want to revitalize the life science field.There are 130 life science-related companies in Nihonbashi.The gateway to the Nihonbashi EAST area is called Nihonbashi Life. "OriHime Biz" is installed in the lounge on the 8th floor of Science Building 3. The avatar robot cafe, which is attracting a lot of attention, is expected to attract people who have not visited before and create a new bustle. I do," he said.
Mr. Hiroshi Saegusa, General Manager, Life Science Innovation Promotion Department, Mitsui Fudosan Co., Ltd. Although it is a business, about half of the members are engineers,” he introduced his company.And "Our mission is" Building the Next Ordinary. I think that the avatar robot cafe "DAWN" will not only increase convenience, but will also change our lives completely.That's why I thought I had to do it.Possibility to point out a new form of restaurants and customer service. The store is full of new initiatives, so it may not go smoothly at first.I would like to have the support of many people.