NEWS

2024.2.6

AWL begins AI Training Program for Tadulako University, Indonesia

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～Providing Technical & Vocational Education and Opportunities for ASEAN Regions～

AWL, Inc. (Head Office: Chiyoda-ku, Tokyo; President: Muneharu Kitade; hereinafter “AWL”), a Certified Hokkaido-University startup and a provider of edge AI camera solutions, signed an international exchange agreement (MOU) with Faculty of Engineering, Tadulako University (Location: Palu, Central Sulawesi Province, Republic of Indonesia, English:Tadulako University, Indonesian: Universitas Tadulako; UNTAD, hereinafter “UNTAD”).
AWL also announced to offer an academic credit certified AI Training Program under the “Industry-Academia collaborative program” (*) provided by The Association for Overseas Technical Cooperation and Sustainable Partnerships (AOTS).

*This program is a part of “FY2023 Technical cooperation utilization type/emerging market development program (Training/Experts dispatch / Industry-Academia collaborative programs)” and the course is implemented by AWL in cooperation with AOTS, under the support of Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry (METI), Japan.

AWL develops edge AI camera solutions that efficiently convert physical space into data in real time, mainly for the retail industry.
AWL Lite, the signature solution which combines digital signage with edge AI cameras to analyze the attributes of signage viewers and their viewing conditions in real time while ensuring privacy, is being introduced throughout Japan as an indispensable technology for Retail Media, which is currently attracting the most attention.
On January 16, 2024, AWL announced the “Development of retail media solutions business in the Indonesian market”, the first initiative for AWL in the ASEAN region. In the education business, AWL began providing “Practical education programs in Japan” on December 27, 2023, aiming to utilize the remarkably developing AI generation such as ChatGPT and various AI solutions.
AWL’s Development Team in Japan is composed of multinational members from approximately 20 countries and is characterized by a corporate culture that is as diverse as Silicon Valley companies.
Among them, several Indonesian employees are playing active roles in AWL, and an alumnus who left AWL is currently teaching at UNTAD.
While demand for AI technology is growing significantly in the ASEAN as it is in Japan, the region has been slow to respond to this growing market. There is a lack of educational and employment opportunities and an urgent need to train engineers and specialists.

This course is supported by “Industry-Academia collaborative program” provided by The Association for Overseas Technical Cooperation and Sustainable Partnerships (AOTS), with the help of the Ministry of Economy, Trade, and Industry (METI), and will not only support the development of AI human resources and the expansion of future job opportunities in Indonesia, but will also enable AWL engineers to utilize their own achievements, knowledge and technical skills and gain experience that will lead to international contributions. In collaboration with AWL alumni teaching at UNTAD, AWL will start a course for UNTAD engineering students on February 5, 2024, with credits to be awarded for the course.
Through this project, AWL’s technology and know-how will contribute to economic growth and social development by fostering human resources who will lead technological innovation in Indonesia and the ASEAN region, starting with UNTAD, and by paving the way for AI business development in the international field, thereby having a significant impact on local society and industry.
We aim to contribute to economic growth and social development by making a significant impact on local communities and industries.

・About AWL, Inc.

A Certified Hokkaido-University startup that has a proven track record in IoT utilization and implementation, mainly in the retail industry, using cutting-edge edge AI (Artificial Intelligence) video analysis technology.
In Hokkaido, an advanced region where various social issues such as the declining birthrate, aging population, and labor shortage are becoming apparent ahead of other areas, AWL provides high-quality, low-cost solutions optimized for the workplace through a partnership with the drugstore chain “SATUDORA”, also headquartered in Hokkaido. Our proprietary AI technology complements the “human eyes” to provide “real-time visualization of people and physical space” at any site. We continue to take on social issues together with our global customers.
Aiming to expand its cutting-edge AI research and development system, AWL has been steering a global recruitment policy since its early days and has succeeded in attracting excellent human resources from approximately 20 countries around the world. Currently, about 90% of our engineers are non-Japanese. Even at the management level, there is no distinction in age, gender, or nationality, creating a corporate culture full of diversity like that of Silicon Valley.

・About Tadulako University

A public university located in Palu, the capital city of the province of Sulawesi in central Indonesia. It plays an important role in the development of higher education in eastern Indonesia, and its Department of Information Processing in the Faculty of Engineering focuses on training practical and creative engineers. The university is promoting efforts to raise the level of its education to international standards, including the publication of several papers in international scientific journals and the awarding of prizes in international competitions from 2020 onward.
The city of Palu, where the university is located, was severely damaged by the Sulawesi earthquake in September 2018 (approximately 5,000 people were killed or missing), and even now, five years after the earthquake, there are many buildings that still look the same as when they were damaged, and reconstruction efforts are still ongoing.