keynote_2 List｜NTT R&D FORUM 2023 — IOWN ACCELERATION

The R&D Marketing Unit was inaugurated in June this year.
Our mission is to create new values by fusing our traditional "product-out" R&D approach with marketing.
Today, I'll be talking about our R&D work from two perspectives: the "product-out" approach, and the "market-in" approach.
IOWN has grown out of exploring and exploiting technologies that connect people, which originated from the telephone. It's the result of the "product-out" approach to R&D.
In addition to this, there's the "market-in" approach, in which we build up a picture of people, society and the planet, and of how we can create a future that is sustainable yet also exciting to live in, and then push forward the kind of R&D we need to make this vision reality.
A technology truly takes its first breath when it's implemented as part of society. Now, four years since the announcement of the IOWN concept, I hope that you can now feel this idea coming to life, and can create in your minds a mental picture of the exciting future that it will ultimately make possible.

Fig. 1. The very first telephone Fig. 2. Difference between electrical and optical technologies Fig. 3. Expansion of scope within 100 km range

This the very first telephone back in 1890, 133 years ago (Fig. 1). This is the starting point of technologies that "connect people."
When you telephoned someone in those days, how long did it take before you could actually start talking?
You couldn't dial these early phones; after lifting the receiver, you had to connect to an operator.
It worked as follows: in the morning, say, you'd tell the operator "Can I speak to Ms. A, please?" and in the evening, six hours, seven minutes later, you'd finally get to talk to Ms. A herself.
You could also pay double the fee for an "Urgent" connection, which took "only" two hours and 26 minutes.
Following this first phase of telephone development, the Ministry of Communications Research Institute was inaugurated 75 years ago.
In 1966, our research into optical technology and optical fibers began.
These technologies that connected people have ultimately made it possible to connect people and information, people and objects, and the real and the virtual domains, and to transmit not just sounds but images, data, skills, experience and spaces.
Our 50 years of research into optical technology have now culminated in the IOWN concept.
The IOWN concept is about using light not just for conveying information but in processing layers as well.
Let's look at the differences between electronic and optical technology.
As this graph (Fig. 2) shows, with electronics, power consumption rises dramatically as transmission distance over circuits grows.
Moreover, as processing speeds grow higher, higher operating frequencies are required too, raising power consumption still further.
But with optical technology, even as the transmission distance grows longer and operating frequency rises, power consumption does not increase.
This feature means power consumption can be lowered still further by using optical technology not just for transmitting information but also in the information processing layer.
By bringing optical technology into all layers from the network to data terminal processing, IOWN not only lets us reduce power consumption, but also improves transmission capacity, quality and latency.
For example, the All-Photonics Network (APN) features optical technology end-to-end without the traditional switching between electronic and optical technologies, enabling latency-free speed and streamlined power usage.
Let's use transport as an analogy. If you have to change trains several times to get to your destination as shown in the upper image, you're certain to arrive later.
The All-Photonics Network works like the lower image; it's like taking the bullet train all the way to your destination, with no changes required.
At the 1970 Osaka Expo, the first cordless phone was exhibited, connecting people by transmitting sound.
At this time, fixed landline phones were still the norm; following the first-ever exhibition of cordless phones , first pagers, then cordless phones and smartphones quickly came into widespread use.
At the Osaka Expo of 2025, the IOWN All-Photonics Network will be used to transmit spaces in real time, by connecting the data center with the NTT Pavilion venue.
Using AI to analyze the NTT Pavilion, we intend to recreate the Pavilion at the Data Center, letting users experience the dynamically-changing and exciting atmosphere of the "real live venue."
From the development of the first telephone, it took around 90 years for landline phones to become near-universal in Japan.
With cars, it took 30 years for the penetration rate to exceed 80%, shrinking to 15 years for the internet and just five years for smartphones.
The household penetration rate for services that have grown out of technological innovations is rising faster and faster.
The growth of IOWN is also gathering speed.
Our IOWN APN1.0 service was launched in March this year, four years after the initial vision. As new services permeate people's lifestyles at an accelerating rate due to technological innovation, the power volume required for this is also growing faster and faster.
Once generative AI is added as well, itʼs anticipated that by 2030 data volumes will have risen 16 times and power consumption 13 times from 2018 levels.
With demand for data centers continuing to grow as a result of this, demand forecasts at data centers already anticipate supply shortages.
Power consumption at DCs in the Netherlands and Singapore now forms a large proportion of total demand, creating a very difficult environment. There are even moves to block or limit construction of new DCs.
IOWN APN is a way to break through this barrier.
By creating distributed networks of DCs linked through low-latency connections using APN, we can operate the network like a single large DC.
We believe that by creating distributed networks of small/medium DCs in available spaces, and putting DCs in places where there is slack in the power demand or where local-energy-for-local-consumption is possible, and connecting these DCs using the All-Photonics Network technology, we can reduce power shortages at data centers.
And whereas the maximum distance between DCs to avoid latency was previously limited to 60km, an All-Photonics Network allows DC to be placed up to 100km apart.
In the UK, verification testing of DCs in London and Dagenham (around 100km away) connected by APN is already underway.
As shown on the left of the figure (Fig. 3), there is a lack of space for establishing data centers within a 60 km range of London due to high land prices; expanding the range to a 100 km radius should bring in lower land prices, enabling potential sites to be found.
IOWN, which has grown out of the exploration of connection technologies and "product-out" research outcomes, uses technological innovation to make the new digital information society more energy-efficient and sustainable, enabling a 100-fold increase in energy efficiency, and a 125-fold increase in transmission capacity.

Fig. 1. The very first telephone Fig. 2. Difference between electrical and optical technologies Fig. 3. Expansion of scope within 100 km range

Fig. 4. Reduced environmental footprint due to 100% water recycling system Fig. 5. Impact of rising CO2 levels on ecosystems Fig. 6. Blood sugar monitoring using a biodigital twin Fig. 7. The sensation of a heartbeat, transmitted all the way from Japan

At this point, I'd like to talk about NTT's R&D from the "market-in" perspective.
As the communication domain has grown to include not only sound by images, data, the sense of touch and spaces, R&D's job is to analyze a variety of social challenges to discuss how these concepts can function in our lifestyles, in society and across the planet, and how R&D can use these to resolve social challenges and build an exciting future.
How will these concepts change our lifestyles in a specific sense, the food, clothing and shelter we use, our health, entertainment, energy and ultimately humanity itself?
I'm going to talk about three of these areas today.
First, food--the first element of the "food, clothing and shelter" trinity.
As we're all aware, we face growing risks to the stability of our food supply.
Effects on our diets are already becoming apparent. With prices of processed foods and condiments rising by 20% on average, and grocery bills rising by 150% or 200% in one year, people are now really feeling the pinch.
As you may know, Japan's food self-sufficiency rate is just 38%, 12th among 13 major economies.
Japan's agricultural workforce has fallen to just over 70% of the number in 2000.
The average age has risen to 68.
Meanwhile, abandoned land has risen to 420,000 hectares, twice the size of Tokyo and 1.7 times the 1995 figure.
Yet in spite of population decline and challenging land and climate conditions, some countries are boosting their food self-sufficiency through innovation.
The Netherlands is an agricultural superpower, yet 20% of its land is below sea level and its agricultural land is just 40% that of Japan. Nevertheless, through widespread deployment of large-scale protected horticulture enabled through technological innovation, it has become the world's second-largest agricultural exporter.
Although the UK's agricultural workforce has declined too, it has brought its food self-sufficiency rate up to 70%, by developing agricultural science.
Based on technologies and solutions delivered by our R&D, NTT Group aims to create innovations in the food value chain including breeding, agricultural production, livestock, fisheries and distribution, to create a stable supply of food.
I'll talk about three of these areas today.
First, agricultural production and protected horticulture.
NTT AgriTechnology has set up Japan's largest lettuce greenhouse, the size of 1.5 soccer fields, for protected horticulture. We've succeeded in increasing yields more than 10-fold with half the traditional workforce.
The knowhow we've demonstrated here has brought in inquiries from inside and outside Japan.
The right-hand photo of the figure (Fig. 4) shows a farm we designed and constructed on contract after inquiries from a customer. This capsicum farm we've built is the size of three soccer fields.
The customer tells us that yields have increased four-fold with half the traditional labor.
We're enabling both "larger-scale agriculture" and "reduced labor needs," and combining "higher yields" with "a reduced environmental footprint."
We are providing remote business support from our automation labs using high-definition video transmission and robotics, even enabling those with no cultivation experience to get started.
By delivering agricultural support remotely, our system enables a single expert to provide assistance to several producers.
Next, produce distribution.
With prices undetermined, producers ship all produce to big markets where it is likely to be sold for high prices.
Such produce is often taken a long way on all-day truck journeys, rather than going to markets closer to the places it was produced.
Produce gathered together which remains unsold may then be sent on to another place, or in the last few years may even be thrown away because of failure to find enough trucks for distribution.
Using IOWN to create more environmentally-friendly produce distribution by analyzing and forecasting demand information for produce gathered in markets, we hope to ensure that produce is sent to consumers in a higher state of freshness and only in the necessary amounts, reducing food losses and CO2.
In our vision for the near future, we will help people enjoy better-tasting food in peace of mind, by connecting experts with producers, operators with the actual places where produce is produced and sold, and producers with virtual markets, using IOWN to bring consumers fresh produce which they will want to eat and which is better for the planet, while also improving Japanʼs self-sufficiency rate in food.
Next, let's move on to fisheries.
Rising levels of CO2 are causing warming and acidification of the oceans.
With ocean acidification reducing areas that are habitable by sea life, we are seeing long-term declines in catches of salmon, for example, as shown in the graph on the upper right (Fig. 5).
This acidification of the ocean is also causing declines in numbers of the phytoplankton and zooplankton that fish feed upon.
In spite of this, the production volumes from fisheries worldwide have doubled since 2000.
While catches of fish have remained more or less flat, aquaculture has been making up the shortfall. However, as we can see from the center graph, while global aquaculture production has doubled, Japanʼs production is actually on the decline. As a result, having been ranked No. 1 worldwide for aquaculture in 1980, Japan has now fallen to No. 11 as of 2021.
In July this year, NTT Green & Food was established as a joint venture between NTT and Regional Fish, aiming to resolve issues of fishing industry decline, food and the environment.
One aspect area that we are working on is quality improvement technology the creation of "sustainable foods." We are working to create here's one example of our sustainable foods: "sustainable foods," including sea bream with an edible portion that is 1.6 times that of regular sea bream, while the algae it feeds upon is to be given extra-activated photosynthesis, resulting in faster growth, and the ability to fix higher-than-normal levels of CO2 inside its cells.
Another example is our sustainable land-based aquaculture plants.
Atmospheric CO2 is absorbed by the ocean, and the modified algae absorb larger-than-normal amounts of it within their cells; the fish eat the algae, absorbing and fixing this CO2 in their bones and other parts, creating a sustainable production mechanism.
We are currently constructing Japanʼs largest "land-based aquaculture plant" in terms of production scale in Iwata (Shizuoka), as of October this year. The plan for the plant is to produce whiteleg shrimp as a fully domestic production system using a rare variety of Japanese seedling.
Following the discussion about food, letʼs move on to the domain of health, healthcare and medical care. Let me ask you a question.
Which raises blood sugar levels more: a banana or a cookie?
The Glycemic Index or "GI" for food gives relative values for how high blood sugar rises after eating certain foods, with glucose given a baseline value of 100. According to this index, a cookie has a higher GI value at 77 compared to 51 for a banana. So the correct answer is...?
In fact, the "correct answer" varies from individual to individual.
Among this group of people with pre-diabetes, 'patients' blood sugar values were measured after they had consumed bananas or cookies. For 445 patients, blood sugar rose after eating bananas and remained largely unchanged after eating cookies. For 644 patients, however, the exact opposite was the case.
We can see from this that changes in blood sugar are different for different individuals.
The number of people with diabetes worldwide has risen 3.6-fold over the last 20 years.
What's more, rapid rises and falls in blood sugar levels raise the risk of cardiovascular disease as well as diabetes.
Chronically high blood sugar damages blood vessels throughout the whole body, causing various health issues. Stabilizing blood sugar after meals is believed to reduce heart disease and cancer risks. In other words, blood sugar has a major impact on bodily health overall.
Here, Iʼd like to show you NTTʼs "wearable blood glucose sensor," a technology that enables the user to measure their blood sugar levels at any time, helping them understand what kinds of foods raise their blood sugar levels.
As we all know, blood glucose has traditionally been measured by drawing blood or using pinpricks; in the lower left-hand photo, the round object attached to the person's arm contains a needle that is piercing the skin and measuring the blood glucose level. This means that continuous, real-time measurement is very difficult.
Now, the user can measure their level simply by wearing NTTʼs wearable blood glucose sensor next to their skin.
The version presented at last yearʼs R&D Forum was quite large, as you can see in the central photograph of the figure (Fig. 6); this year, however, itʼs been reduced to the size of a watch, as shown on the right. In specific terms, the watch-sized sensor directs electrical waves under the skinʼs surface. These are then bounced back to the sensor, creating signals which are analyzed by the systemʼs mechanism in order to measure changes in the concentration of glucose under the skin (which enters the skin from the blood vessels). In this way, the user wearing the device is able to grasp their blood sugar values in real time. By enabling users to measure their blood sugar levels easily and in real time, this system can ensure that patients classified as "pre-diabetic" can eat many of their favorite foods, while keeping an eye on their levels to ensure they do not go up.
Indeed, cases are being reported of patients who were able to bring their blood sugar values from pre-diabetic level to normal within one week, by sticking to a diet suited to them while watching their blood sugar values.
This lets people control their blood sugar levels themselves.
NTTʼs wearable blood glucose sensor provides a way for patients to enjoy their food rather than having to endure a diet they donʼt like, by thinking about the foods they enjoy and selecting those items which do not affect their blood sugar level as an individual.
Hereʼs another question. Does drinking coffee contract your blood vessels? Or could it actually rejuvenate them?
The antioxidants found in coffee are said to rejuvenate the blood vessels, helping to maintain a healthy heart. However, it's also said that caffeine may cause constriction of the blood vessels.
Research suggests that while coffee-drinking may reduce the risk of myocardial infarction in people with a genotype that breaks down caffeine rapidly, drinking coffee may put stress on the heart in those whose genes cause them to break down caffeine slowly.
Reference: Research by Dr. Ahmed El-Sohemy, Toronto University.
The ability to metabolize the components found in medications may also vary among individuals, as with caffeine. Take warfarin, which dissolves clots in blood vessels. Among the Japanese alone, the required daily dose of this drug can vary by a factor of twenty from patient to patient, depending on genetic type: in other words, while some individuals can take a single pill daily, others must take 20 pills a day.
Analysis of genes and electronic medical records in terms of the ideal dosage of various medications for different people can open up the possibility of tailor-made dosage regimens and preventive medicine adapted to each individual.
NTT Life Science is issuing reports which analyze disease risk and individual makeup in terms of alcohol metabolism and the like, as part of NTTʼs big data analysis and our genetic testing services which use AI.
We are also using NTTʼs LLM tsuzumi to automatically construct data, including electronic medical records, and using this data for analysis of individual differences.
We believe that by using NTTʼs LLM tsuzumi to analyze peopleʼs individual makeup, characteristics, environments and medical histories, and developing sensors that can obtain vital information of various kinds through non-stressful sensing methods, it should be possible to develop personalization in all kinds of areas, including diet, medications and optimized exercise levels.
By enabling optimization of care and minimizing losses, this can also create more sustainable, socially responsible and environmentally-friendly health care.
Finally, our future visions for "Humanity," "Excitement" and "The five senses."
First, "hearing"--one of our five senses. It was through sound that NTT first brought people together with our first telephones, so this is an area representing over 90 years of NTT research.
With certain sound waves, laying two sound waves over each other with a 180 degree offset (antiphase) can cancel out interference.
Since the 2020 R&D Forum when we first exhibited our Personalized Sound Zone technology, which uses this principle to deliver high-sound quality exclusively to the user's ears while minimizing leakage into the surrounding environment, we have continued to evolve this technology, culminating at last in the commercialization of our earphones last year.
We will offer an extensive lineup under the Sonority nwm Earphones brand; please try them for yourselves. As these open earphones don't block the ears or leak sound, they're ideal for use when running, cycling and in construction environments.
In fact, Sonority nwm Earphones transceivers are being used by the R&D Secretariat this year to run the event.
In addition to "hearing" and "sight," we can also use "touch" to create sensations that feel a step closer to the real world.
Look at the device on the right of the figure (Fig. 7). When the stethoscope is placed on someone's chest, the heartbeat that you can hear is communicated via electric waves to the ball, making it vibrate.
At a Children's Conference of the Future held in July this year, we connected Tokyo and the United Nation's New York headquarters in this way.
A boy in Tokyo (shown on the projector displayed in the central photograph) had his heartbeat detected with a stethoscope. It was relayed via the internet to the ball set up in New York, which vibrated in synchrony with the real heartbeat.
"It feels like it's right there in front of me!" exclaimed the girl touching the vibrating ball.
We believe that conveying something through the sense of touch like this doesn't only have instrumental value, in terms of "What can do we through this?" in the same manner as communication through screens using the senses of sight and hearing; it also offers "intrinsic value"--the value of feeling as though a person or object is right there in front of you.
Although society has been returning to real-life experiences following the COVID-19 pandemic, we hope to develop technologies that can convey the sense of touch in this way, making the real world feel closer by in a way we all want to experience.
Next, I'd like to talk about technology that makes the user feel as though they've been sent though space and time to a completely different location.
By recording the vibration sounds of a real-world bike race and the bumps and depressions of the race track surface, and converting all this into data, we can recreate these sensations for a user riding a bike in the metaverse, including the way the vibrations change with the different road surfaces and speeds. I invite everyone to try this experience out for yourselves if you have time, at the Experience Corner that has been set up.
Moving beyond hearing, sight and touch, the world of human augmentation allows us to experience abilities that go beyond our natural capacity.
As we've explored and exploited the technologies that connect people together, the scope of what we're able to communicate to other people has grown over time.
By digitalizing various phenomena, converting it into information and data, and using AI to analyze these efficiently and at low cost thanks to IOWN, we can deliver not only visualization, optimization, and energy-saving, but also personalization as values.
Our hope is to bring these values back to the notions of "Humanity" and "the five human senses" in the context of social activities including food, shelter and clothing, healthcare and entertainment, while using these values to build a future centered on individual well-being and "social well-being" that cares for the planet.
AI can set out information systematically and present us with options; however, deciding how we feel about these options and what kind of future we want to have are tasks which require the powers of imagination and conceptualization, using the five senses that only human beings possess.
We want our R&D to be about imagining and creating the sustainable yet exciting future that is coming together in our minds, as we use our imaginations to build up a picture of people, society and the planet.

Fig. 4. Reduced environmental footprint due to 100% water recycling system Fig. 5. Impact of rising CO2 levels on ecosystems Fig. 6. Blood sugar monitoring using a biodigital twin Fig. 7. The sensation of a heartbeat, transmitted all the way from Japan

Now, four years since the announcement of the IOWN concept, I truly hope that you can now feel this idea coming to life, and are building up a mental picture of the exciting future that it will ultimately make possible.