By Kenji Saito | Representative Director
Please find a Japanese version of this report here.
We held our very first Academy Camp in Kyushu over four days and three nights, from March 26 to 29, 2025. The camp took place in Itoshima City, using the planned site of the Science Village in Itoshima (SVI) as our base. Titled S.V.I.: Secret Vision Institute, the camp offered a hands-on experience in envisioning and designing the towns we live in, using generative AI as a key tool. A total of 22 elementary, junior high, and high school students from the Tohoku, Kanto, Tokai, and Sanyo regions joined the camp. Among them were five high school students who participated not only as campers but also as sub-leaders, playing active roles as part staff.
Our first activity was exploring Itoshima City. We visited well-known tourist spots, talked with local residents, and enjoyed delicious local food. These experiences became inputs for generative AI, which then produced things like newspaper articles and novels imagining life in the area, as well as raps, songs—and yes, even Pokémon. By sharing these kinds of images and ideas, residents could collaboratively shape their own way of living. This approach to community building is exactly what SVI proposes.
In a way, this approach is similar to something Academy Camp has always embraced—improvisational comedy. Together with professional improv actors who came all the way from Tokyo and Nagoya, we revisited the art of generating unscripted narratives through hands-on experience. Using what we had seen and felt during our exploration of Itoshima as inspiration, we created spontaneous comedic scenes with the actors—and shared a lot of laughter along the way.
What a wonderful experience it was! Thanks to the generosity of the developers, the experimental generative AI tool we used during the camp is still available to our participants today. Our journey of co-creating new ways of living continues. And the best part? This approach isn’t limited to Itoshima—it can be applied anywhere. Maybe next time, it will be in your town!
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By Kenji Saito | Representative Director
By Kenji Saito | Representative Director
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