As a regional center of excellence that will drive the research capabilities of Japan as a whole, NAIST has been selected for the "Program for Forming Japan's Peak Research Universities (J-PEAKS)".

Through this program, we aim to establish an open innovation platform enabled by AI-driven autonomous research. In collaboration with Southeast Asian countries, we aim to become a graduate university that leads social transformation through automation and labor-saving technologies in response to a declining working-age population, while also cultivating doctoral-level human resources to address these challenges.

At the start of this program and to promote collaboration with Southeast Asia, we co-hosted the 1st International Joint Symposium, held at the NAIST Millennium Hall on June 3, 2025, together with Kasetsart University (Thailand), one of our leading partner institutions. A delegation of 19 people from Kasetsart University, including the Dean of the Faculties of Engineering and Science, as well as NAIST alums, attended the morning plenary session, which had total of 74 participants .

At the plenary session, President Shiozaki of NAIST first delivered opening remarks and presented the university's vision, followed by an overview from Dr. Ohta, Vice President and Executive Director, who explained the philosophy of NAIST within the J-PEAKS project and the significance of this symposium. Then, Dr. Wanchai, Dean of the Faculty of Engineering, and Dr. Wanchai, Dean of the Faculty of Science at Kasetsart University, each introduced the international education and research activities of their respective faculties. Finally, Prof. Kamikubo, Head of the Division of Materials Science, and Prof. Uraoka introduced the future research prospects of the Division of Materials Science and Center for Materials Research Platform, as well as the international semiconductor education program.

In the afternoon and on the following day, breakout sessions were held in groups focusing on areas such as information science, semiconductor-related materials, materials science, and data science where they had active discussions on research and collaborative educational programs.

NAIST will continue to strengthen its partnership with Kasetsart University under the vision of the J-PEAKS philosophy by conducting international joint research at both universities, expanding the mutual exchange of students and faculty members, and developing international collaborative educational programs.