A Japanese political party said it will install artificial intelligence as its leader after founder Shinji Ishimaru resigned following poor election results.
A fledgling Japanese political party announced Tuesday it will install artificial intelligence as its new leader after its founder, Shinji Ishimaru, stepped down following a failed run in recent elections.
The Path to Rebirth party, launched in January by Ishimaru, a former mayor in Hiroshima prefecture, gained attention when he placed second in the 2024 Tokyo gubernatorial race but failed to win any seats in this year’s upper house elections.
Koki Okumura, a 25-year-old AI researcher at Kyoto University, told reporters that an AI system will take over leadership. “The new leader will be AI,” Okumura said, explaining the system would oversee internal resource distribution but not dictate members’ political activities.
Okumura, who recently won a party contest to succeed Ishimaru, will serve as the nominal head. Despite the attention, the party has struggled at the polls, with all 42 candidates losing in Tokyo’s assembly elections and 10 more failing in the July upper house race.
READ MORE AT CHANNEL NEWS ASIA