Materials development has entered its second chapter—shifting from an era of “discovery” to one focused on how quickly it can be scaled for real-world implementation. The key to this shift is data and AI. Deep learning now accelerates atomic-scale simulation by tens of thousands of times, and material data accumulating across borders is fundamentally transforming both the speed and the precision of development.
In this session, we explore three frontlines—the industrial deployment of AI-driven materials discovery, a new generation of materials design powered by data and automation, and data-driven R&D as envisioned from the heart of national materials research—brought together with the perspective of a global investor. Together we dig into where data-driven manufacturing becomes the next giant market and the next industry. Looking ahead to the 2030 markets of energy, mobility, and semiconductors, we map the path for Japan’s materials industry to move beyond “discovery” and capture industrial scale on the world stage.
