We have selected AI news from this week’s news for use in the manufacturing industry.
The rapid evolution of AI technology is revolutionizing the global manufacturing industry. From reducing labor shortages to improving productivity, as well as strengthening supply chain resilience and addressing ethical issues, a variety of initiatives are underway in many countries.
Key European Move: Building an Industrial AI Cloud Deutsche Telekom and Nvidia are building Europe’s first “Industrial AI Cloud”. The platform, with 10,000 GPUs, will provide a secure and sovereign AI data center infrastructure for the manufacturing industry in Germany and mainland Europe. The objective is to accelerate the adoption of AI in Europe, especially to “sprint” the Industry 4.0 market and pave the way for Industry 5.0. This is positioned as a strategic move to reduce dependence on foreign clouds and increase Europe’s technological independence and competitive advantage. The CEO of Deutsche Telekom has stated that “Europe’s technological future requires Sprint, not steps.”
Canadian Investment: AI Training for Manufacturing Workers The government of Newfoundland and Labrador, Canada, is investing more than $1 million in AI training for manufacturing workers. It aims to strengthen small and medium-sized local manufacturers through cost reductions and efficiency gains and equip them with the skills to make practical use of AI amidst the uncertainty of international trade. This micro-credentialing program, developed by Keyin College, has the potential to leverage AI to optimize supply chains, diversify markets, and strengthen customer relationships.
UK Focus: AI and Sustainable Manufacturing The Co-AIMS (Collaborative AI for Manufacturing Sustainability) Hub, a new research hub led by the University of Birmingham in the UK, has received £13.7 million in funding and a net zero goal by 2050 The goal is to achieve this goal. The Hub is focused on using AI to reduce waste, increase productivity, and improve manufacturing sustainability. It promotes ethical AI adoption and provides safe and comprehensive technology for the automotive, aerospace, clean energy, and food and beverage sectors.
Progress in Japan: Edge AI and Supply Chain Resilience Mitsubishi Electric has developed a language model for the manufacturing industry that runs on edge devices. This reduces the enormous computational cost and energy consumption of large-scale language models (LLMs) and addresses the need for data privacy in an on-premise environment. Using proprietary training data expansion technology, the model is specialized for the manufacturing industry using data held by the company, such as product manuals and call center response histories, to achieve answer generation optimized for the user’s application. This will support the introduction of AI in diverse fields with limited computing resources, such as smart factories and edge robotics. In addition, Hitachi, Ltd. has developed a manufacturing supply chain resilience technology against natural disasters and pandemics using AI. This technology enhances risk assessment and management by allowing AI to link product information from open data with associated risks (e.g., natural disasters, trade regulations, cyber attacks) and quickly identify potential supplier alternatives. This enables rapid responses, such as reviewing suppliers, and contributes to strengthening the resilience of the supply chain.
China’s Strategy: Accelerating DX in the Electronics and Information Manufacturing Industry China’s Ministry of Industry and Information Technology and others have released an “Implementation Plan for Digital Transformation (DX) of the Electronics and Information Manufacturing Industry,” with the goal of achieving a numerical control rate of over 85% in key processes by 2027. By 2030, we aim to complete a more complete data infrastructure system and digital ecosystem, and contribute to making the entire manufacturing industry smarter.
Application of AI Agents in Manufacturing AI agents are AI programs that perform tasks autonomously based on human instructions, and have attracted attention due to advances in generative AI and large-scale language models (LLMs). They are being used particularly in the manufacturing industry for predictive maintenance andautomated scheduling.
- Evolution of predictive maintenance: Real-time monitoring of equipment sensor data such as vibration, temperature, sound, and power consumption to detect “signs” of abnormalities with high accuracy and improve the efficiency of maintenance operations. Daikin Industries, Ltd. and Hitachi, Ltd. have begun trial operation of an equipment failure diagnosis AI agent at a commercial air-conditioning equipment manufacturing plant, and have reported that the accuracy of estimating failure causes and countermeasures has reached over 90%.
- Advanced automated scheduling: The system can automatically reconfigure the optimal schedule, taking into account many complex conditions in real time, such as production planning, staffing, equipment utilization, delivery dates, and inventory.
Challenges and Ethical Considerations for AI Implementation Although the need for AI application is recognized, many companies (about 70%), including those in the manufacturing industry, are “unable to use AI in their operations. The main issues are a lack of application image (i.e., “we don’t know which operations to use it for”), lack of skills, concerns about security, and inadequate internal consultation systems. Ethical AI is also important for AI implementation in the manufacturing industry: while AI is a powerful tool, it is also susceptible to error and bias, and its misuse can threaten public safety and cybersecurity. The European Union’s ethical guidelines offer seven principles: human oversight; technical robustness; data privacy; transparency; diversity, non-discrimination, and fairness; social and environmental welfare; and accountability. As concrete measures, it is essential to set clear metrics, remove bias, and embrace accountability.
The Future of AI: Autonomy and Decision Support AI agents are evolving from “instruction-waiting” to autonomous agents that “judge and act on their own.” They are also expanding their role as decision support AIs that process complex analysis and risk assessment performed by humans at high speed and present optimal options and their reasons. AI is now becoming more than just a tool; it is becoming a partner that supports more sophisticated decision making in business as a “thinking assistant” to humans.
Conclusion The global manufacturing industry is moving toward greater efficiency, lower costs, and a more sustainable and resilient future through AI. While challenges exist, viewing AI as a strategic “co-creation partner” and maximizing its potential will be key to corporate competitiveness in the years ahead. AI agents are expected to become even more advanced and central to a new work style in which people and AI collaborate.
authority
- Excerpts from “Deutsche Telekom taps Nvidia to build Europe’s” first industrial AI cloud “”
- Excerpts from “Equipping the Local Manufacturing Workforce with Artificial Intelligence Training – News Releases – Government of Newfoundland and Labrador”
- Excerpts from “Ethical AI: Key Considerations for the Manufacturing Sector – Copperberg”
- Excerpts from “How is generative AI impacting our economy, society and policy?
- Excerpts from “New research hub could revolutionise AI-based manufacturing – University of Birmingham”
- Excerpts from “[Survey] About 70% of Companies Are Not Using AI in Their Operations – PR TIMES”
- Excerpts from “Developing a Language Model for the Manufacturing Industry that Works with Edge Devices | Mitsubishi Electric Corporation Press Release”
- Excerpts from “Rapidly Evolving AI Agents – What are the Industry-specific Trends in 2025? ~ – Aidiot Plus”
- Excerpts from “Hitachi Develops Technology to Toughen Manufacturing Supply Chains Against Natural Disasters and Pandemics – Hitachi, Ltd.
- Excerpts from “Accelerating DX in the Electronic Information Manufacturing Industry, Implementation Plan Announced (China) | Business Briefs – JETRO’s Overseas News”
