Tag: Tokyo

I’m here in Tokyo this week for the 2019 Tokyo Motor Show, and while here, I stopped by the new headquarters for the Toyota Research Institute – Advanced Development (TRI-AD) to check out some of the technologies the company and their partners are working on.

We’re less than a year away from the start of the 2020 Tokyo Summer Olympics, so the Japanese city is well underway with preparations for the celebration of athletic talent, sportsmanship, and global goodwill. Among the many things that will be needed for the games to be successful will be methods for athletes to get quickly and safely between their housing and venues during the games – and automaker Toyota is working on just that.

There are some things that can only happen in Japan, and this is one of them. A Korean tourist rented out a replica Mario Kart that you can actually drive on the streets around Tokyo. The catch is that the tourist clearly hasn’t learned how to drive on the road in one.

If you are in Tokyo over the holidays there is something very cool that you will want to ride. It’s one of those rickshaws you sit in and the dude with massive leg muscles runs you around the city.

This video is sort of snapshot of a typical day for our Italian plumber friend Mario. On this day, he has to make his way through Tokyo, otherwise he will be late for a very important event.

You have to feel a bit sad for Asimo. Years ago, when he was new, people loved him. Despite recent upgrades, he is old news and people have moved on to newer and cooler robot spectacles.

I’m not sure why we need robots that can swim like humans, but here we have one, and it’s named “Swumanoid.” Is there not enough danger at sea? Do we need humanoid robots swimming around ready to drag us under?

If you find yourself at the Takashimaya department store in Shinjuku, Tokyo, you will have a special treat this Valentines Day. There, you will find the Geminoid-F android just chilling out in the store window, seemingly waiting for a friend.

If there’s one thing that’s for certain, it’s that the Japanese love their wacky vending machines. Whether they’re doling out bananas, crabs or making ice cream sundaes, they always seem to have a trick up their sleeves.

Tokyo is crazy about Star Wars. We knew that much already, but now they have gone and made the handrails in their subway cars look like lightsabers, in honor of the Blu-Ray release of the Star Wars saga.

Walking is hard enough for robots, but check out this ‘bot that can do so on four legs. He might become your future dog, if all goes according to plan for its Japanese inventors.

If you love Miyazaki’s animes, then you’ll love the fact that the gigantic robot from Laputa: Castle in the Sky can be seen in Tokyo, at the Ghibli Museum (FR). Apparently, this robot is life-sized, meaning that it’s quite huge.

The latest update to the popular Tokyo Dancing Stormtrooper video features a bunch of pointless new special effects! It follows the George Lucas’ tradition of filling classic Star Wars flicks with stupid and unnecessary CGI effects.

It’s true that if you have though about putting LEDs on your bike, it’s nothing new. However, this new tech from Japan will really light your bike up like none other in the neighborhood. It’s called the Anipov LED system and it’s made by Japan’s Suns & Moon Laboratory.

Darth Vader is invading the streets of Tokyo, Japan, thanks to the mobile phone giant Docomo. I don’t know how much they had to pay George Lucas for the rights, but you can bet that they didn’t come cheap.

While Japan’s Giant Gundam statue is but a distant memory, that doesn’t mean his dismembered body parts can’t be used for good. It turns out that despite the dismantling of the Giant Gundam his head still lives on.