The Japan World Exposition, Osaka, 1970 (EXPO ’70), whose theme was “Progress and Harmony for Mankind,” remains a story passed down as a symbol of Japan’s postwar recovery. At EXPO ’70, NEC exhibited a personality test using a computer modeled after a fortune-teller’s magnifying glass at the Sumitomo Fairytale Pavilion. This was a revolutionary technology at the time because it could use photographs taken of visitors to analyze and classify the positions and contours of their eyes, nose, and mouth by matching them to historical figures with similar patterns.
It just so happens that the analysis method used in 1970 was the inspiration for today’s face recognition technology. Takahashi, who learned this by chance, told us, “I was surprised and impressed,” adding, “It gave me a renewed sense that NEC is where it is today because it values technologies and relentlessly pursues their refinement.”
Now fast forward 55 years. Today, NEC’s advanced face recognition technology boasts world-class accuracy and has been used in more than 50 countries and regions worldwide for entry and exit control, payments, marketing, and more.
AloJapan.com