Tokyo gubernatorial candidate Shinji Ishimaru, founder of the Path to Rebirth party, delivers a campaign speech in Tokyo, July 6, 2024. (AFP Photo)
By AFP
September 16, 2025 03:31 PM GMT+03:00
A newly established Japanese political party announced it will appoint an artificial intelligence system as its leader after its founder stepped down following poor election results.
The Path to Rebirth party, launched in January by former mayor Shinji Ishimaru, said the AI will be responsible for internal functions such as allocating party resources, while individual members will remain free to set their own policy agendas.
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From unexpected success to electoral losses
Ishimaru, previously mayor of a small city in western Japan, gained national attention in 2024 when he came second in the Tokyo gubernatorial election, largely through a strong online campaign.
Despite that breakthrough, the party failed to secure seats in the upper house election earlier this year, prompting his resignation.
The party has since suffered further setbacks.
All 42 of its candidates were defeated in the June Tokyo assembly election, and its 10 upper house candidates in July also failed to win seats.
Founder of the Path to Rebirth, Shinji Ishimaru, introduces the regional political party at a news conference in Tokyo, Japan, January 15, 2025. (Photo via asahi.com)
AI to focus on organizational decisions
Koki Okumura, a 25-year-old doctoral student at Kyoto University and researcher in artificial intelligence, told reporters that he would act as the nominal leader while the AI system takes on decision-making tasks.
He explained that the AI would not direct political stances or campaign strategies but would concentrate on organizational management, such as distributing resources among members.
Okumura, who won a party contest to succeed Ishimaru, added that details about the AI’s development and implementation are still being finalized.
September 16, 2025 03:31 PM GMT+03:00
AloJapan.com