Profile

Name

Yuji Kawai, Ph.D.

Affiliation

Associate Professor at Symbiotic Intelligent Systems Research Center, Institute for Open and Transdisciplinary Research Initiatives, Osaka University

Contact

Symbiotic Intelligent Systems Research Center, Co-Creative Innovation Building 6F, 1-1 Yamadaoka, Suita, Osaka 565-0871, Japan
E-mail: kawai [AT] otri.osaka-u.ac.jp

Career

Education

Awards

  • IEEE Computational Intelligence Society Japan Chapter Young Researcher Award (IEICE Neurocomputing) (2023)
  • JSAI Annual Conference Award (2019)
  • JSAI Annual Conference Award (2018)
  • Research Award of the Japanese Neural Network Society (2018)
  • Babybot Challenge Paper Award of the 8th IEEE Joint International Conference on Development and Learning and on Epigenetic Robotics (2018)
  • Babybot Challenge Participation Award of the 7th IEEE Joint International Conference on Development and Learning and on Epigenetic Robotics (2017)
  • The 1st place for RoboCup Japan Open 2017 Soccer SPL league, RoboCup Japan Committee (2017)
  • Best Presentation Award of the 31st Annual Conference of the Japanese Cognitive Science Society (2014)
  • JSAI Incentive Award (2013)
  • RoboCup Research Award of RoboCup Japan (2013)
  • Best Paper Award Finalist of the 16th Annual RoboCup International Symposium (2012)
  • AI Award of the 35th JSAI SIG Challenge (2012)
  • Microsoft Student Travel Award of the 1st Joint IEEE International Conference on Development and Learning and on Epigenetic Robotics (2011)
  • Hatakeyama Award of the Japan Society of Mechanical Engineers (2008)

Research Funds

  • October 2023 – March 2027: [Principal Investigator] JST Strategic Basic Research Programs (PRESTO), Computational studies of movements, cognition, and emotion by whole-brain prediction of the cerebellum.
  • October 2018 – September 2021: [Co-Investigator] JSPS Topic-Setting Program to Advance Cutting-Edge Humanities and Social Sciences Research (Responding to Real Society), Creating fundamental concepts of society and value based on technology and brain science, Project number: JSPS00118070707, Project leader: Kazuya Matsuura.
  • October 2017 – March 2024: [Co-Investigator] JST Strategic Basic Research Programs (CREST), An exploration of the principle of emerging interactions in spatiotemporal diversity, Project number: JPMJCR17A4, Project leader: Ichiro Tsuda.
  • June 2017 – March 2020: [Co-Investigator] MIC, R&D for Computing Platform Inspired by Human Brain Cognition, Project number: 17936067, Project leader: Masayuki Murata.
  • April 2013 – March 2016: [Principal Investigator] Grant-in-Aid for JSPS Fellows, Mirror neuron system by sensorimotor abstraction based on reward, Project number: 25-756.

Scientific Activities

  • Publicity chair of the 2025 IEEE International Conference on Advanced Robotics and its Social Impact (2025)
  • Program chair of the IEEE Robotic Computing 2024 (2024)
  • Organizer of the IEEE ICRA 2020 Workshop on “How will Autonomous Robots and Systems Influence Society?” (2020)
  • Local Chair of the 7th International Conference on Human-Agent Interaction (2019)

Editors

  • Guest editor of a Special Issue in the Journal of the Robotics Society of Japan, “Ethics, Law, and Psychology towards Responsible Robotics for the Society,” 2020.
  • Guest editor of a Special Issue in the Journal of the Robotics Society of Japan, “Philosophy, Psychology, and Law for a Human-Robot Symbiotic Society,” Vol. 38, No. 1, 2020.

Lectures

  • April 2017 – March 2019: Fundamental PIER Program (Panasonic II), in Department of Adaptive Machine Systems, Graduate School of Engineering, Osaka University
  • April 2016 – March 2019: Advanced Programing (C) in Division of Mechanical, Materials and Manufacturing Science, School of Engineering, Osaka University
  • October 2016 – August 2019: March 2017: Computer and Programming (Project Based Learning) in Division of Mechanical, Materials and Manufacturing Science, School of Engineering, Osaka University