Global Information and Telecommunication InstituteWaseda University

Since 1997, Waseda University’s Global Information and Telecommunication Institute (GITI) has been acting as the university’s leading research institute. It has produced a significant amount of research outcomes, and established partnerships with other international universities & research institutions. As of now, nearly 100 researchers, comprising 20 full-time faculty members, visiting professors and invited researchers, have been pushing forward in various fields of research. The telecommunications field originated from the telegraph and telephone. Since then, there was a period that the technology has been used in the internet banking and POS system for quite some time. However, due to the spread of personal computers and the internet, the generalised use of telecommunications has been expanded. Furthermore, the technology has become an essential element within our daily lives, given the dramatic expansion of mobile phones users. Currently, the Covid-19 pandemic has significantly raised the importance of telecommunications. Indeed, it has seen a sudden surge of people working from home, attending meetings and lectures remotely. And so, there are increased needs and demands for high-capacity, high-quality telecommunications across various locations and conditions to accommodate these rapidly changing usages. It is therefore necessary to build a system to meet these demands in the future.

GITI was established with the goal of playing an active role not only within the university, but also as a R&D base for telecommunications technology worldwide. We are fully aware that we still have a long way to go, and that further efforts should be made to achieve the mission. Nowadays, the telecommunications field needs to be able to collaborate with almost all kinds of industries. This wide range of industries includes medicine, transport, robotics, logistics, agriculture, forestry and fisheries, and education. Also, with recent emergence of AI technology, a higher level of data processing capability is required to expand its application to fields that were conventionally considered not feasible. The field of telecommunications has undoubtedly infinite potential, and I am determined to pursue further R&D activities with the multidisciplinary team of academics and researchers that would generate positive synergetic effects. Our plan is to develop a multi-dimensional research program consisting of a wide range of projects including commissioned research, joint research, and government-led or international collaborative projects; we would appreciate your support.

Apple’s founder, Steve Jobs once quoted the words ‘Stay hungry, Stay foolish’, from the Whole Earth Catalog in his 2005 Stanford university graduation speech. I myself have a similar policy for many years and was very impressed when I saw the words. Humans may have nothing on AI when high-speed processing capability is concerned, yet I believe that so-called ‘wisdom’ is something unique to human beings. With this in mind, I am ambitious to pursue epoch making innovation with a hungry spirit, without the fear of being called foolish.

21 September 2021

Waseda University

Global Information and Telecommunication Institute

Shigeru Shimamoto, Director