Japan faces labour shortages, an ageing population and long-standing productivity challenges, yet businesses across the country remain cautious about adopting artificial intelligence (AI). Compared with the US and UK, workplace use of AI is still relatively low.
An OECD report published at the end of last year found that only 8.4% of Japanese workers use AI as part of their jobs. The figure compares with 50% in the US and 32% in the UK. In Singapore, 56% of workers reportedly use AI “multiple times a week”.
Experts say Japan’s cautious business culture is a major reason for the slower adoption. Austin Xu, co-founder of US start-up Kuse AI, said Japanese companies often place a strong focus on consensus and avoiding mistakes.
“There are organisations where process and consensus culture genuinely slow things down,” he said. “Where tolerance for AI mistakes is close to zero, especially in anything client facing. Some would rather leave a role unfilled than let a machine handle it.”
Xu said US companies are generally more willing to experiment with AI. “In the US, AI colleagues enter as helpers and gradually become part of the workflow. The attitude [of US bosses] is often – let it try, then correct it.”
Parrisa Haghirian, professor of international management at Kyoto University of Advanced Science, said Japanese companies are highly sensitive to uncertainty and reputational risks.
“Since generative AI is still not fully reliable, it is mainly used [in Japan] for low-risk tasks such as writing, summarising, or information gathering, but much less for core operations or decision-making and for improving overall processes,” she said.
Healthcare is another area where adoption remains slow. Some hospitals have yet to fully digitise patient records. “Paper documents accumulate at a staggering scale,” one hospital employee said. “It’s like the Stone Age.”
The Japanese government is trying to accelerate adoption through its AI Promotion Act, which aims to encourage investment through light-touch regulation. Tokyo has said it wants Japan to become “the world’s most-friendly country for developing and utilizing AI”.
However, challenges remain. Japan has been reported to face a shortage of nearly 800,000 IT professionals by 2030, while around 60% of company computer systems are more than 20 years old.
Prof Yasushi Ogasawara of Meiji University said digital literacy remains low. “Although the Japanese like playing with gadgets such as smartphones, digital literacy is low here,” he said.
The government also faces pressure to protect employment as AI adoption could affect jobs. At the same time, some companies are beginning to prioritise “AI literacy” when hiring graduates.
Ogasawara said, “change in Japan is limited”. He added: “Japanese society expects painless reform, so I think it can be said that drastic reform is difficult, to say the least.”
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