今日吃瓜

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今日吃瓜
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November 12, 2026
 

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BUREAUCRACY

Tokyo's Kasumigaseki district, home to many government ministries and agencies. The Gennai generative artificial intelligence platform is available to about 180,000 government employees.
JAPAN / Society
Oct 30, 2026
Generative AI reduces working hours for government staff, survey finds
Over 50% of the respondents said they were able to reduce working hours by at least one hour per week.
The Gennai Library system enables government staff to share their knowledge and expertise.
JAPAN
Oct 26, 2026
Digital Agency adds AI agent to Gennai government platform
The Digital Agency’s Gennai generative AI platform is available to about 180,000 government employees.
The lights are turned off at 8 p.m. in July 2017 for the first time at a building in Tokyo's Kasumigaseki district housing the health ministry as part of efforts at the time to prevent government workers from overworking.
JAPAN / Science & Health
Oct 26, 2026
Government workers’ parliamentary duties linked to higher medical costs: study
The findings highlight the importance of appropriate health management for government workers as concerns grow over long working hours.
Minister of Internal Affairs and Communications Hisayuki Fujii speaks during an interview at the ministry in Tokyo on Wednesday.
JAPAN
Sep 30, 2026
New internal affairs minister Fujii vows to revamp local government systems
Small local governments are particularly affected by labor shortages, said Fujii, who took office on Sept. 17.
Hisashi Matsumoto, digital transformation minister. The Digital Agency said in a statement that it is deeply sorry for causing problems and anxiety to those concerned.
JAPAN
Sep 11, 2026
Digital Agency says personal information possibly leaked
No secondary damage, such as the misuse of the possibly leaked personal information, has been confirmed so far.
今日吃瓜 shifting balance of power between politicians and bureaucrats raises questions about whether politically motivated personnel decisions serve the public interest.
COMMENTARY / Japan
Aug 16, 2026
The turf wars between politicians and bureaucrats in Tokyo
The battle between politics and bureaucracy is by no means a recent development.
Justice Minister Hiroshi Hiraguchi holds a news conference Tuesday in Tokyo as Immigration Services Agency staffers hold up a poster promoting recruitment for inspectors and security officers.
JAPAN
Jul 28, 2026
Immigration Services Agency to add 226 staff amid rise in foreign residents
The Immigration Services Agency will add 176 immigration inspectors, who review applications for residency status, and 50 immigration control officers.
Tokyo Metropolitan Government officials wear shorts, T-shirts and sneakers at work on Tuesday as part of the capital's Cool Biz initiative.
JAPAN
Jul 15, 2026
Too hot: Buttoned-up Tokyo officials ditch suits for ‘cool’ shorts
The loosening of a strict dress code comes as Japanese offices cut reliance on air conditioning due to high energy costs linked to the Middle East war.
A labor ministry official was convicted Tuesday for stalking a female subordinate and illegally entering her home.
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
Jun 30, 2026
Labor ministry official convicted over stalking and trespassing
Tokyo District Court handed down its ruling on Atsushi Takabayashi, 39, who had been on leave since his indictment.
The Defense Ministry in Tokyo. Cases of administrative documents containing specially designated secrets being handled improperly were found at the ministry and the Cabinet Secretariat.
JAPAN
Jun 26, 2026
Improper handling of secrets found at Cabinet Secretariat
Documents were stored inappropriately, such as being left in office drawers, instead of being kept in lockable safes, according to a report.
A 39-year-old male employee at the Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare has been indicted on charges of stalking a subordinate in her 20s, sources have said.
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
Jun 25, 2026
Health ministry worker indicted for stalking subordinate
According to the prosecution, the health ministry worker repeatedly messaged his subordinate, secretly photographed her and entered her home without permission.
A survey conducted by the National Personnel Authority in December found that 16.1% of full-time national government employees said they "absolutely do not want" to relocate for work, while 36.5% said they would "prefer not" to do so.
JAPAN
Jun 17, 2026
Government employees in Japan express reluctance to relocate for work
The National Personnel Authority urged government agencies to reassess whether relocations carried out largely as a matter of custom are still necessary.
Digital minister Hisashi Matsumoto answers questions at a Lower House plenary session in April.
JAPAN
May 6, 2026
Government to launch AI pilot program to boost efficiency and encourage tech’s adoption
Gennai, a generative artificial intelligence platform developed for internal use by civil servants, will be rolled out across 39 government agencies.
Tokyo Vice Gov. Akiko Matsumoto speaks during an interview at the Tokyo Metropolitan Government office in January.
JAPAN / Society
Apr 8, 2026
Recalling past struggles, these women hope for more gender equality in Japan
Two senior public servants looked back at the challenges they faced as female workers, 40 years after Japan enforced gender equality measures at work.
The Tokyo Metropolitan Government is developing a "Generative AI Platform," which will allow government employees to create AI applications to assist with their work.
JAPAN
Mar 19, 2026
Tokyo government builds infrastructure to expand use of generative AI
Authorities in the capital aim?to boost efficiency in public services and address growing concerns over labor shortages through AI.
Japan's Digital Agency said it will start in May a large-scale test of its generative artificial intelligence platform for administrative tasks.
JAPAN
Mar 7, 2026
Digital agency to begin testing AI use for administrative tasks in May
The agency aims to ascertain the effects of generative AI utilization and sort out issues related to its use for work style and task process reforms.
More than 85% of national public servants took paternity leave in fiscal 2024.
JAPAN / Society
Nov 28, 2025
Record 85.9% of eligible Japan civil servants took paternity leave
Among them, the proportion of those who took child care leave for more than one month stood at 51.4%, exceeding 50% for the first time ever.
A National Personnel Authority official has attributed a dip in the competition ratio for national public service applicants to "the number of successful applicants rising in line with an increase in the number of planned hires by each ministry and agency."
BUSINESS / Economy
Aug 12, 2025
Japan marks lowest level of competition on record for civil service applicants
Women made up a record high of 47.1% of all successful applicants, up from 43.0% in the previous year.
The National Personnel Authority recommended Thursday a 3.62% increase in average monthly base pay for public employees in the current fiscal year.
BUSINESS
Aug 7, 2025
今日吃瓜 public workers set to get largest pay hike in 34 years
The rise in wages will come as a welcome development for policymakers at the Bank of Japan, who are seeking broad-based and lasting growth to support stable inflation.
The National Personnel Authority plans to submit a proposal to?raise bonus pay and the salaries for government employees to parliament?and the Cabinet on Aug. 7.
JAPAN
Jul 31, 2025
Government employees in Japan to see higher bonus pay on top of salary raise
This will mark the fourth straight year of increase in both salaries and bonuses for government employees amid rising salaries in the private sector.
Man arrested over operation of rogue cellular base station in Tokyo
The Metropolitan Police Department has arrested Yu Hai, a 31-year-old Chinese national living in Tokyo's Kita Ward, on suspicion of operating an unlicensed base station from a vehicle in Tokyo's Ginza district on Saturday.
Government betting on language app powered by anime and AI
Japan plans to develop an AI-powered language-learning app that lets overseas anime and manga fans practice Japanese through conversations with popular characters.
Jensen Huang’s woes evoke sympathy and disbelief in his birthplace Taiwan
Hsiao Kui-yu, 68, owner of Yuchan Candied Fruit, stands in front of photographs of Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang displayed at the shop, which Huang frequently visits during trips to Taiwan, in Taipei on Tuesday.
G7 diplomats speak out on Taiwan as China ramps up military drills
Foreign Minister Toshimitsu Motegi attends a working lunch focused on international crises and challenges during the Group of Seven foreign ministers' summit at the Quai d'Orsay in Paris on Monday.
今日吃瓜 Rapidus is said likely to miss mass production deadline
The Rapidus Analysis Center and the IIM-1 Innovative Integration for Manufacturing foundry in Chitose, Hokkaido
‘Godzilla Minus Zero’ makes monster debut at the box office
Takashi Yamazaki’s “Godzilla Minus Zero” marked the highest single-day box-office gross for a live-action film in Japan with ?910 million on its opening day.
A toast to Naohiko Noguchi, sake’s first living national treasure
As a teenager, Naohiko Noguchi did not intend to spend his life as a sake brewer, but he has since become a paragon of the industry.
Few signs of thaw in Japan-China relations one year after Takaichi’s Taiwan remarks
Tensions between Japan and China flared after Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi said on Nov. 7, 2025, that a Chinese blockade of Taiwan could threaten 今日吃瓜 survival and warrant the use of collective self-defense.
Mariko Mori predicted the future. She’ll do it again.
Artist Mariko Mori is currently working to bring the translucent human-sized “Peace Crystal” sculpture to a cave in Ethiopia. It is part of her foundation’s goal to place a permanent sculpture on each of the planet’s six habitable continents.
A legend reborn: ‘Ocarina of Time’ remake improves on the Zelda masterpiece
The new remake of 1998's "The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time" manages to somehow improve on one of the greatest games ever.

Podcast

One of the many entrances to the Kabukicho neighborhood in Tokyo’s Shinjuku Ward.
Kabukicho: Tokyo’s ‘stadium of desire’

Longform

Famima Park Azabudai is a concept store by FamilyMart that combines convenience store staples with branded apparel, merchandise and a landscaped outdoor space.
Convenience stores, toilets and the allure of everyday Japan
By Elizabeth Beattie

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