Japanese Firm Uses AI To Solve Labor Shortage

For a specialist maker of Japanese dumplings like the brand Osaka Ohsho, selling a packet of gyoza with some damage is a big no-no.

Osaka Ohsho turned to technology for an answer. In January 2023, it opened a high-tech factory equipped with AI-powered cameras trained to detect any faulty gyoza on the production lines. I Photo: GYOZA OHSHO

But as demand surged during the pandemic, its parent firm, Eat&Holdings, simply didn't have enough manpower to check every single dumpling or keep up with demand, as reported by Mariko Oi for BBC News.

So it turned to technology for an answer. In January 2023, it opened a high-tech factory equipped with AI-powered cameras trained to detect any faulty gyoza on the production lines.

Today, this facility makes two dumplings every second, twice the speed of the other Osaka Ohsho production sites. "By implementing AI, we have reduced the manpower on the manufacturing line by almost 30%," says spokeswoman Keiko Handa.

The current population of 124.35 million has been falling for 13 years. Japan's labor force is expected to continue to decline by 12% from 2022 to 2040, by which time it is estimated that the country will lack 11 million workers.

Asia's second-biggest economy is already home to the world's oldest population, with 29% of people aged 65 or above. The country also has one of the lowest birth rates in the world, with only 758,631 babies born last year, the smallest number since records began in the 19th century.