2024.07.25
Panasonic Group People
Technology Future Vision: An Ever Evolving Vision for A Brighter Future
A Society Where Individual Choice Naturally Leads to Caring for Each Other and the Planet

With the major shift in our company's environment, we have held continuous discussions over the past year from the perspective of how we can contribute to society and customers. We set 2040 as our target year, considering the time needed to make the developmental leap from existing technologies and business areas as well as to technically validate the vision's developments. Needless to say technology is a key driver in shaping the future, but it is not the only factor in forming the future. As the Corporate Technology Sector of Panasonic Holdings Corporation, we envisioned the society we want to achieve in the future and drew up technology roadmaps towards this vision in collaboration with various departments.
We visualized a variety of social situations and the enabling technologies that support them in the background to illustrate the contributions we could make from a long-term perspective.

The upper part of the diamond represents the real world, while the lower part represents the cyber world. The arrows connecting the two worlds represent the mechanisms of the CPS (Cyber-Physical System), which integrates and optimizes the vast real world through cyberspace. This diagram illustrates how green, clean resources and energy are introduced into society from the upper left side. Through the activities of various stakeholders, these resources are distributed to communities, households, and individuals. Through these processes, data related to life and the environment are collected and analyzed in cyberspace, and then returned to life and society as services and solutions.

I get that a lot (laughs). Despite having such discussions in the beginning, we all eventually concluded that the Panasonic Group's technology is characterized by being grounded in people's daily lives. After much consideration, we concluded that in the future society we envision, a society where individual choice naturally leads to caring for each other and the planet. Moreover, we identified three factors that play key roles in developing such a society: energy and resources, a sense of fulfillment, and care and consideration.

What we call resources, including natural resources, the time we've been given, and our skills, are all limited. However, if we can identify people in need of these resources and accommodate each other's needs, then we may be able to create a mutually beneficial system for everyone. We are working to develop a mechanism where the choices you make for yourself can also benefit your family members, society, as well as other stakeholders, including the natural surroundings. This endeavor is summarized in the term "co-caring" a key phrase supporting the Technology Future Vision.

By utilizing the earth's and society's finite resources without waste, you can discover options that are profitable and beneficial for both you and others.
Concept Movie

Let me explain using a familiar example, which came up during the discussion of the future vision. When we eat lunch, the menu we get often shows information like nutrients and calories, in addition to the prices. If we added extra information such as environmental burden and food waste,^* then some people might notice this and choose meals that reduce the environmental impact. This leads to the hypothesis that visual information can change people's choices, where individuals who choose eco-friendly menu items can feel a small sense of satisfaction. The underlying concept of co-caring involves the establishment of a mechanism where resources are accessible and transparent and encourage individuals who consequently​ gain a sense of satisfaction or meaning, to continue changing their behavior.
^*Food somehow discarded without being consumed. The term particularly refers to the losses generated by retailers, restaurants, and consumers.

If such societal structures become widespread​, then we may be able to realize a society where we concern about day to day safety, security and resources​ such as energy are no longer compromised in future . We held repeated discussions with enthusiasm that our role may not draw much attention, but is definitely critical.

There is no significant change from the direction of technology development announced when the operating company system was launched.(Japanese only) With this vision, we have verbalized the society we want to create and presented anew the purpose of our technology. Through this presentation, we will (1) construct a story with a clearer vision towards 2040 and (2) focus on development with an awareness of not only individual core technologies but also the integration and combination of technologies aiming for their social implementation. I believe that one of the values of the Technology Future Vision is that it serves as a compass to this end.
When all individuals engaged in technology development talk together about the envisioned society and work toward scaling the mountain, I'm confident that our technologies will be connected group-wide like dots forming lines and lines forming spaces, accelerating our efforts.

Glass building material integrated with perovskite solar cells.​
Installation on a balcony

For instance, in the field of energy, the use of energy devices like perovskite solar cells will permit energy creation at any location. Furthermore, when combined with a distributed energy resource management system (DERMS), which adjusts the balance between electricity supply and demand, our technology can achieve distributed management of renewable energy. If we could provide our neighbors with self-generated renewable energy, then we would contribute not only to home energy management but also to community-wide energy management. Energy distribution can be optimized from a resident's perspective without requiring people to make individual energy-saving efforts and sacrificing convenience or comfort. Such a co-caring society can be achieved, because the Panasonic Group has extensive customer contacts and understands their lifestyles.

In order to achieve our vision, we must also work with business/technology partners, rather than collaborating only within the Group. While refining our own technologies, there will be cases where we develop new technologies and combine existing ones along with business partners. Therefore, we must also take into account such possibilities in our strategy. To this end, we will actively publicize the Technology Future Vision, both internally and externally, and promote co-creation efforts through a series of dialogues. The announcement of our vision marks the first step in this endeavor. I believe the future we envision awaits us beyond these efforts.