Entering the New Digital Arena: How Chief Digital Officer Taro Shimada envisions Toshiba’s Transformation

For many of us, cell phones were the latest trend when we were growing up. But they were limited in capabilities. The Googles, Facebooks, and Amazons of the world were still big ideas in the minds of young entrepreneurs. Fast forward not that many years later, and everyone has a smartphone—we shop, we chat, we play and we learn online.…

Harnessing the Strengths of a Semiconductor Technology to Power a Hydrogen Economy

The idea of a hydrogen-powered future might seem like something straight out of science fiction, but believe it or not, the technology for hydrogen energy is real. Japan’s Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry estimates that hydrogen energy will expand into an 8 trillion yen market in Japan by 2050.* In fact, in Japan, hydrogen is seen not only as…

The Future of Automobiles from the Perspective of the Semiconductor: What’s Happening on the Front Line

Semiconductors—you may never have seen one, but they’re most definitely a part of your life, integral as they are to everything from smartphones, tablets, and computers, to digital appliances like TVs and air conditioners. What you may not be aware of, however, is their growing prevalence in things other than mobile devices and electrical appliances, particularly automobiles, in the form…

The Science Behind Nanofiber Electrospinning Technology

Nanofiber electrospinning is one of the complex technologies today and is expected to be applied to Toshiba’s SCiB™ lithium-ion rechargeable battery.　How are ultrafine fibers created? Ikuo Uematsu, responsible for the development of electrospinning technology,　shares the basics of nanofibers, electrospinning technology used to fabricate them and its appealing features. Ikuo Uematsu, Process Technology Research Department, Corporate Manufacturing Engineering Center, Research &…

What is VPP? Invisible Power Plant in Action

Virtual is a word we’ve come to hear more frequently in recent years. There’s virtual reality, which simulates interactive environments, and there are virtual currencies, like Bitcoin, unregulated digital money. Now virtual is reaching into the world of energy, and we are seeing the development of virtual power plants, VPP as they are known. And they are attracting a lot…

Looking for a Ride Home? Why not try Mobility-as-a-Service

As vehicle ownership falls and ride hailing and ride sharing services find increasing popularity, powerful forces are making themselves felt in commuter transport. However, recent developments are just a taste of things to come. Spurred by advances in digital know-how, there is growing interest in realizing Mobility-as-a-Service, MaaS. The ideal of MaaS is the ability to leave home, be picked…