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Digital Agency seeks 50 to 100 local authorities for AI inquiry trial

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Source: Digital Agency, Japan

Japan’s Digital Agency is recruiting about 50 to 100 prefectures and municipalities for a trial of generative AI functions for automating inquiry work with government bodies. Applications run from 26 October to 13 November 2026. The trial runs from 24 November 2026 to 10 February 2027. Participants get trial access to a generative AI function for searching, organising and analysing data, called the local-government version of Baibain; online briefings are on 26 and 28 October. Simplex runs the secretariat under contract.

Why it matters

The Digital Agency says the trial aims to ease and cut the effort of local government staff in making inquiries to government bodies, and will test the tool’s usefulness and problems before any wider rollout.

When
20 Oct 2026
ID
WTA-N-2026-0340
Where
Japan
Who
Digital Agency, Simplex

Summary by wheresthe.ai, from Digital Agency, Japan. Checked against the source on 20 Oct 2026.

Read the original at Digital Agency, Japan

Source copy: download the page as saved on 20 Oct 2026 (PDF). Also held by the Internet Archive.

Next stop on this Storyline: What happened nextJapan’s new AI reform council meets and puts a review of the AI Act on its agenda

Cite this story

WTA-N-2026-0340: “Digital Agency seeks 50 to 100 local authorities for AI inquiry trial.” wheresthe.ai, 20 Oct 2026. https://wheresthe.ai/d/jp-digital-agency-seeks-50-to-100-local-authorities-for-ai-i-2026-10/ (source: Digital Agency, Japan).

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