A Large Turnout at the Fifth MASSA Alumni Event Event
Featured JST’s Collaborative Research Framework and a Special Forum on AI

The Fifth alumni event in Malaysia at the Impiana KLCC Hotel was held on November 1, 2025. Hosted by JST and MASSA (Malaysia Alumni of Sakura Science Association) the event enjoyed a large turnout of more than 100 participants, ranging from students to researchers. MASSA coordinator Mr. Haziq acted as the master of ceremony. In the first part of the event, JST shed light on its collaborative framework for ASEAN. And in the second part, one of the MASSA coordinators Dr. CACA (Che Azurahanim Che Abdullah) welcomed three expert-panelists in a forum titled “Emergence of Artificial Intelligence in Science and Technology.” JST and the secretariat wish to congratulate MASSA for such an engaging event.

After Dr. CACA announced the start of the event, Dr. SHOJI Mariko, Director at the Sakura Science Program Headquarters applauded that MASSA is a wonderful example of how the friendship and ideas from the program continue to flourish. Mr. NIHEI Daisuke, Minister at the Embassy of Japan in Malaysia, stated that “the role of alumni is more important than ever.” He reminded that “each of you carry not only technical expertise, but also the spirit of curiosity, integrity and cross-cultural understanding that the Sakura Science Program embodies.”

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In the information session, Ms. OSAWA Noriko, Director at JASSO Japan Education Information Centre in Kuala Lumpur gave a comprehensive guidance on the prospects and procedure for studying in Japan. Following Ms. OSAWA, Ms. YOSHIOKA Sasha Sachiko, Senior Program Coordinator at JST NEXUS Program Office, explained NEXUS, as a vehicle to address common challenges between Japan and ASEAN. In case of Malaysia, the choice of research field and “joint call” for proposal are made by JST and ASM (Academy of Sciences Malaysia).

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For NEXUS Y-tec, the new capacity development initiative of SSP, Dr. Shan Gu, Manager at the Sakura Science Program Headquarters gave a separate briefing. Y-tec allows year-round two-way exchange (invitation and dispatch) between Japanese and ASEAN researchers. Currently, there are two types or courses: the “Young Talents Exchange Course” and the “Leadership Exchange Course.”

To testify the positive impact of NEXUS Y-tec, Prof. TSUJIGUCHI Takuya (Institute of Science and Engineering, Faculty of Mechanical Engineering, Kanazawa University) delivered a very lively account of his team’s collaboration with Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia (UKM) on the practical use of fuel cell technologies. The collaboration materialized from his long-time partnership with Dr. Shahbudin of UKM’s Fuel Cell Institute (SELFUEL, UKM). In September 2025, the group from UKM had visited Japan through NEXUS Y-tec for lab-work and the Kanazawa University team visited UKM early November for more collaborative work.

As a Malaysian Implementer, Dr. Wan Nurfadhilah, Senior Lecturer at UKM described how the Y-tec partnership with RIKEN Nishina Center led by PI Dr. WATANABE Isao, enhanced her team’s goal to transform agricultural waste into next-generation recycled energy storage materials through computational approaches and informatics. Dr. Nurfadhilah highly praised NEXUS Y-tec to be an effective capacity development platform for young scientists. Dr. Nurfadhilah is also a strong advocate of the Sakura Science Program (SSP) and has been selecting and supervising outstanding students.

In the special forum on artificial intelligence moderated by Dr. CACA, Prof. Dato’ Dr. Shamala of Universiti Putra Malaysia (Dean, Faculty of Computer Science and IT), Mr. Abram Abu Bakar, Chairman of the smart-city consultancy, SCAVAI (Smart City Audio Visual Artificial Intelligence) in Singapore, and Mr. MORI Yusuke, Co-Founder of Newell Road, an AI-powered market intelligence platform, took to the stage and shared their views with candid insights and humor.

Prf. Dato’ Shamala stated that the use of AI must be backed up by strong fundamentals and that students must be taught to value their own intelligence. Mr. Abram pointed out that AI can take on repetitive tasks so that humans can maximize their creativity as “super employees.” Mr. MORI observed that technology including AI is not regarded as a threat but a friend in Japan. He further explained that deep “otaku” (geek-like) expertise will allow humans to ask better questions that AI cannot yet generate. Dr. CACA concluded the forum by voicing that AI should be regarded as “amplified imagination,” not a replacement for human creativity and empathy .