Top aviation companies ANA Holdings Inc. and Japan Airlines Co. are planning to launch commercial drone services to deliver medical supplies and daily necessities to people living in remote areas. The two companies see the new services as playing a useful role in supporting local health care provision and disaster preparedness as well as expanding community infrastructure on remote islands and other far-flung areas. At the same time, the initiatives will help them promote management diversification and strengthen profitability as the coronavirus pandemic continues to take a toll on their overall business performances. ANA Holdings, the parent of All Nippon Airways Co., conducted a trial run jointly with a pharmaceutical company and other entities in March. Footage that it released shows a drone carrying a package of medical supplies from one island to another among Nagasaki Prefecture's Goto Islands at a speed of around 100 kph.

Japanese airline ANA Holdings recently announced that it is developing a telepresence robot that could travel in place of those who are unable. For those who are unable to travel due to age or disability, ANA Holdings is developing a telepresence robot which functions as a physical avatar that can travel on behalf of an individual. Though this service has the potential to work with various types of bots, it has been undergoing testing with an original robot called "newme." This avatar is equipped with a full HD, 2K display which works as the traveler's face. Users will be able to interact with the robot's surroundings in high resolution.

One of the highlights of this year's CEATEC (Combined Exhibition of Advanced Technologies) is Society 5.0 Town, an exhibition area where companies from diverse sectors such as retail, banking, construction, transport and local governments will showcase their technologies to connect people, information and things to enhance people's lives. Society 5.0 is a concept created in Japan and is defined as "a human-centered society that balances economic advancement with the resolution of social problems by a system that highly integrates cyberspace and physical space," according to the Cabinet Office website. The town's theme is in line with Japan's push to become a global leader in utilizing technology to create a community that maximizes energy efficiency and residents' convenience, as well as welfare. Dozens of predominantly Japanese companies will participate in Society 5.0 Town at CEATEC, to be held at Makuhari Messe in Chiba Prefecture from Oct. 15 to 18. Participants range from ANA Holdings Inc., Mitsubishi Estate Co. and Taisei Corp., among others. "We are a company about mobility. We want to solve mobility-related challenges. If you want to go somewhere, you have to go to an airport and fly. Avatar saves people from having to do that," said Akira Fukabori, director of the Avatar Division.