OSAKA – There's a sense of panic within Japan Inc. and the government -- the world's No. 3 economy, doesn't have enough experts in artificial intelligence, and it's time to do something about it. Prime Minister Shinzo Abe in June unveiled a plan to train 250,000 people in AI skills annually by 2025, albeit one criticized as unrealistic due to a shortage of teachers. Tech heavyweights like Sony Corp. are hiking pay for the right hires and boosting recruitment of foreign engineers. But Daikin Industries Ltd., the world's biggest maker of air conditioners with a market value of $37 billion, is taking a more unusual route to AI expertise. At a disadvantage to bigger tech firms in attracting top talent, it has created an in-house program that takes new graduates and current employees -- almost all with no AI background -- and trains them up.

OSAKA--Summer spells fun for many, but not for air conditioner repair workers, who face incessant calls during the peak service period and often have to make repeated visits to fix a single problem. And since the average air conditioner has 2,000 or so components embedded inside, it's no easy task to figure out which parts they need to take with them when heading out on a repair call. To simplify life for those sweating to keep customers cool, leading air conditioner manufacturer Daikin Industries Ltd., based here, is relying on an artificial intelligence (AI) system to pick the parts. Few other firms in Japan are utilizing an AI system on such a large scale for repairs, Daikin officials said. As summer nears, the company's call center in Osaka's Chuo Ward begins being bombarded with calls from households and businesses requesting repairs. Callers typically complain that their air conditioner is emitting an odor or isn't effectively cooling their room.