The first installment of a series introducing the Four Cs for Japanese companies seeking to fully deploy AI agents. Based on the latest survey data, it examines the current situation and challenges involved in moving from PoCs to production use.
According to the 2026 edition of the White Paper on Information and Communications, published by the Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications in July 2026, 86.4% of Japanese companies use generative AI in some form of business operation. However, only 21.5% have company-wide initiatives to transform their business, while 27% reported having no organizational initiatives. Although the gap with the United States and Germany is narrowing, the data shows that companies have yet to establish organization-wide approaches to AI use.
The adoption of AI agents is also progressing through surveys and PoCs, but there are still relatively few examples of their integration into day-to-day operations. Integrating data, knowledge and context within the organization will be key to moving from PoCs to production deployment.
This series examines the Four Cs, namely Context, Choice, Control and Cost, as the four elements needed to bring AI agents into production operations at Japanese companies.