Japan Publishes Its First AI-Penned Manga That Is Drawn By A Robotic Hand

27/02/2020

AI has came a long way before being accepted inside the human culture. And this time, it goes a bit deeper into the society.

This is with 'Paidon', a manga which revolves around a homeless philosopher who teams up with a robotic bird to investigate crimes in 2030 Tokyo. The manga here is designed by AI and drawn by a robotic hand.

The AI developed the characters and create the plot by analyzed 65 works by Osamu Tezuka, known as “The Father of Manga” and the “Walt Disney of Japan”.

The works that the AI learned from include classics such as Astro Boy, Phoenix and Black Jack before his death in 1989, according to Kioxia Holdings Corp., a memory chip maker that launched the project.

After that, professional creators added such elements as clothing and dialogue to complete the work, according to the Japan Times reports.

Paidon
The Paidon manga. (Credit: Kyodo News)

As "The Father of Manga", Osamu Tezuka was a hero to millions. He was the man behind many of Japan’s most cherished cartoon characters.

He was not only one of Japan's most distinctive artists, but also a storyteller of supreme emotional sensitivity.

“I always felt sad whenever Osamu Tezuka fans said they could no longer enjoy new works by him. AI creating his new work … that’s exactly the kind of (technologically advanced) world depicted in Tezuka’s manga,” said Makoto Tezuka, the son of the late author, who contributed to the project, told a news conference in Tokyo.

“I hope this technology will be applied to the training of young manga artists and also contribute to spreading the unique culture of Japanese manga to the world,” he said.

Makoto Tezuka
Makoto Tezuka, son of "The Father of Manga" Osamu Tezuka. (Credit: Kyodo News)

Tezuka Productions Co. and Keio University professor Satoshi Kurihara, who specializes in AI and computing, also cooperated in the project launched around July 2019. Kioxia changed its company name in October from Toshiba Memory Holdings Corp., a chip company spun off from Toshiba Corp.

Before the news hit the press, details about this project was kept under wrap and were deliberately vague.

While many were and are cherishing the return of Tezuka's legacy, the news of an AI-crafted Tezuka-manga release also left many feeling curious but uneasy. But the publisher already appears confident that it will be a success, as a sequel to Paidon is already in the works.

Fans can see how an AI resurrects "The Father of Manga" when Morning published Paidon on February 27.