Social

MegaChips is responsible for gaining a reputation as a good company from surrounding stakeholders.
We respect the human rights and culture of each employee, providing them with fields of opportunity and growth regardless of their nationality, gender, age, and other diverse backgrounds.

Diversity

MegaChips is working to create not only a framework that allows its female employees to play an active role, thereby developing their careers and exercising their leadership skills, but also a work environment in which all employees, regardless of gender, can balance work and life while demonstrating their abilities.

“Make Our Own Paths” Project

1. Self-awareness
   ・Enhance the ability to think about how one wants to be and what one wants to do
2. Decide on one’s own career plan
   ・Design life and career plan
   ・Commit oneself to the career plan
3. Management perspective
   ・The importance of thinking from the standpoint of the organization or company, surpassing the scope of one’s own job

Work Style Reform

Act on our own thoughts and will, and contribute to the company through our work (One of the 3 self-reliance principles of MegaChips)

MegaChips considers that a transition to a work style with high value-added productivity is essential to enhance the significance of a company’s existence in society. Furthermore, a balance between work and life is important for a diverse workforce to flourish. In order to bring reform to the way we work that aligns with these objectives, we are actively working to create an environment where employees can utilize their individuality and skills.

Internal programs to promote diversified working styles and participant testimonials

Educational Support

Support of Youth with Enthusiasm for Leading Future Generations

The seeds of new technologies emerge from the next generation.
With fierce technological competition around the world, nurturing and enhancing the human resources who will lead next-generation innovation is a critical social issue. The declining birthrate is getting worse every year, and a decrease in the number of children interested in science in Japan is leading to a deterioration in competitiveness of the national industry. We support youth who have selected their paths as science and engineering, and contribute to improving the competitiveness of Japan’s industry.

Support for graduate schools and research students

We support young researchers in the electronics field, offering opportunities and improving study environments so that they can focus on the research and development of advanced technologies.

Support for students going to junior high school and high school (Grant-type scholarship from the Shindo Memorial Foundation established by the founder of MegaChips)

We support and offer scholarships to the students in single-parent families in Osaka Prefecture who have outstanding academic results and good behavior for the purpose of developing future human resources and contributing to the society.
We provide grant-type scholarships to those who go to junior high school and high school with no repayment obligation so they can devote themselves to studying.

Joint Project with Universities

We pursue the creation of new social value through joint research with universities. We develop human resources in the global fields while contributing to solve social and regional issues.

MegaChips puts effort into collaborations with domestic and foreign universities, taking on the challenge of creating new innovations that contribute to solving worldwide social problems.
In the industrial equipment field, the utilization of IoT has progressed in various areas including logistics, manufacturing automation, and electricity smart grids. IoT is also expected to contribute to the revolutionization of the industry market.
Also, in the AI field, AI technology is rapidly becoming widespread, such as being incorporated into robot autonomous driving. And it is going to continue being adopted in various broad applications within a wide range of industries including manufacturing, distribution, medical, agriculture, and vehicles, with the expectation of bringing about transformation to society.
In addition to in-house development, we will continue the challenge of creating innovation through collaborations with domestic and foreign universities as a comprehensive initiative to create new values.

Santa Clara University (SCU)

We have launched a joint project in the field of robotics with the SCU Robotic Systems Laboratory (SCU), a research institute at Santa Clara University, in anticipation of the coming era in which robots will be utilized.

Preparation of Environment Dedicated to Research and Development with the Latest Equipment

SCU promotes research and development of functional materials, devices, and systems of 100 nm or less, including the possession of a high-resolution electron scanning microscope. In addition, SCU offers a supportive environment for researchers, with such things as a newly constructed STEM building equipped with tools and machines to create the equipment and instruments necessary for conducting research and development.

Professor Kitts’ Lab Mentors Engineers through “Hands-on Development”

The laboratory of Dr. Kitts, a professor at Santa Clara University and director of SCU, emphasizes hands-on development that not only creates prototypes with a development concept and target, but also uses the deadlines and quality requirements of companies. By mastering the development process at companies in this way, students will gradually evolve into full-fledged engineers.

Joint Research with SCU on Recognition and Control Technology

In collaboration with Professor Kitts’ laboratory, MegaChips has embarked on the development of the basic technology for “Cobot”, a robot that supports human work at factories, construction sites, farms, livestock farms, and other production sites. Currently, as a control technology for “Cobot”, we are developing a system utilizing AI technology that allows robots to recognize human gestures and perform corresponding actions.

Development of “Cobot” Control Platform to Launch New Businesses

In the future, MegaChips plans to increase the components of the basic technology for “Cobot” and offer our own platform populated with a library of “Cobot” controls. By allowing customers in the robotics industry to use this platform, we will generate a wide range of new businesses by expanding not only the ASIC/ASSP business, but also by developing embedded modules and application software.

Nara Institute of Science and Technology

Background of Project Launch

The edge AI that MegaChips is working on aims AI branded sensors equipped with the AI process. The data is then processed by the edge device into information required for the robotic system, which is then passed on to the controller. By doing so, the entire system’s transmission volume can be reduced, resulting in an overall improvement of the speed and latency. Especially in the industrial and FA fields, high-speed and low-latency systems are desired for use cases, such as with robotic arms and automated guided vehicles. In relation to these industrial and FA fields, we are starting research about AI-based action planning and the high-speed control design of robots, with the aim of contributing to the improvement of safety and work efficiency for robotic and other systems.

Research Initiatives

Our goal is to establish technology for the high-speed control (reflexive motion) of robots and provide technical feedback to our products to improve the advantage of our business.

• Application of low power consumption and high-speed processing AI HW by SNN to robots
• Investigation of quantization algorithm for model reduction and its application to reinforcement learning

Tokyo Metropolitan University

Background of Joint Research

The high-performance, compact, and ultra-low power consumption technology of edge AI that we are working on can contribute to the automation and autonomy of robots, such as with personal mobility and automated guided vehicles. MegaChips is also participating in a consortium for a local 5G project. We aim to strategically launch and grow new businesses by building trust with new partners through proactive communication and the acquisition of new knowledge in the robotics field, where the market is expected to expand.

Research Initiatives

In collaboration with the consortium members, we will identify issues and study prototyping for social implementation. MegaChips is responsible for the systematizing infrastructure and will take on the challenge of achieving a society in which intelligent technology and robotic technology are integrated.

Industrial Innovation

We contribute to the industrial growth in Japan through the creation of new markets to challenge the development of cutting-edge technology.