Tata Consultancy Services, University of Tokyo partner for joint research

IT services major Tata Consultancy Services (TCS) on Wednesday said it has partnered the University of Tokyo (UTokyo) to conduct joint academic-industry research.

Through the partnership, UTokyo and TCS aspire to realise their shared vision of applying design thinking and digital technologies to address real world business and societal challenges, a statement said.

"Society 5.0 is Japan's concept for a better future, built around an inclusive, sustainable and knowledge intensive society, where information and services generate value underpinned by digital innovation and the various novel-technologies it produces," Makoto Gonokami, President of UTokyo, said.

This collaboration will not only help address many of the challenges faced by modern society but will also further cultivate India-Japan relations and ultimately contribute to the growth of both nations, Gonokami added.

"We are pleased to strengthen our relationship with The University of Tokyo, a veritable global base for intellectual collaboration, with high-synergy engagement across multiple areas. As part of our academic co-innovation network, TCS has invested in research projects at leading universities around the world to encourage open innovation," TCS Chief Technology Officer K Ananth Krishnan said.

The strategic partnership aims to drive business innovation across four focus pillars - technological collaboration, talent exchange, innovation and start-up engagement.

"TCS will incorporate UTokyo's 400-strong startup ecosystem into its TCS Co-Innovation Network (TCS COIN), providing them global market access. Through various partner and customer engagements, these ecosystem partners will see the potential real-world application of their cutting-edge technologies expedited," the statement said.

UTokyo and TCS will form a steering committee which will regularly convene and oversee the direction of engagements, it added.

In a separate statement, TCS said KBZ MS General Insurance and KBZ Life Insurance, the first officially licensed private insurance provider in Myanmar, has moved to TCS BaNCS Cloud for Insurance.

KBZ MS is a new age insurer in Myanmar with presence in 20 cities, offering range of general insurance from motor insurance to property and health for individuals and groups across 22 branches.

"The company selected TCS BaNCS Cloud for Insurance to transform its legacy core system to a modern, scalable digital solution.

"TCS implemented the end-to-end, digitally-enabled SaaS solution on a public cloud. The integrated solution spanning property and casualty, health, and life insurance went live during the disruptive COVID-19 lockdown period, enabled by TCS' Secure Borderless Workspaces," it said.

Anil Mancham, CEO of KBZ MS, said with its highly localised and pre-configured functionalities and the SaaS model that TCS BaNCS Cloud offers, the solution will help the company address specific regulatory and market requirements in Myanmar.