ARUM Inc, the Kanazawa-based precision manufacturing software company, is prototyping a conversational AI interface called KAYA that guides factory workers through complex machining tasks using natural language and speech.
The system targets a structural skills shortage in Japan's manufacturing sector that the Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare has described as "long-lasting and persistent."
KAYA runs on GPT-5, OpenAI's large language model, and uses Azure AI Speech and Azure OpenAI within Microsoft Foundry, Microsoft's platform for building and deploying AI applications.
The interface is designed to allow less-experienced operators to run computer-numerical control (CNC) workflows on ARUM's TTMC machining centres, tasks previously reserved for senior machinists.
ARUM's in-house software, ARUMCODE, converts computer-aided design (CAD) drawings into computer-aided manufacturing (CAM) instructions and runs alongside the TTMC Type F machining centre on Microsoft Azure.
ARUM says ARUMCODE reduces program creation time for small aircraft wing ribs from over an hour to four minutes, and that more than 200 manufacturers subscribe to its ARUM Factory 365 platform.
"My job is translating the craftsman's intuition for the programmers, who need to put this expertise into numerical form," said Takaaki Sakashita, general manager of ARUM's software development team.
ARUM has sold 40 TTMC units at 330 million yen ($2.1 million) each and employs around 40 people.
The company plans to connect its TTMCs into a nationwide procurement network to provide production backup, and intends to use Azure's cloud infrastructure to support exports to the United States, South Korea and India.
The recap
- ARUM deploys AI-powered TTMC machining centres in Kanazawa, Japan
- ARUM sold 40 TTMCs at 330 million yen each
- Plans to network TTMCs across Japan for production backup