TOKYO: The 2025 Osaka World Expo on Wednesday announced its official sponsors of the “Future Life EXPO: Future City” project, which is part of the “Future Society Showcase Project Exhibition” at Expo 2025 Osaka.

The “Future Life EXPO: Future City” project will serve as a stage to highlight the future city of Society 5.0, “a human-centered society that balances economic advancement with the resolution of social problems through a system that highly integrates cyberspace and physical space.”

The exhibition aims at providing an opportunity for visitors to think together about the vision of the future city through an exhibition in which the cyber and physical fields are mutually linked. It is also expected to be an opportunity to demonstrate the digital innovations and new values that will lead to the “future city” that will transcend the boundaries of companies, organizations, and industries.

The exhibition will consist of a “Theme Exhibition,” a “Common Exhibition,” and an “Individual Company Exhibition.” Each thematic area will showcase various innovations that support the “Future City.”

OKADA Naoki, the minister in charge of the Expo, made an introductory statement at the press event in Tokyo, before ISHIGE Noriyuki, the secretary-general of the World Expo,announced the 11 sponsors, who are divided into five categories.

The five categories include growth and development, food and agriculture, environment and energy, urban planning, and transport and mobility. These categories will see the 11 companies collaborate under the theme “Future Life EXPO: Future City.” It was explained how the sponsors should achieve the Sustainable Development Goals set by the United Nations in 2030.

Among the official sponsors, KDDI and Hitachi will collaborate together in the growth and development category. Kubota was selected in the field of food and agriculture, while Hitachi shipbuilding will take part in the field of environment and energy. Kobe Steel, Aoki Construction, CP Concrete Consortium and Komatsu Manufacturing were designated as the “agents of change” in the urban development project.

YAMAGUCHI Makoto, Technical Director of Mitsui OSK Lines, presented the Wind Hunter 004 ship, a tanker project that operates on hydrogen and is equipped with sails, making it operable solely on renewable sources. Mitsui is cooperating with Kawasaki Heavy Industries.