Here's how a penguin avatar will be the new leader of a Japanese political party

A political party in Japan is turning to a non-human leader after failing to gain any seats in a recent election.

The Path to Rebirth party was launched in January after a former small-town mayor, Shinji Ishimaru, shocked Japan by coming in second in Tokyo's 2024 gubernatorial race.

'Legally, the representative must be a natural person.'

Despite not having any policies, platforms, or member guidelines, the party had hoped to gain traction in Japan's House of Councillors election. However, the Path to Rebirth party failed to pick up any of the 124 seats that were up for grabs in the election.

Ishimaru quit following the massive defeat, the Japan Times reported, and now a new leader has been installed.

Doctoral student Koki Okumura won the party's leadership race, but decided he is not fit for the job, and last week he tapped a new party leader.

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Shinji Ishimaru, former mayor of Akitakata City, speaks during the WebX2024 in Tokyo, Japan. Photographer: Kiyoshi Ota/Bloomberg via Getty Images

"The new leader will be AI," the 25-year-old declared.

Describing himself as the assistant to the artificial intelligence, the Kyoto University student said the AI will be a penguin avatar, a nod to Japan's love for animals.

Okumura said that while the party will "entrust decision-making to AI," he will be the formal figurehead because party leaders in Japan must be human.

"Legally, the representative must be a natural person, so formally, a human serves as the representative," he explained.

In an interview with CNN, Okumura said he believes AI will eventually take over all the decision-making for the Path to Rebirth party.

"I believe it has the potential to achieve things with greater precision than humans. This approach allows us to carefully consider voices that are often overlooked by humans, potentially creating a more inclusive and humane environment for political participation," Okumura added.

Perhaps surprisingly, the AI penguin is not the first major appointment for a non-human entity this month.

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Albania's new AI-generated minister "Diella" "speaks" during a parliamentary session. Photo by ADNAN BECI/AFP via Getty Images

Just a week prior, Albania announced that public tenders — bids made by companies to supply goods or services to the government — will be handled by an AI minister.

The AI, named Diella, meaning "Sun," was already in use as a virtual assistant for Albania's online public services website that deals with digital documents. Prime Minister Edi Rama boldly claimed that the AI will be "100% free of corruption."

As for the penguin leader, Okumura said there is no timeline for its formal implementation, and its appearance has not been revealed.

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