ADK creative technologist wins D&AD Future Impact pencil

Yoshihiro Kozuka, a communication planner and technologist who works for ADK's Schema unit in Tokyo, has won a D&AD pencil in this year's Future Impact category.

The win came for Avatar Robot Café project, an eatery where the servers were robots controlled from remote locations by people with disabilities.

The category recognises newly released or prototypical designs and initiatives that prioritise people and planet alongside profit. Only 14 Future Impact pencils were awarded this year. 

The café opened for three weeks in Tokyo. It led to more than 500 articles and media exposure equivalent of US$7.6 million. More importantly, several of the 30 people who participated found jobs following the project.

With Schema, launched in 2018, ADK hopes to help incorporate emerging technologies and innovation into its business. The project aims to combine technological and creative resources to support the growth of large corporations and startups and help the achieve “global success through effective marketing and branding”, according to ADK.

Yoshihiro Kozuka