Sony utilizes its products, content, technology, employees, and partnerships to engage in social contribution activities around the world under the slogan "For the Next Generation."

In line with Sony's policy, Sony Corporation also provides educational support activities for children with the goal of contributing to society via Sony's unique technologies and services. As part of these activities, Sony Corporation began sponsoring the JSEC (Japan Science & Engineering Challenge) in 2021. The JSEC is an open science and technology contest for high school and technical college students across Japan, and Sony Corporation has been presenting the Sony Award at the contest since FY2022.

Yoshinori Matsumoto who is Executive Deputy President of Sony Corporation and head of technology and twelve employee volunteers served as judges to determine the Sony Award winner in FY2025. They read the thirty-seven qualifying papers submitted for the contest, discussed them, and considered the candidate works from various perspectives.

From the numerous papers submitted, the JSEC2025 Sony Award went to Riku Kuniya and Hiroto Nishino from Yasuda Gakuen Junior & Senior High School for their entry, "Quantitative analysis of antennal movements triggering trophallactic behavior in honeybees using DeepLabCut, a deep learning-based markerless pose-tracking tool".

Their research utilized AI to analyze videos of bees' antennal movements during nectar exchange in detail, revealing the mechanism by which the recipient moves its antennae in small, rapid motions to induce the feeder to release nectar. The judges who read the pair's paper were surprised and greatly impressed by their enthusiasm and the originality of their research.

(From left to right: Hiroto Nishino, Riku Kuniya, and Executive Deputy President Yoshinori Matsumoto.
Photo taken at the JSEC2025 awards ceremony, courtesy of the Asahi Shimbun.)

Sony will continue to support educating future generations through its products, services, and technologies.