Japan's Cabinet sets up an AI and Digital Reform Promotion Council and holds its first meeting

Japan's Digital Agency says a Cabinet decision on 20 October 2026 set up the AI and Digital Reform Promotion Council. The council's first meeting was on 22 October 2026, from 16:20 to 16:50. The English page says the council is to push cross-government work on reviewing economic and social regulations, systems and operational rules, on the shape of AI and digital infrastructure, and on putting AI and digital transformation into use, on the premise of minimising risks from AI.

The Cabinet decision, linked from that page, abolishes the holding of the Digital Administrative and Fiscal Reform Council (a Cabinet decision of 6 October 2023). It says matters that council had considered carry over. The Japanese text of the 20 October decision lists the chair as the Chief Cabinet Secretary, who is also the minister in charge of promoting AI and digital reform. The Digital Agency's English page renders some other titles unclearly, so those titles are not repeated here.

The meeting page lists three agenda items: how the council will operate, proposed points for discussion, and an exchange of views. These pages do not amend the AI Promotion Act and do not set penalties. This council is a different body from the working group the digital minister described on 6 October under the AI Strategy Expert Panel.

What it means for business: no new duty. Firms providing or using AI in Japan may want to follow the council, because it is reviewing regulations, systems and rules. These pages do not say the AI Promotion Act has been changed.