Shinji Ishimaru, leader of the local political party The Path to Rebirth, attends a press conference in Minato Ward, Tokyo, on August 27, 2025. Yusuke Matsumoto/AP Tokyo —

After years of threatening to upend industries around the world, artificial intelligence could soon enter the corridors of power, if a fringe political party in Japan gets its way.

Upstart party Path to Rebirth unveiled plans earlier this week to install a chatbot penguin as its “AI leader,” after disappointing election results prompted its founder to give up the helm.

Human candidate Koki Okumura won the ensuing leadership race, but the doctoral student – who specializes in AI research – announced at a press conference earlier this week that he has another plan.

“The new leader will be AI,” the 25-year-old

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