AI, EQ & Communication News — 2026-10-15 (Thu) Morning News

Overview

Few developments were reported in the past 48 hours. The items concern the value of human skills in the AI era, the effect of chatbots on relationships, and two Japanese efforts to apply AI to communication: a developer guide for AI communication robots and an AI-based sales-training tool.

Reading emotion with AI

No notable developments. 【AI empathy and emotional intelligence】 No notable developments. 【Human EQ and strengths in the AI era】 - Forbes JAPAN published a piece arguing that the term "soft skills" should no longer be used, and that human abilities are gaining value in the AI era (Forbes JAPAN). 【Changes in conversation and relationships】 - KQED's "Close All Tabs" presented a program asking whether chatbots are harming our relationships (KQED).

Words AI writes and speaks

No notable developments.

Speaking practice and coaching

- Mitsubishi Jisho Residence built a "customer AI" for training sales staff, which recreates conversations with prospective condominium buyers (Niconico News).

Research and surveys

No notable developments. 【Japan: EQ, communication and AI】 - Yukai Engineering released "AI communication robot development principles," distributed free to developers (RealSound). - Mitsubishi Jisho Residence built a sales-training "customer AI" that recreates dialogue with condominium buyers (Niconico News).

Statements by key figures

No notable developments. 【Integrated analysis: what is happening】 The items share one structure: communication, treated as a human capacity, is being addressed by AI on two fronts. One is practice and design. Mitsubishi Jisho Residence's training tool lets sales staff rehearse conversations, and Yukai Engineering's guide supports developers building communication robots (Niconico News, RealSound). The other is a question of value and consequence. Forbes JAPAN says human abilities gain value in the AI era, and KQED asks whether chatbots harm relationships (Forbes JAPAN, KQED). The practical items appear to treat conversation as something that can be rehearsed and engineered, while the commentary items ask what is lost or gained by people. The headlines alone do not show whether the training tool or robots improve outcomes, so the effect of these tools on human communication remains unestablished. For readers weighing claims in this area, the point is that tool adoption is advancing faster than evidence on its effects, at least in this set of headlines.

What to watch

- Whether developers using Yukai Engineering's guide produce communication robots, and how their behavior is described, which may show what design standards emerge (inference). - Whether AI role-play training like Mitsubishi Jisho Residence's spreads to other sales settings, and whether any results are reported (inference). - Whether research or reporting on chatbots and relationships, as raised by KQED, supplies evidence on the effects (inference).