Headwaters Verifies Effectiveness of AI Agent Implementation for JR East's EC Site 'JRE MALL'

Headwaters Co., Ltd. (Headquarters: Shinjuku-ku, Tokyo; Representative Director: Yosuke Shinoda; hereinafter 'Headwaters'), an AI solution provider, supported an initiative to utilize AI agents at 'JRE MALL' (https://shopping.jreast.co.jp/), an e-commerce site operated by East Japan Railway Company (JR East).

In this initiative, representatives from 'JRE MALL' participated in 'HWS Agent Camp' (*1), a practical workshop. Based on actual business scenarios involved in mall operation, they created AI agents and verified the effectiveness of their application to business tasks.

Background With the advancement of generative AI, companies are increasingly interested in enhancing business operations through the use of AI agents. Furthermore, an increasing number of companies are looking into design, data integration, workflow construction, and organizational development with an eye toward implementation. 'JRE MALL' has been promoting environmental development using the AI platform 'Microsoft Foundry' (*2). As part of efforts toward full-scale business application, specific methods for incorporating AI agents into business processes are being considered. Based on these efforts, this project was carried out to build AI agents in actual business and verify the effectiveness of their application.

Project Overview In this project, through the two-day 'HWS Agent Camp,' the construction of AI agents using Microsoft Foundry and the effectiveness of their application to business were verified. In the workshop, business scenarios from mall operation were used as themes, setting use cases such as sales analysis, customer segment extraction, campaign planning support, and event result report generation. A flow of 'Data Acquisition → Analysis → Proposal' was designed as an AI agent, and its operation was verified. As a result, design considerations and data preparation points necessary for integration into business processes were organized, and challenges for implementation became clear. At the same time, understanding of the roles and considerations necessary for the design, construction, and operation of AI agents deepened.

Comment from JRE MALL 'Participating in Agent Camp was very meaningful as it allowed us to experience the design and implementation of AI agents in a way that matches our actual work. By actually verifying how to acquire data, analyze it, and lead to proposals for on-site challenges, we realized the possibility of business efficiency and new value creation through the use of AI. Furthermore, through specific discussions on roles and operational systems, we deepened our understanding of the direction of future organizational building and AI introduction. We intend to continue promoting the use of AI agents.'

Future Outlook Based on the knowledge gained from this initiative, Headwaters will strive to enhance the content of its support through 'HWS Agent Camp' and continue to support companies in developing construction and operational systems for AI agents.

*1: About HWS Agent Camp A hyper-fast AI agent development experience program provided by Headwaters for companies aiming to utilize and in-house generative AI and AI agents. *2: About Microsoft Foundry A platform provided by Microsoft to support the development, construction, and operation of generative AI and AI agents.