Pixie Dust Technologies' "VUEVO" Holds Special DE&I Snack Event "Visible Conversation Snack" for People with Hearing Difficulties in Gotanda!

Pixie Dust Technologies Inc. (Headquarters: Chuo-ku, Tokyo; Chairman and Representative Director: Yoichi Ochiai; President and Representative Director: Taiichiro Murakami; hereinafter "PxDT") jointly held the DE&I snack event "Visible Conversation Snack" for customers with hearing difficulties at Contentz, a co-working snack bar (operated by Idiom Code Inc., Shinagawa-ku, Tokyo) on June 25, 2026.

This initiative utilized PxDT's real-time speech recognition, translation, and AI minutes service "VUEVO (Viewbo)" to transcribe and display conversations in real-time at all tables within the venue. It will continue to be held as a place where people with and without hearing difficulties can gather around VUEVO and enjoy casual, late-night chats on equal footing.

For the first session, an employee with a license in speech-language pathology from PxDT's VUEVO division served as the "mama" (host). Among the 9 attendees, 7 identified as having "hearing difficulties/hard of hearing" or "almost no hearing."

Pixie Dust Technologies' "VUEVO" Holds Special DE&I Snack Event "Visible Conversation Snack" for People with Hearing Difficulties in Gotanda!

[Key Point: A New Style of Evening Socializing for Equal Interaction]

1. Approximately 80% of attendees had hearing difficulties, forming a community in a "nighttime social venue."

Out of the 9 attendees at the first session, 7 had hearing difficulties (4 "hearing difficulties/hard of hearing," 3 "almost no hearing"), and 2 were hearing individuals. While DE&I promotion is advancing in workplaces and educational settings, there have been limited "nighttime social venues" where people with hearing difficulties can voluntarily gather. This event was launched to fill that gap as a community.

2. All 9 attendees responded that the event is "necessary for society" and "should be expanded."

In the post-event survey, all 9 respondents stated that "such a place is necessary for society" and "it should spread to other establishments and cities." A strong demand for a place where people can speak honestly beyond their attributes was unanimously indicated.

3. Capturing the flow and rhythm of conversation even in noisy environments.

Even in a noisy snack bar environment, VUEVO's unique microphone captured the voices and displayed them as subtitles on screen. This created a space where everyone, regardless of their hearing ability, could naturally participate in conversations.

Background: Sharing the Culture Born from Late-Night Chats Equally with Everyone

It is estimated that there are approximately 360,000 people with hearing impairments who hold physical disability certificates in Japan, and when including those with self-reported hearing loss, the number rises to about 10 to 14.3 million people (approximately 10-11% of the population) (※). In recent years, with the spread of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DE&I), environmental improvements have been made in workplaces and educational settings. However, there have not been many options for everyone to enjoy the "spontaneous and edgy" late-night "downtime," such as "consulting with the mama at a snack bar" or "sharing silly stories and laughing with other patrons," regardless of hearing ability.

The DE&I snack event "Visible Conversation Snack" aims to be a "supremely comfortable evening haven" where everyone can engage in banter, witty remarks, and share drinks with the same enthusiasm.

※Source: Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare "Public Relations Magazine 'Kosei Rodo,'" Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications materials, etc.

On the Day: VUEVO's Conversation Visualization Accelerates "Genuine Exchanges" Unique to Snack Bars

On the Day: VUEVO's Conversation Visualization Accelerates "Genuine Exchanges" Unique to Snack Bars

At the first event, as the initial step of the project, an employee with a speech-language pathology license from PxDT's VUEVO division served as the mama behind the counter. For approximately two hours, conversations were exchanged while meticulously verifying how VUEVO's real-time subtitles functioned in the unique environment of a snack bar, and examining the participants' conversational tempo and operational aspects.

There were a total of 9 attendees: 2 hearing individuals, 4 with "hearing difficulties/hard of hearing," and 3 with "almost no hearing."

Even in the lively atmosphere characteristic of a snack bar, VUEVO recognized the voices of each speaker along with their direction and displayed them sequentially as subtitles on a monitor placed at the counter. Attendees commented, "The subtitles conveyed the nuances of the other person's words directly, leading to deeper conversations than usual," and "I was reminded of the strength of the direction recognition technology." The visualization through technology created an experience where various people with different hearing abilities could mix and interact on an equal footing.

Survey Results: All 9 Attendees Responded That It is a "Necessary Place for Society" and "Should Be Expanded."

Following the first event, a survey was conducted among 10 attendees (100% response rate), highlighting that this place is not just a novel event but a "precious third place that many people want to incorporate into their daily lives."

I believe such a place is necessary for society: All 9 respondents (3 strongly agree / 6 agree)

I want this to spread to other establishments and cities: All 9 respondents (4 strongly agree / 5 agree)

I want to participate next time: 8 out of 9 respondents (2 definitely will go / 6 probably will go)

If this place were to disappear, I would be troubled: 5 out of 9 respondents (3 strongly feel this way / 2 feel this way)

Furthermore, in the questions about insights and changes (multiple answers allowed), including free-response comments, the following experiences were reported by attendees:

I felt that the options for evening social venues have increased: 5 people

I felt that conversations become deeper with subtitles: 4 people

The distance with people who have hearing difficulties has shortened: 4 people

My own speaking style has changed (speaking slower, clearer, etc.): 2 people

I realized that I often couldn't hear conversations myself: 1 person

Particularly noteworthy is that all 9 attendees responded that it is a "necessary place for society" and "should be expanded to other establishments and cities." Despite being held only once, the demand for an evening social venue that transcends attributes was unanimously demonstrated.

Attendee Feedback (Excerpts)

"It was a very meaningful time to interact with people from various backgrounds." (Almost no hearing)

"The conversation was smooth and stress-free." (Hearing difficulties/hard of hearing)

"I realized the importance of VUEVO acting as a catalyst for people in similar situations, those with hearing loss, to meet and connect with each other." (Hearing difficulties/hard of hearing)

"It was impressive that communication could be achieved through various methods such as sign language, VUEVO, and spoken language." (Hearing)

"It was impressive to see an opportunity for interaction between people with hearing loss (who cannot sign) and deaf individuals (who primarily use sign language), with whom I don't usually interact." (Hearing)

※Published with the consent of the individual. Names are anonymized.

Comment from Shota Sato, Representative of Co-working Snack Contents, Co-organizer

"Getting excited about trivial matters with the person next to you. Snack bars are originally places where everyone becomes equal the moment they sit at the counter, regardless of their title or age. As soon as conversations became visible with VUEVO, everyone could laugh at the same stories, regardless of their hearing ability. The sight of everyone laughing together around VUEVO told the story of the value of that place. I am very happy to have been able to facilitate people's encounters through technology with the PxDT team."

Comment from Mama Yoshida, Co-working Snack Contents

"From behind the counter, I was delighted to see a new kind of snack bar scene where both hearing and hearing-impaired individuals could gather around VUEVO's subtitles and laugh together harmoniously. Snack bars are places where anyone can relax and drop by. I hope to continue creating that normalcy here every month.

We aim to create a rich time where everyone can spend their time peacefully and equally, regardless of age or gender. We want Co-working Snack Contents to be a place for each and every customer."

Future Development: Next Session Scheduled for July 23 (Thu)! A Place to Always Return to Equality

The DE&I snack event "Visible Conversation Snack" will be held regularly at Co-working Snack Contentz, not as a one-off event.

Based on the operational know-how and verification results obtained from the first session, we will continue to develop better forms of communication.

Through this initiative, PxDT and Contentz aim to foster a social community rooted in the region where everyone can enjoy their evenings actively without worrying about their hearing. In the future, we aim for such smart and equitable systems to spread to other establishments and cities, and for VUEVO's technology to become a "reliable partner" supporting everyone's daily lives.

About Co-working Snack Contents

Opened in Gotanda, Tokyo in 2021. A new style of snack bar offering over 30 types of alcoholic beverages, Wi-Fi, and power outlets, where customers can enjoy conversations with a different "mama" each day. Operated by Sato Shoten LLC.

URL: https://coworkingsnack.com/

About "VUEVO (Viewbo)"

"VUEVO" facilitates smooth communication between people with hearing impairments or difficulties and hearing individuals using its proprietary wireless microphone and dedicated application. It collects sound from all 360° directions to identify the speaker's direction, and displays "who" is saying "what" in real-time, even with multiple simultaneous speakers. It also features real-time translation in 20 languages and automatic generation of summaries using ChatGPT, which can also be used for meeting minutes.

https://vuevo.net/

About Pixie Dust Technologies Inc.

Pixie Dust Technologies aims for the advent of "Digital Nature" by fusing computer science with its proprietary wave control technology that freely manipulates sound, light, and other phenomena, creating an environment where computers and non-computers are inseparable, and cyclically transcending dualities such as language, phenomena, and analog/digital.

Currently, we are focusing on two main areas: "Healthcare," where wave control technology is applied to mechanobiology and interventions/support for vision, hearing, and touch; and "Space/Acoustics," where it is applied to metamaterials (technologies that create properties through structure rather than material) and problem-solving in offices and construction sites.

While computers are evolving rapidly, the evolution of our biological bodies (hardware) is very slow, and the gap is widening. Pixie Dust Technologies aims to mediate between these two to continuously create better value for life.

Company Name: Pixie Dust Technologies Inc.

Establishment: May 2017

Representative Directors: Yoichi Ochiai, Taiichiro Murakami

Location: 2-2-1 Yaesu, Chuo-ku, Tokyo

URL: https://pixiedusttech.com/

※VUEVO / VUEVO Display and related logos are trademarks or registered trademarks of Pixie Dust Technologies Inc.

※Company names, logos, system names, product names, brand names, etc., mentioned are the trademarks or registered trademarks of their respective companies.