Yoyogi Animation Academy x FRACTAL Inc. Form Business Partnership for Educational Program on "Voice Actor Expression and Rights" in the AI Era

Yoyogi Animation Academy Co., Ltd. (Headquarters: Chiyoda-ku, Tokyo; President: Taro Ito, hereinafter "the Academy") has initiated a business partnership with FRACTAL Inc. (hereinafter "FRACTAL"), a company where voice actor Yuki Kaji serves as Representative Director, President, and CEO, and which is involved in the voice AI project "Soyogi Fractal." This partnership aims to establish an educational program for learning about voice actor expression and rights in the AI era.

This collaboration was sparked by the Academy's deep resonance with the stance and philosophy of Yuki Kaji, who not only pursues voice acting but also explores new forms of creative expression and management as he confronts the AI era head-on by launching the voice AI project "Soyogi Fractal." The Academy will leverage this initiative as the ultimate teaching material for students aspiring to work with their voices, enabling them to learn about the role of voice actors and creators in the AI era. Through this partnership, we aim to foster talent capable of thriving in the AI era by integrating our established voice actor education with new learning methods utilizing voice AI.

Key Points of This Release:

* An educational program will be developed to teach voice actors about expression and rights in the AI era, using the voice AI project "Soyogi Fractal" and its AI character "Soyogi" (voiced by Yuki Kaji, who also serves as Representative Director, President, and CEO of FRACTAL) as teaching materials. * Inspired by Yuki Kaji's philosophy of proactively engaging with AI and protecting his own voice rights, his initiatives will be utilized as educational materials for student training. * Special lectures by Yuki Kaji will provide students with direct education on the concepts and practices behind the project.

Background and Significance of the Partnership

In recent years, the rapid evolution of voice AI technology has brought about a significant turning point in the voice production environment. As AI applications expand into areas traditionally supported by human expression, such as recording narration and character voices, there is a growing need to address the fundamental challenge of how to co-create with technology while protecting the value of creators.

In this era, FRACTAL is promoting the development of a new business model that ensures creator rights protection and appropriate profit distribution, centered around the voice AI character "Soyogi" born from the voice AI project "Soyogi Fractal" launched by Representative Director, President, and CEO, voice actor Yuki Kaji.

However, many voice actors and agencies have yet to establish clear policies for responding to the AI era and are not actively moving forward. In this context, Yuki Kaji is one of the few individuals who is proactively leading the "Soyogi Fractal" character project, centered around the voice synthesis software "Soyogi" based on his own voice, and is directly confronting the AI era as a voice actor and performer.

This stems from a strong ideology of co-creating with technology while protecting the rights of performers, amidst growing global attention to issues surrounding "voice rights" due to the proliferation of unauthorized voice generation and learning by AI. This initiative embodies Yuki Kaji's firm conviction to spread awareness and culture of protecting voice rights throughout the entertainment industry and to the next generation.

The Academy, with its long history of voice actor education, deeply sympathizes with this stance and philosophy and has decided to deliver the initiatives of the "Soyogi Fractal" project to students as cutting-edge educational material for voice actor education in the AI era. This partnership is mutually beneficial, as it widely disseminates the significance of FRACTAL's efforts to protect voice rights and provides the Academy with an opportunity to offer new voice actor education essential for the AI era to its students.

"Soyogi Fractal" Logo and "Soyogi" Illustration

Main Initiatives Under This Partnership:

1. Practical Education Utilizing the "Soyogi Fractal" Project An educational program will be established where students can practically learn about voice AI expression and the rights and expressive value of voice actors, using the voice AI project "Soyogi Fractal," based on Yuki Kaji's voice, as the subject matter. Students will work on productions while understanding the characteristics of voice AI and incorporating voice actor-specific perspectives such as voice tuning, direction, and management.

2. Narration Contest and Character Contest Implementation A narration contest and a character contest will be held as new expressive competitions utilizing voice synthesis. For example, participants will challenge themselves to create productions that combine voice AI with realistic performance expressions using CM narration as a theme, fostering practical production skills required in the AI era. In the character contest, using "Soyogi" as the theme, students from various departments of the Academy will create works that leverage their respective specialties, such as illustration, animation, and voice expression. Feedback from Mr. Kaji is also planned for the created works.

3. Special Lecture by Yuki Kaji Prior to this partnership, a special lecture for current students was held on June 20, 2026 (Saturday), inviting Yuki Kaji (Representative Director, President, and CEO of FRACTAL). The lecture, themed "The Future of Voice Actors in the AI Era," covered how voice actors and executives should approach the AI era and the attitudes that performers should cherish. This provided students with an opportunity to directly learn about the philosophy behind this partnership and the latest industry trends.

Scene from the Special Lecture on June 20

Academy's Stance and Future Outlook

The Academy will promote this partnership not as a one-off event, but as a medium-to-long-term joint project. We will establish a project promotion system that transcends departments, including animation, manga, illustration, video, and content production, beyond the voice acting field, and will invest resources in education, events, and content development.

In collaboration with FRACTAL, we will continue to promote ways to utilize AI that protect the expressive value and rights of voice actors, foster next-generation creators, and create AI character IPs. Through the creation of a new standard for voice actor education in the voice AI era, we will work to create an environment where students can succeed in future expressive fields.

Comment from Taro Ito, Representative Director and President: "In my conversations with Mr. Kaji, I was deeply impressed by his philosophy and stance of directly confronting the AI era and creating his own future as a voice actor. I believed this was a crucial issue to convey to our students, and this partnership was realized through our request and his kind acceptance. I am proud that this is a wonderful step forward for entertainment education."

Comment from Yuki Kaji, Representative Director, President, and CEO of FRACTAL Inc.: "I hope this will be an opportunity to create a new form of 'Creative x Voice Rights' in the AI era, born from voice actors proactively engaging with it, together with the students. I invite everyone to join us in creating entertainment that has never been seen before."

About FRACTAL Inc.: FRACTAL Inc. is a company established in April 2026, where voice actor Yuki Kaji serves as Representative Director, President, and CEO.

In addition to voice actor management, the company is developing the voice AI project "Soyogi Fractal," centered around the voice synthesis software "Soyogi" developed from Yuki Kaji's own voice. While aiming to build a business model that ensures creator rights protection and appropriate profit distribution in response to the challenges of "voice rights" accompanying the spread of AI, the company presents a new form of entertainment through "co-creation between AI and performers" by providing solutions for businesses.

Soyogi Fractal Official HP https://www.soyogi-fractal.com/

Company Overview: Company Name: FRACTAL Inc. Headquarters Location: Shinjuku-ku, Tokyo Representative: Yuki Kaji Founding Date: April 9, 2026 Business Activities: Voice AI Business / Voice Actor Management Business Official HP: https://fractal-voice.jp/

Yoyogi Animation Academy Co., Ltd. Yoyogi Animation Academy, established in 1978, is a vocational school specializing in the anime and entertainment fields. It supports students aiming for careers in various industries, including voice acting, anime, illustration, manga, VTubers, and live production.

The academy offers diverse learning methods, including full-time courses at nine campuses nationwide, as well as evening courses, correspondence courses, weekly courses, a high school division, and a university division. It also operates entertainment agencies (representing talent groups: =LOVE, ≠ME, ≒JOY) and facility management, feeding the latest industry trends and on-site know-how back into its education.

Official Homepage https://www.yoani.co.jp/

Company Overview Company Name: Yoyogi Animation Academy Co., Ltd. Location: 5F MC Building, 1-3-9 Kanda Misaki-cho, Chiyoda-ku, Tokyo Representative: Taro Ito, Representative Director and President Established: June 1978 Business Activities: Education Business, Entertainment Business, Facility Management Business Corporate Site: https://corporate.yoani.co.jp/