The agreement launches a joint research and design phase to adapt the AI voice assistant technology already used by general practitioners in Italy to the Japanese context.
Icarus Technology and Yap Inc. signed a definitive service agreement on August 25, 2026, to begin the adaptation of Icarus technology for call management in healthcare facilities to the Japanese market. This agreement follows the memorandum of collaboration signed on May 28, 2026, and marks the operational launch of the research phase.
The objective is to study how the voice agent developed by Icarus can be configured to the workflows, rules, and needs of Japanese healthcare organizations. The system is designed to answer the first telephone call, understand the reason for the call, distinguish different types of requests, and support appointment management. This allows staff to devote more attention to conversations that necessarily require human intervention.
From the Italian experience to a solution designed for Japan
The collaboration does not simply involve introducing the configuration currently used in Italy to Japan. Organizational models, patient journeys, and the ways in which calls are received by healthcare facilities are different. The management of personal data, clinical information, and potentially urgent situations also requires specifications consistent with the regulations and safety principles applicable in Japan.
For this reason, the project will proceed in phases: analyzing the needs of Japanese healthcare facilities, defining local specifications, and, based on the results, piloting at selected healthcare organizations. The August 25 agreement concerns the first phase. A commercial launch date has not yet been set.
THE GUIDING PRINCIPLE
Don’t simply import what works in Italy, but rebuild the service to meet the practices, requirements, and responsibilities of the Japanese healthcare system.
Kyoko AI: the name chosen for the Japanese market
In Japan, the solution will be presented under the name Kyoko AI. The initial research will also use the evidence gathered by YAP through interviews with patients and healthcare professionals, with the aim of identifying the features to be adapted as a priority.
The initial scope builds on Icarus’s experience in Italian general practices. Yap also intends to evaluate, in the future, extending the model to hospitals and pharmacies and possible integrations with Yap Care Link, the service currently under development for home medication delivery. These extensions represent project objectives and not implementations already in place.
A partnership built between Italy and Japan
Icarus and Yap met for the first time on December 3, 2025, in Tokyo, during the business matching event “Corporate Innovation & Startup Co-Creation in Japan.” The dialogue continued in 2026 at SusHi Tech Tokyo and IVS, with the support of the Italian Trade Agency at the Italian Embassy, the Tokyo Metropolitan Government, the Tokyo Innovation Base, and the Autonomous Region of Sardinia.
As part of the partnership, Icarus provides the automated response system and is responsible for its maintenance. Yap conducts research on the Japanese healthcare context, defines local specifications, liaises with healthcare facilities, and verifies applicable regulatory requirements.
The Shared Vision
Masaya Yamamoto, Representative Director of Yap Inc., explained that in healthcare facilities, calls that truly require a human response are often overwhelmed by those that can be handled differently. The project’s goal is to ensure that human intervention is reserved for cases where it generates the greatest value, starting with research and not the sale of a pre-packaged solution.
For Icarus Technology, the Public Prosecutor Antonio Amendola added: The agreement represents a new step in the internationalization of its platform and confirms the value of a vertical approach: voice technology designed around real healthcare processes, adapted to the operational and regulatory specificities of each market.
Discover Jenny AI and follow updates on the Icarus – Yap project for the Japanese market.
Icarus Technology and Yap begin adapting Jenny AI for the Japanese healthcare market
The agreement launches a joint research and design phase to adapt the AI voice assistant technology already used by general practitioners in Italy to the Japanese context.
Icarus Technology and Yap Inc. signed a definitive service agreement on August 25, 2026, to begin the adaptation of Icarus technology for call management in healthcare facilities to the Japanese market. This agreement follows the memorandum of collaboration signed on May 28, 2026, and marks the operational launch of the research phase.
The objective is to study how the voice agent developed by Icarus can be configured to the workflows, rules, and needs of Japanese healthcare organizations. The system is designed to answer the first telephone call, understand the reason for the call, distinguish different types of requests, and support appointment management. This allows staff to devote more attention to conversations that necessarily require human intervention.
From the Italian experience to a solution designed for Japan
The collaboration does not simply involve introducing the configuration currently used in Italy to Japan. Organizational models, patient journeys, and the ways in which calls are received by healthcare facilities are different. The management of personal data, clinical information, and potentially urgent situations also requires specifications consistent with the regulations and safety principles applicable in Japan.
For this reason, the project will proceed in phases: analyzing the needs of Japanese healthcare facilities, defining local specifications, and, based on the results, piloting at selected healthcare organizations. The August 25 agreement concerns the first phase. A commercial launch date has not yet been set.
THE GUIDING PRINCIPLE
Don’t simply import what works in Italy, but rebuild the service to meet the practices, requirements, and responsibilities of the Japanese healthcare system.
Kyoko AI: the name chosen for the Japanese market
In Japan, the solution will be presented under the name Kyoko AI. The initial research will also use the evidence gathered by YAP through interviews with patients and healthcare professionals, with the aim of identifying the features to be adapted as a priority.
The initial scope builds on Icarus’s experience in Italian general practices. Yap also intends to evaluate, in the future, extending the model to hospitals and pharmacies and possible integrations with Yap Care Link, the service currently under development for home medication delivery. These extensions represent project objectives and not implementations already in place.
A partnership built between Italy and Japan
Icarus and Yap met for the first time on December 3, 2025, in Tokyo, during the business matching event “Corporate Innovation & Startup Co-Creation in Japan.” The dialogue continued in 2026 at SusHi Tech Tokyo and IVS, with the support of the Italian Trade Agency at the Italian Embassy, the Tokyo Metropolitan Government, the Tokyo Innovation Base, and the Autonomous Region of Sardinia.
As part of the partnership, Icarus provides the automated response system and is responsible for its maintenance. Yap conducts research on the Japanese healthcare context, defines local specifications, liaises with healthcare facilities, and verifies applicable regulatory requirements.
The Shared Vision
Masaya Yamamoto, Representative Director of Yap Inc., explained that in healthcare facilities, calls that truly require a human response are often overwhelmed by those that can be handled differently. The project’s goal is to ensure that human intervention is reserved for cases where it generates the greatest value, starting with research and not the sale of a pre-packaged solution.
For Icarus Technology, the Public Prosecutor Antonio Amendola added: The agreement represents a new step in the internationalization of its platform and confirms the value of a vertical approach: voice technology designed around real healthcare processes, adapted to the operational and regulatory specificities of each market.
Discover Jenny AI and follow updates on the Icarus – Yap project for the Japanese market.
Discover Icarus Technology