Akira Yoshino at a press conference after receiving the Nobel Prize at LivTech.

Akira Yoshino (photo), winner of the 2019 Nobel Prize in Chemistry, visited the Lithium Ion Battery Materials Evaluation Research Center (LivTech, Ikeda City, Osaka Prefecture), where he serves as president, for the first time since the award ceremony on April 18 and reported to about 70 people affiliated with the center. At the meeting, Dr. Yoshino said, "Everyone gathered here first thing in the morning. I gave them chocolates in the shape of Nobel Prize medals with my signature on them," he said with a smile. LivTech is a group of researchers from lithium-ion battery-related companies, researching electrode materials and next-generation all-solid-state batteries. Mr. Yoshino said, "We need to promote the integration of artificial intelligence (AI), the Internet of Things (IoT), and other areas around batteries. LivTech, Ikeda City, Osaka Prefecture, December 18, 2019. Credit: Nikkan Kogyo Shimbun / Kyodo News Images