MATSUE – Akihito Uesada, the mayor of Matsue City, made a significant announcement on August 18 regarding the city’s innovative economic strategy. Collaborating with the Open Source Software Society Shimane (OS4), Matsue aims further to harness the power of the Ruby programming language.
The initiative, known as Ruby City Matsue Project 2.0, centres on propelling the development of Matsue by leveraging the computer language pioneered by Hiroyuki Matsumoto, a resident of the city and a prominent figure in the Ruby community. During his informative presentation, the mayor addressed a diverse audience of around 30 individuals, predominantly from the local IT industry and administrative officials.
Recognised as the epicentre of Ruby technology, Matsue City will usher in an upgraded phase with “Ruby City Matsue Project 2.0.” This new iteration takes a decisive step forward, with a keen focus on forging stronger international ties. Particularly, it aims to foster collaboration with foreign counterparts, including the IT industries of India, Taiwan, and the United States, which are regions that have prominently harnessed Ruby’s capabilities. To this end, Mayor Uesada embarked on a trip to the United States in July and has forthcoming visits planned for India and Taiwan later this year.
Mr Uesada’s involvement in the 13th Japan-U.S. Innovation Awards Symposium at Stanford University was a pivotal component of this innovative venture. Attending the symposium, he was offered pieces of valuable advice to expedite Matsue’s economic growth through the application of IT technologies, notably clean environment and climate technologies. These sectors are poised to witness global surges, as anticipated by prominent investors like Sozo Ventures, DNX Ventures, and Will.
The head of the city envisions an extended reach for the Ruby Community from Matsue to Taipei and Kerala state. Both locales are known for advanced IT areas, making the mayor enthusiastic about participating in their respective Ruby conferences. He also aspires to extend this network into Europe and draw investment into Matsue.
Mayor Uesada is also committed to introducing Ruby to local enterprises that have yet to harness its potential. He aims to create new employment prospects and counter the challenges of depopulation that the city faces by fostering the growth of IT engineers, especially among youth and women, through the city’s IT education initiatives.