A breakin competition was held on August 16th at Granship in Shizuoka City, where participants engaged in heated dance battles. Breakin, also known as breakdancing, was added as a new sport at the Paris 2024 Olympics, drawing growing attention worldwide. (News On Japan)

Mitsui Fudosan Group has renovated a 250-year-old traditional Japanese house in Tokyo’s Setagaya Ward to make it earthquake resistant and opened it to the public on August 19th. The small residence, built in the late Edo period, has been preserved with much of its original character intact. (News On Japan)

Prime Minister Ishiba held a 30-minute meeting with Microsoft founder and global philanthropist Bill Gates at the Prime Minister’s Office on August 19th, where the two exchanged views on global health issues. (News On Japan)

Vandals have attacked Midorimachi Park in Fukuyama, Hiroshima Prefecture -- where around 5,000 roses bloom each year -- with graffiti resembling the letters 'Rizz.' (News On Japan)

Osaka Prefecture has projected that the number of its prefectural high schools should be reduced by about 32 over the next 15 years, leaving around 104 schools, as the decline in the student population shows no sign of stopping. The prefecture currently operates 136 schools. (News On Japan)

Mercari, Japan’s leading flea market app, has banned the sale of empty cartridges from July after a request from the National Police Agency, citing concerns that they could be reused to make live ammunition. (News On Japan)

Rakuten Group and Amazon.com are preparing to enter Japan’s satellite communications market as early as 2026. The Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications has begun discussions on frequency bands, transmission power, and other regulatory frameworks necessary for new entrants. (News On Japan)

SoftBank Group announced it will invest about 300 billion yen in U.S. semiconductor giant Intel, which has been struggling in the competitive chip industry. (News On Japan)

Japan's Imperial Household Agency began Monday sharing updates on Princess Aiko’s solo duties and the activities of the Akishino family and other imperial members on its official Instagram account. (News On Japan)

A fire broke out in a building in Osaka’s Dotonbori district on Monday morning and was largely extinguished by shortly before 1 p.m., but two firefighters lost their lives while battling the blaze. (News On Japan)

Scenes of everyday life in Japan in the 1960s in 4K. Restored 35mm footage: Some of these clips come from everyday life, others from documentaries, and others from films, but they capture much of the country's reality at that time, as confirmed by our Japanese distributors. (TRNGL)

The entrepreneurs who continue to challenge themselves to change the world are now attracting even greater attention as they push into the unknown frontiers of quantum computing. (News On Japan)

With the AI development race intensifying and Meta announcing a trillion-yen investment, data centers are gaining increasing attention. (News On Japan)

A summer tour of professional sumo was held in Sapporo on August 17th, drawing large crowds who enjoyed the powerful matches up close. (News On Japan)

The 26th Scarecrow Festival has opened in Tamba City, Hyogo Prefecture, where rows of hand-made scarecrows keep the location alive as a cultural landmark even after the loss of its original educational role. (News On Japan)

The Japanese marriage market for middle-aged and older adults is booming, fueled by a sharp increase in late-life divorces. At venues such as the legendary Maharaja Roppongi disco in Tokyo, once a symbol of youthful exuberance, around 100 men and women in their 50s and 60s gathered recently for a marriage party. (News On Japan)

McDonald's Japan announced it will impose purchase limits on the second phase of its Pokémon-themed Happy Meal campaign, starting tomorrow. For the first three days, each group will be limited to a maximum of three sets. (News On Japan)

A university student in Tokyo has been arrested in connection with the theft of goods from the official store at the Expo site, bringing the total number of suspects in the case to six. (News On Japan)

Paypay, a leading smartphone payment service, has begun preparations for a stock market listing in the United States. On August 14th local time, the company confidentially filed documents related to an initial public offering (IPO) with the US Securities and Exchange Commission. (News On Japan)

Grave visits are common during the summer Obon season, but the form of burial in Japan is undergoing significant change, with the trend of closing graves—known as “haka-jimai”—on the rise and new burial options emerging. (News On Japan)