On March 11th, TV Asahi held a briefing at its headquarters (Minato Ward, Tokyo) regarding its April 2026 programming changes. It announced that starting in June, a new AI-themed program, "Operation AI," will be broadcast late at night on Wednesdays (12:15am-1:20am Wednesdays, with broadcast times subject to change in some areas).
With the motto "Making the impossible possible," this variety show sees performers and AI creators take on various missions. The show aims to be an aggressive and innovative program. The MC will be Eiji Kotoge of the comedy duo "Bike King," and the show will be hosted by the station's announcer, Rui Watanabe.
Taichi Kono, head of the general programming department, said the show will be produced by staff from the AI Creative Studio, a department newly established this year, explaining, "We're still working out the details, but we'll be working on developing original IP and producing short anime."
Regarding the aim of starting a program on the theme of AI now, he said, "We thought about how we could use AI to overcome the cost, time, and technical issues that come with traditional television production," and called on viewers to "look forward to this new program, which will be produced jointly by humans and AI."
Asami Kitamura, a producer at the station, commented, "In this program, we want to seriously challenge AI with 'ridiculous ideas' and 'ideas that seem impossible.' What kind of interesting chemical reaction will emerge when human imagination, AI technology, and Kotoge's reactions are combined? We would be happy to witness that moment together with all our viewers every week!"
"Gariventure V," which aired in the same time slot, will end in May. "Horiken's Friends" and "Akiyama and Movies," which were previously broadcast within "Gariventure V," will continue to be broadcast, with "Operation AI" taking a break once a month.
