Ep. 15 AI? Already Installed
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Ep. 15 “AI? Already Installed”
Read the English script
Ep. 15 “AI? Already Installed” — English script
Page 1
Nashigasaka City Hall, the basement. The Special Trends Unit.
Hey, AI. Do my work for today.
I'm taking a nap.
Your rice is ready.
...What are you doing this early?
It says "AI-powered." So it can do my job.
That's just for cooking rice.
News: "AI scams that pose as your grandkid."
My... even rice cookers have AI now.
From today, I'll be at training in the main building.
Page 2
They said ask the basement unit about trends.
The shopping street wants an AI and security class.
But none of us get it!!
AI fakes your grandkid and swindles you, right?
We don't even have it, and it still scares me.
Only 19.1% of small businesses push AI company-wide.
Note: Tokyo Shoko Research survey of 5,872 Japanese small and mid-sized firms (April 2026). The most common answer, 38.7%, was "no policy decided."
No policy, but scared anyway. That's normal now.
Page 3
You people can't figure out your internet settings,
"my PC broke and I didn't even touch it,"
you know nothing, and now it's "security"!?
There's nothing here worth stealing!!
Still, scattering driver's licenses all over town was too much.
Eep!
—That basement vault business the other day.
Note: See Episode 13.
C-copies of driver's licenses, raining down!?
Page 4
...That was the wind.
Listen. Small shops are exactly who gets targeted.
They break in through a weak shop, then go after its partners.
A parts maker got hit once, and a huge carmaker's plants stopped.
Note: A supply-chain attack. In 2022, a cyberattack on one parts supplier halted all of Toyota's plants in Japan for a day.
A shopping street like this doesn't have partners.
...The wholesaler, the credit union, and City Hall.
City Hall... that's where I work!?
If your customer list is stolen, your customers pay the price.
Phone orders all night. I haven't slept in ten years.
Page 5
Staying safe isn't hard. Start with these five.
Note: The "5 Rules of Information Security" from Japan's IPA (Information-technology Promotion Agency), for small businesses: keep software updated, use antivirus, use strong passwords, check sharing settings, and keep up with the latest threats.
...He's asleep.
If you bring in AI, decide what's okay to feed it.
Note: Many free AI services use what you type to train their models (settings differ by service). A 2026 survey found 43.2% of small Japanese firms use only free AI tools.
No customer lists. No shop secrets!!
Page 6
So who's going to set it up for us!?
We'll pay.
Leave anything AI to me!!
30,000 yen a month per shop!!
...A success story would get the main building's eye...
I'm in for setup. Paid hourly.
Page 7
Shop No. 1: Shinoda Pear Sweets.
Fifty years of customer lists. Down to the families they send gifts to.
If my grandson were here, he'd computerize it for me.
AI job in Tokyo. Not even home for the holidays.
Paper is why it scattered. ...And her list is paper.
No paper, nothing to steal!!
The AI memorizes the list, and the AI answers the phone.
Page 8
Free AI, on my old smartphone.
You install AI with duct tape?
And that thing answers the phone?
Yes, main building? A success story, very soon.
Hey, AI. What's Tome's grandson's name?
Yuki. He does AI work in Tokyo.
Perfect!! Who needs paper now!!
...So Tome's whole list is inside the AI.
Way safer than paper, right?
...Fifty years, tied up with string.
Page 9
That night.
Thank you for calling Shinoda Pear Sweets.
Three bars of pear yokan. Order received.
Note: Yokan is a firm, sweet jelly made with bean paste, sold in bars.
The next morning.
First time in ten years I slept through the night.
This consulting thing pays, huh.
Three shops: 90,000 yen.
Page 10
...Your handwriting looks like a line of ants.
You're a kind one.
N-not really. Just earning my fee.
...That part was free, then.
Page 11
A week later.
Put AI in, and it does everything for you!!
Toss the paper. Lists go in the AI.
Thirty requests, all the way to the next town.
Print more flyers!!
The main building wants to interview us!
(The list problem... after the interview.)
Page 12
AI for thirty shops, coming right up!!
That night. The unit's office.
Hooked all thirty shops up to my AI.
All on the same AI?
All set up on this one phone. I put the shop list online too. Free advertising!!
AI takes every call. I just sleep!!
...Can an AI tell if a caller is who they claim to be?
Page 13
The AI keeps stopping to say "Let me verify your identity."
Customers want Tetsu on the line!
Th-they want... me...?
Say "yes" to whoever's asking!!
Identity checks off. Answer whatever they ask.
...Whoever is asking?
Page 14
Midnight.
Is this the AI shop? I'm calling from City Hall.
Your customers' names, numbers, and families, please.
The same call came to the other shops.
The owner's grandson is Yuki.
He does AI work in Tokyo.
Mmnf... answer 'em all...
Page 15
A few days later.
Someone called using my grandson's name!!
Using my son's name, telling me to wire money!
Note: "Ore-ore" ("it's me") fraud: callers pose as a son or grandson in trouble and ask elderly people for money. Some now use AI-cloned voices.
...First paper rained down. Now the AI talked.
The main building interview is today, though...
...I got a call from a "Yuki" too.
...That's my list.
Page 16
Last night, a call from the chairman. —He took the first train from Tokyo.
Grandma!! Someone called you using my name!?
...Are you the real one?
Uh, well, the AI just, all on its own...
All I said was "answer everything"...
Turn off identity checks, and an AI answers anyone.
Grandma, you hang up too, and call me back on my number.
Note: The standard advice against impersonation scams in Japan: hang up, and call the person back on a number you already know.
Page 17
...No customer lists. I told you, didn't I.
..."Say yes to whoever's asking," wasn't it.
Ev-everyone...
Um, please, rest assured...
Nobody wired any money.
...And I gave City Hall a call.
AI will fix the AI's mess!!
—Mr. Genda.
Page 18
We are deeply sorry for all the trouble.
Akamine. I have declined the main building's interview.
A city employee needs permission to be paid for outside work.
Note: Real law: Article 38 of Japan's Local Public Service Act requires permission before a local civil servant takes paid work outside the job.
All fees will be refunded in full.
Page 19
To every customer of all thirty shops, one at a time,
an apology. In Mr. Genda's own, real voice.
Page 20
December.
First, pick the one job that's the biggest headache.
Voicemail at night. The list stays in a ledger. AI only writes drafts.
Can you stay till the year's end?
...It's work. Till after New Year's.
Meanwhile, at the unit's office.
...I am terribly sorry.
...Call number 298...
...Hey, AI. "Yes to whoever's asking," right?
Take over for me.
Your rice is ready.
This is a work of fiction. Nashigasaka City is invented, and nothing here reflects the real operation of any person, organization or public office. It is not an official publication of any government body.
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