At NTT Software Innovation Center, we are researching and developing iChie, which is a technology for the virtual integration of disparate databases into a single entity to promote the creation of new value of data linkages between organizations and companies. This article discusses the issues of inter-company data linkage and the technical features of iChie for resolving these issues.

There has recently been an expansion of Internet of Things (IoT) devices thanks to advances in sensing technology and an increase in data sources having broadband connectivity through the launch of 5G (fifth-generation mobile communication) networks. In addition, advances in artificial intelligence (AI) technologies are enabling high-speed processing of data far exceeding the cognitive and processing abilities of humans. As a result, the amount of data generated throughout the world is increasing steadily in a manner that is expected to not only continue but accelerate in the years to come.In addition to using data only within closed organizations such as companies, NTT seeks to achieve a data-centric society in which massive amounts of data will be widely distributed beyond the traditional borders of industries and fields at ultrahigh speeds between autonomously operating AI-based systems. This society will enable the creation of totally new value and development of solutions to social problems through novel combinations of data and expertise. Problems in achieving a data-centric societyHowever, there are two main problems that must be solved to achieve this data-centric society. Limits imposed by current data processingarchitecture Data processing is currently executed by individual systems (silos) that differ in terms of purpose and processing method. This silo-oriented architecture results in many copies of the same data in those systems. In a data-centric society in which large volumes of data much greater than current levels are exchanged at ultrahigh speeds between many more entities (humans, systems, devices, etc. that distribute data) than today, this situation will only accelerate, which means that the following problems will arise if the current data-processing architecture continues to be used without modification.• Storage and network performance/capacity will come under pressure. • The number of data-processing flows that must be managed will increase, making data management

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Because hepatocellular carcinoma treated by transcatheter arterial embolization often regains its size, routine follow-up is necessary. The usefulness of pulsed Doppler ultrasound for detection of this type of recurrence was compared with ultrasonography and computed tomography in 21 such hepatocellular carcinomas. Of 15 hepatocellular carcinomas diagnosed by angiography as showing recurrence, four were detected with ultrasonography and five were detected with computed tomography. Doppler signals were obtained in the peripheral portions corresponding to tumor vessels or stains on angiograms in 14 of these 15 hepatocellular carcinomas, but they were undetectable in six hepatocellular carcinomas with no recurrence. All signals disappeared after transcatheter arterial embolization. One false-negative hepatocellular carcinoma with pulsed Doppler ultrasound showed faint tumor stains on angiograms; these were also negative on ultrasonography and computed tomography. Pulsed Doppler ultrasound may be superior to ultrasonography and computed tomography as a routine procedure to detect the recurrence of hepatocellular carcinoma treated by transcatheter arterial embolization.