Yamaha Engine has announced its collaboration with Netflixin the production of Tokyo Overridean original anime that will be broadcast in streaming worldwide, designing a racing motorcycle concept, the Y/AIset in a hypothetical future 100 years from now.
The series, now available on the audiovisual platform, is directed by Fukuda, Yusuke, and Veerapatra Jinanavin, and in it AI has been integrated into everyday life. Now all aspects of urban life are automated.
The Yamaha Motor Creative Center lent all its help to collaborate in the production of the series, being in charge of both providing 3D data and supporting the recording of the sounds of its YZF-R1 and VMAX models, in addition to collaborating with the World Building in the history and design of the Y/AI.
The Yamaha Y/AI protagonist in Tokyo Override
One of the highlights of Tokyo Override are the racing scenes, in which the heroine Amarin rides the Y/AI through a futuristic Tokyo. The motorcycle action is, without a doubt, one of the highlights of this anime. Yamaha cooperated and supervised various parts of the production process. For example, the characters drive through the streets of the city of the future on classic and legendary Yamaha motorcycles such as the YZF-R1 and VMAX.
In addition to providing 3D design data and sound recordings of the real models, the Japanese firm’s designers and planners also actively participated in the production process of the series, imagining the landscape of motorcycle racing in 100 years. years and designing the machine that competes in it, the Y/AI.
Nakamura Satoshifrom the Design and Planning Division, comments: “What was especially interesting was the set creation process called World Building, in which we participated with the production team. We spent a lot of time engaging in numerous discussions about what the world of Tokyo would be like in 100 years and compiled the results into a “bible” to follow during production. The events and vehicles you see in the series, as well as the story itself, are based on that 400-page bible.”
In the highly AI-driven society depicted in Tokyo Override, traffic accidents and other problems are much less likely to occur. On the other hand, natural disasters remain beyond human control. As a way to prepare for such disasters, the production team focused on the world of competition.
Nakamura explains: “Unexpected accidents can always happen in racing. The idea of looking at it as a means of identifying risks and finding routes to safety is unique and, with the added factor of the entertainment inherent in the competition, I felt there was a sense of reality when looking at it from the perspective of the meaning they could have the races in 100 years”. One of the star pilots, Amarin, rides the Y/AI, a machine that trusts in human possibilities.
Notably, the design of the Y/AI maintains the same riding position as the MotoGP YZR-M1, while the shape of the bike balances the perspective of advanced design and product design. A full-size conceptual model of the Y/AI was also built and is scheduled to be presented in end of November at the Motor Expo 2024 in Thailand.
Nakamura concludes: “The story unfolds based on the social structures, technology, and values that people will have 100 years from now, in the future we created in the World Building guide. If you watch the show while imagining how these things come together, you might find it even more interesting. I still don’t know the ending. As a viewer, I would like to really immerse myself in the world and its story when I watch it.”
