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Actress Tao Tsuchiya Named TOKYO LIGHTS 2026 Ambassador, 12 Light Artworks Announced, Signup Open

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“Deeply Moved by an Otherworldly Journey” Actor Tao Tsuchiya says; Artistically Directed by Kenji Kohashi. Program Includes a New Work by Yoichi Ochiai and the Japan Debut of GAIA; Viewing Area Advance Registration Opens.

Tokyo, Japan, 4th May 2026 – The Tokyo International Projection Mapping Award Executive Committee is pleased to announce that TOKYO LIGHTS 2026, a creative festival of light illuminating Tokyo’s nights, will be held from Saturday, May 23 to Sunday, May 31, 2026, at the Tokyo Metropolitan Government No. 1 Building, Citizens’ Plaza and the Nishi-Shinjuku area (including Shinjuku Chuo Park)

The Committee is also pleased to announce that actor Tao Tsuchiya has been appointed official ambassador for TOKYO LIGHTS 2026. In addition, the Committee is unveiling the full lineup of 12 planned works for Light Art Park, the event’s light art program under the artistic direction of Kenji Kohashi. The program will bring together notable works from Japan and abroad, including a new installation by Yoichi Ochiai, the Japan debut of GAIA, and legacy works from Expo 2025 Osaka, Kansai. Viewing Area Advance Registration Now Open via official website!

Official Ambassador

The Committee is pleased to announce the appointment of actor Tao Tsuchiya as the official ambassador for TOKYO LIGHTS 2026. Widely supported across generations and known for continually taking on new creative challenges, Ms. Tsuchiya will help promote the event and will also appear at the Grand Finale on Sunday, May 31, 2026.

Comment from Tao Tsuchiya: “My first encounter with TOKYO LIGHTS was in 2022. I was deeply moved by the experience, which felt as though I had traveled into another world, and since then my family and I have visited every year. It is a great honor to now take on the role of ambassador. Projection mapping and light art connect people and connect generations and perhaps may even connect us to the universe. I believe they hold limitless possibilities. I hope to share this experience with many people at the venue.”

Born in Tokyo on February 3, 1995, Tao Tsuchiya made her film debut in Tokyo Sonata (2008) and rose to national prominence after being cast as the heroine of NHK’s morning drama series Mare (2015). Since then, she has built a wide-ranging career across film, television, stage, and animation, with more than 37 starring works as of 2026. Recognized for her solid acting ability, she has received the Newcomer of the Year Award at the 39th Japan Academy Awards, the Award for Excellent Actress in a Leading Role at the 41st Japan Academy Awards, and the Award for Excellent Actress in a Supporting Role at the 48th Japan Academy Awards. She is also widely praised for her dance and action performances, which draw on her strong physical abilities. In recent years, she has actively taken on new creative challenges in scriptwriting, planning, directing, and music, and incorporated projection mapping into a staged reading of her original script. Her upcoming releases include Matching TRUE LOVE (autumn) and SUKIYAKI Ue o Muite Aruko (December 25). She is currently appearing in TV Asahi’s Borderless: Wide Area Mobile Investigation Unit.

Five Themes of VISIBLE TOKYO

Under the concept of VISIBLE TOKYO, TOKYO LIGHTS 2026 presents five themes through which visitors can experience the city in light: Visible CITY, Visible NATURE, Visible HEART, Visible CONNECTION, and Visible IMAGINATION. Through these themes, the event seeks to visualize the many elements that shape Tokyo—its urban landscape, nature, emotions, human connections, and creativity—through the shared language of light.

Visible CITY expresses Tokyo itself through light, including the flow of the city, traffic, signs of human presence, and data.

Visible NATURE presents installations that evoke the breath of nature and the subtle movements of life.

Visible HEART features artworks that project emotions, memories, and lingering traces of feeling as light. 

Visible CONNECTION explores interfaces of light linking the city and nature, and people and the city. 

Visible IMAGINATION offers participatory and immersive expressions designed to stimulate creativity and inspiration.

Light Art Park

For a limited period, Light Art Park will transform Shinjuku Chuo Park into an immersive environment of light art. Under the artistic direction of Kenji Kohashi, who has led numerous international events and large-scale festivals including Expo 2025 Osaka, Kansai, artists from Japan and overseas will depict the “invisible Tokyo” through light.

Light Art Park is organized around four themes—Visible CITY, Visible NATURE, Visible HEART, and Visible CONNECTION. Throughout the venue, visitors will encounter works that give physical form to these themes, allowing them to experience the world of VISIBLE TOKYO as they walk through the park.

Featured 5 Works

GAIA / Visible HEART / Lawn Area (East) / Luke Jerram / United Kingdom

Courtesy of Light Art Collection

Making its highly anticipated Japan debut—an immersive experience of viewing Earth from space

Photo (c) R.o.R Festival & Ana Rojc

Created by Luke Jerram, known for works that cross artistic disciplines, GAIA is a monumental Earth installation at seven meters in diameter. Produced using high-resolution NASA imagery of the Earth’s surface, the work offers an immersive experience akin to viewing the planet from space. The installation will make its Japan debut at TOKYO LIGHTS 2026.

Embrace / Visible CITY / Fun More Time Hiroba / Beamhacker / Australia

Human connection expands outward as ripples of light

This participatory installation by Beamhacker, known for interactive works combining light and mirrors, invites visitors to join hands with the human-shaped silhouettes arranged around the piece. As they do so, ripples of light spread outward in a chain reaction, and the installation becomes increasingly dynamic through communication and cooperation among participants.

Liquid Universe: Sōbō Chūfu — An Unclassifiable Entomologia of the Luminous Swarm / Visible CONNECTION / Chobo-no-Mori / Yoichi Ochiai / Japan

A new installation by Yoichi Ochiai, where the lights of nature and the city intersect.

Created for TOKYO LIGHTS 2026 by Yoichi Ochiai, this new installation brings together different forms of light found in nature and in the city—such as fireflies, bioluminescent organisms, and LEDs—within a four-meter pillar of light. Amid imagery continuously generated by computational nature, the work invites visitors to reconsider the boundary between the natural and the artificial.

Visible TOWER / Visible CITY / Fun More Time Hiroba / V_T / Japan

This tower-shaped installation visualizes the memories and everyday activities of people passing through the city as “memories of light.” During the day, it reflects the surrounding urban landscape and its visitors like a mirror; at night, AI-generated collages of the city’s memories appear on an LED display. Visitors may also walk through the sculpture itself and experience these “memories of light” at close range.
V_T:YAMACHANG / Kenji Kohashi / Naoya Murayama

INTER-WORLD/Cocooner: Apparent motion of celestial bodies 
/ Visible NATURE / Hana-no-Mori / Akihito Okunaka / Japan
A legacy work from Expo 2025 Osaka, Kansai that evokes the cycles of nature

This experiential work was exhibited as an official program of Study: Osaka Kansai International Art Festival 2025 at Expo 2025 Osaka, Kansai. Through a soft sculptural form that amplifies natural phenomena created by the interaction of air, water, and sunlight, the work encourages visitors to reflect on how human beings are connected to the world. Visitors are invited to step inside and experience being enveloped by cocoons of changing light.

Additional Works and Open Call Program

In addition to the featured works above, Light Art Park will include a range of other installations, including Seeds of Light— Egg of Hope, first exhibited at Burning Man in the Nevada desert in the United States; Photosynthesis, in which FLIGHTGRAF, a headliner at one of Europe’s leading light festivals, depicts the breathing cycle of plants; and TOKYO Hyakka Ryōran, which likens Tokyo’s individuality to a giant blooming flower. Throughout the venue, visitors will encounter light-based expressions that resonate with both the city and nature.

As opportunities to present light art in public spaces in Japan remain limited, the event has also held an open call and will exhibit works by emerging artists and students selected through the screening process. Through these efforts, TOKYO LIGHTS 2026 aims to help foster a new generation of artists and creators working in light-based expression.

Images are for illustrative purposes only.

1minute Projection Mapping Competition

The 1minute Projection Mapping Competition is one of the world’s most established and prestigious international projection mapping competitions, originating in Japan since 2012. Each year, creators compete for top honors with works running from one minute to one minute fifty-nine seconds. Bringing together leading creators from around the world as well as rising young talent, the competition offers a unique opportunity in Japan to experience a wide range of highly accomplished and distinctive works in one place.

The competition invited entries under the theme “Dialogue”. A total of 412 entries were received from 65 countries and regions around the world. Finalists selected from among these entries will compete for the Grand Prix.

Jury Member and Invited Artist 

Ouchhh / Digital Media Artist / Turkey

Kentaro Tanaka / Video Creator / Graphic Designer (Winner of the previous competition) / Japan

MCs for the International Competition Awards Ceremony

Tetsuya Bessho / Actor; Representative of Short Shorts Film Festival & Asia

Aki Shibuya / Bilingual MC; Journalist

Official Website of the 1minute Projection Mapping Competition:
https://1minute-pm.com/

 

Event Overview: TOKYO LIGHTS 2026

TOKYO LIGHTS is a festival of light born in 2021 that illuminates Tokyo’s nights. Centered on an international projection mapping competition featuring creators from around the world and experiential entertainment that fuses light, art, and technology, the event sends a message of creativity and hope toward the future.

Event Title: TOKYO LIGHTS 2026

Venues:
Tokyo Metropolitan Government Building No.1, Tokyo Citizen’s Plaza

(2-8-1 Nishi-Shinjuku, Shinjuku-ku, Tokyo 160-0023)
Shinjuku Chuo Park

(2-11 Nishi-Shinjuku, Shinjuku-ku, Tokyo)

Dates (scheduled):
Saturday, May 23 to Sunday, May 31, 2026

1minute Projection Mapping Competition

  1. Screenings: Saturday, May 23; Sunday, May 24; and Sunday, May 31, 2026
  2. Screenings / Awards Ceremony: Saturday, May 30, 2026

Light Art Park
Saturday, May 23 to Sunday, May 31, 2026

Grand Finale
Sunday, May 31, 2026

Organizer:
Projection Mapping International Award TOKYO Executive Committee

Co-host:
Tokyo Metropolitan Government

Official Website: https://tokyolights.jp

Social Media:
X: https://x.com/tokyolights_jp
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/tokyolights_jp/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/tokyolights.jp
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@tokyolightsjp

Inquiries Regarding Event Details and Tickets

TOKYO LIGHTS 2026 Call Center
TEL: +81-3-6706-7972

Hours: 10:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. on weekdays only
(excluding weekends and public holidays)

Media Contact

Organization: TOKYO LIGHTS 2026 PR Office (Antil Inc.)

Contact Person: Ishida

Website: https://tokyolights.jp

Email: Send Email

Contact Number: +81368217863

City: Tokyo

Country:Japan

Release id:44582

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Carziqo Brings A-DS Autonomous Delivery to San Francisco During Future Mobility Festival

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  • The company reports rising delivery demand as it positions autonomous logistics as a response to growing operating costs and the need for more efficient urban services.

SAN FRANCISCO, CA, Oct 03, 2026, ZEX PR WIRE — Carziqo says its A-DS autonomous delivery vehicles have begun operating in San Francisco, extending the company’s delivery business during the Carziqo Future Mobility Festival. The development comes as the company reports continued growth in delivery orders across its supported operations and sees increasing opportunities for autonomous technology in the movement of goods.

The San Francisco operation brings a practical focus to the October celebration: how intelligent mobility can support the everyday needs of businesses and consumers. For Carziqo, autonomous delivery represents an opportunity to connect its vehicle technology with a service whose value depends on consistency, convenience and careful management of operating costs.

The company’s recent announcements have emphasized rising A-DS order volumes and the importance of matching delivery demand with available fleet capacity. Carziqo says its priority is to translate that growth into better vehicle utilization and a more dependable service as the business develops.

The economic backdrop gives that objective particular relevance. According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, compensation costs for private industry workers rose 3.3 percent in the year ending June 2026, including a 3.1 percent increase in wages and salaries. Although these figures cover private industry broadly, they provide context for the cost pressures businesses face when planning labor-intensive services.

For delivery operators, handling additional orders involves more than adding vehicles. It requires coordinating routes, staffing, vehicle availability and the time needed to complete each task. Higher demand creates a commercial opportunity, but the ability to serve that demand efficiently determines how much value the additional activity can generate.

Carziqo’s approach centers on reducing the manual driving requirements of supported delivery journeys while maintaining human involvement in fleet supervision, maintenance, customer support and situations requiring direct intervention. The company describes this division of responsibilities as a way to organize delivery work more efficiently as volumes increase.

That distinction is central to the business case for autonomous delivery. Automation can change how resources are allocated, but its usefulness depends on the performance of the wider service. A vehicle must be available when needed, assigned a suitable route and supported throughout its operating cycle.

Carziqo describes the A-DS platform as combining automated driving with route planning, connected vehicle monitoring and centralized operational support. Its fleet systems are designed to bring together information about vehicle condition, delivery progress, charging requirements and maintenance needs, helping teams coordinate the vehicles as a network.

For San Francisco, the significance of the deployment lies in applying that approach to local delivery needs. The commercial opportunity will depend on how effectively available capacity meets demand and how consistently the service performs within its operating scope. Those practical considerations give the expansion a business focus beyond the introduction of another autonomous vehicle model.

Carziqo has previously described a phased approach to A-DS deployment, with attention to route suitability, operational stability and service consistency. Experience gathered from its delivery operations is intended to inform improvements in dispatching, maintenance planning and future deployment decisions.

The Carziqo Future Mobility Festival places these developments within the company’s broader ambition to make intelligent transportation relevant to daily life. Held throughout October, the festival centers on greener mobility, connected services and the practical use of technology to improve how people and goods move through cities.

Autonomous delivery gives that theme an everyday point of connection. Behind each delivery is a person waiting for an item or a business fulfilling a customer’s request. The value of the technology ultimately rests on whether it can help complete those tasks reliably and make the service easier to manage.

The festival also provides an occasion to recognize the community supporting Carziqo’s development. In a separate A-DS announcement, the company introduced an additional Wednesday Performance Reward for eligible A-DS rental users, with amounts, claiming arrangements and eligibility governed by the terms published on its platform.

As the company develops its delivery business, its stated priorities include closer coordination between demand and vehicle deployment, management of operating costs and continued improvement of the service experience.

The San Francisco operation adds a new chapter to that effort during the Future Mobility Festival. With A-DS, Carziqo is positioning autonomous delivery as a practical part of its longer-term mobility ambitions—one whose progress will be measured through the everyday work of moving goods and serving customers.

For company information and official updates, visit www.carziqo.com.

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Brian Baldari on the Difference Between a Mentor and a Sponsor, and Why It Decides Promotions

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  • ResilExec® Coaching founder Brian Baldari, Pharm.D., MBA, on why senior leaders who have plenty of advice and no advocacy stall at the same level for years.

BRICK, N.J., Oct 03, 2026, ZEX PR WIRE — Most senior professionals have someone they go to for advice. Far fewer have someone who argues for them in a room they are not in. According to Brian Baldari, Pharm.D., MBA, founder of ResilExec® Coaching, that distinction accounts for a large share of stalled advancement among otherwise strong performers.

Baldari spent 24 years inside pharmaceutical, healthcare, and enterprise leadership organizations. He held five successive Director-level roles, moved from Director to Vice President and Senior General Manager in 18 months, and led the commercial launch of 14 brands. He now works with Associate Directors, Directors, Senior Directors, Executive Directors, and Vice Presidents inside pharmaceutical, healthcare, and enterprise IT organizations.

“A mentor talks to you. A sponsor talks about you,” Baldari says. “One of those changes your calendar. The other changes your title.”

Advice Is Not Advocacy

Mentorship is widely available and widely encouraged. Many organizations run formal programs for it. A mentor offers perspective, context, and guidance, and that guidance has real value early in a career when the primary gap is knowledge.

Sponsorship operates differently. A sponsor spends their own credibility on someone else. They put a name forward on a succession slate, defend a candidate during calibration, and accept the consequences if the bet does not pay off. That is a materially different act, and it is not something an organization can mandate.

“Leaders collect mentors because mentors are easy to ask for,” Baldari says. “Nobody feels awkward requesting advice. Asking someone to spend their reputation on you is a different conversation, and most people never have it.”

Where the Gap Shows Up

The gap becomes visible at the point where advancement decisions are made collectively. Calibration sessions and succession discussions involve people across multiple functions, many of whom have no direct experience of a given candidate’s work. In those rooms, a candidate is represented by whoever chooses to speak.

“If nobody in that room can describe what you do at enterprise scale, you are not in the conversation, regardless of your review,” Baldari says. “The decision is not made on the strength of your record. It is made on the strength of the description someone else gives of it.”

Baldari notes that this is where strong performers are most often surprised. Their performance ratings are high, their manager is supportive, and the outcome still does not change, because the people who influenced the decision were never engaged.

Sponsorship as a Variable

Sponsorship is one of five variables in Baldari’s Promotion Math™ framework, alongside Performance, Visibility, Narrative, and Timing. In his assessment, strong performers optimize the first variable and leave the remaining four unattended, then attribute the result to politics.

“Performance gets you noticed. Positioning gets you promoted,” Baldari says. “Sponsorship is the variable people find hardest to work on, because it requires asking for something rather than producing something.”

What Changes the Outcome

Baldari advises leaders to identify the specific individuals who will participate in the decisions that affect them, then assess honestly whether those individuals could describe their contribution without prompting. In most cases the answer is no, and that is the actionable finding.

From there the work is practical rather than social. It involves delivering value to those individuals rather than checking in with them, framing results at enterprise level rather than functional level, and showing up in forums where that work is visible to people beyond a direct reporting line.

“You do not recruit a sponsor by asking them to be one,” Baldari says. “You give them something worth putting their name next to, and you make sure they understand what it was.”

About Brian Baldari

Brian Baldari, Pharm.D., MBA, based in Brick, New Jersey, is the founder of ResilExec® Coaching and Resilient Performance Group LLC. He spent 24 years inside pharmaceutical, healthcare, and enterprise leadership organizations, held five successive Director-level roles, and advanced from Director to Vice President and Senior General Manager in 18 months. He led the commercial launch of 14 brands across rare and chronic disease categories, led an organization of more than 250 people, and has mentored more than 50 leaders across three continents. Through ResilExec Coaching, he helps Associate Directors, Directors, Senior Directors, Executive Directors, and Vice Presidents accelerate career growth through personalized executive coaching, leadership development, and strategic career positioning.

Media Contact

Resilient Performance Group LLC

https://resilexec.com

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Timothy Caraboolad Publishes a Buyer’s Checklist for New-Build Condos in South Florida

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  • Real estate developer Timothy Caraboolad is releasing a set of questions first-time buyers should ask before putting money down on a new-build apartment in South Florida.

A market full of new buildings, and a lot of first-time buyers

Florida, USA, Oct 03, 2026, ZEX PR WIRE — South Florida has no shortage of new construction. Buildings go up fast, sales offices open before the concrete cures, and renderings promise more than any buyer can verify in a single walkthrough.

Timothy Caraboolad, a real estate developer and designer based in Palm Beach, Florida, has spent years on the other side of that process, building high-end custom homes through his firm Lad Design. He says the buyers who end up happiest are the ones who ask harder questions earlier, not the ones who fall for the best rendering.

“A sales gallery is designed to sell you a feeling,” he says. “Your job as a buyer is to slow that down and ask what you’re actually getting for the price.”

What to check before signing anything

Caraboolad points first-time buyers toward a few areas that matter more than finishes.

Construction quality behind the walls. Countertops and cabinetry are easy to judge. What is inside the walls is not. Caraboolad suggests asking who the general contractor is, how long they have built in the area, and whether the building uses concrete or wood-frame construction, since that affects sound, insurance, and long-term durability in a hurricane-prone region.

HOA fees and what they actually cover. New buildings often advertise low fees at launch that rise once amenities open and reserves get funded. “Ask for the projected budget once the building is fully occupied, not just the introductory number,” Caraboolad says. He recommends buyers ask specifically what percentage of the fee goes into reserves, since that determines whether the building can pay for a roof or a seawall repair without a special assessment.

Storm readiness. In South Florida, this is not optional. Buyers should ask about impact windows, generator backup for elevators and common areas, and flood elevation. Caraboolad says a building’s flood zone designation should be requested in writing, not estimated by a sales agent.

Parking and storage, spelled out. Some buildings sell parking as a deeded asset. Others assign it and can reassign it later. Caraboolad says this distinction matters more than most buyers realize until after closing.

Developer track record. A new building has no resale history to check. Caraboolad suggests buyers look at other projects the same developer has completed, not just renderings of the one being sold, and ask how those buildings have held up.

Timing the purchase

For pre-construction units, Caraboolad says the biggest risk is not price, it is timeline. Delays are common, and buyers should understand what happens to their deposit if the closing date slips.

“Get the outside date for completion in writing,” he says. “And ask what your options are if that date passes.”

He also encourages buyers to walk a finished unit in the same building, or a comparable one from the same developer, before relying on a model unit that may use upgraded finishes not included in the base price.

Why this matters for first-time buyers specifically

Caraboolad says first-time buyers face a particular disadvantage: they often do not know which questions are normal to ask, so they accept vague answers.

“An experienced buyer will push back on a soft answer about HOA reserves or insurance history,” he says. “A first-time buyer might just assume that’s how it works. It isn’t. You’re allowed to ask for documentation before you commit.”

His broader point is that a new building can be a strong investment in South Florida, but only when the buyer treats the sales process the same way a developer would: checking budgets, checking materials, and checking the people building it, before checking the view.

About Timothy Caraboolad

Timothy Caraboolad is an entrepreneur, real estate developer, and designer based in Palm Beach, Florida. He is the founder of Lad Design, a South Florida firm building high-end custom homes, and previously founded Arc Design, a luxury residential development and design firm in the Boston area. He holds a Bachelor’s Degree in International Business from Rollins College.

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