Artificial intelligence (AI) based on deep-learning and expert system has gone as far as defeating human champions in chess, quizzes and go, and even to give diagnoses of disease. Commercialization of a self-driving car embodying advanced information processing technology is drawing near. Fine-tuned information services leveraging big data have been creating new value. These IT innovations are supported by technology for analyzing and understanding huge amounts and varieties of data and technology for sufficient data processing.

The recent spread of the Internet and IoT is bringing about the increased variety and volume of data beyond the boundaries of the existing undergraduate-level education. Although high-dimension, data-informed problem solving competency has potential for cross-area utility, universities traditionally provided subject-specific educations such as science and engineering, health, economics and educational studies. Meanwhile, existing information science departments traditionally have focused on data processing technologies, not on data contents. Against this backdrop, Hiroshima University decided to create a new faculty offering students structured and integrated courses for understanding data contents, gaining data-informed problem solving competency and studying technologies for processing a large amount of data. Hiroshima University aims to nurture human resources capable of developing the future by leveraging data.