Karhu Lab | Designing how we work in the age of AI.

Question
before solution.

THE QUESTION

We want to change.
But where
do we even begin?

We adopted AI,
but nobody on the floor uses it.

We ran training,
but the work didn’t change.

A few enthusiasts
carry everything.

We want to improve operations,
but can’t pin down the problems.

We can’t picture
what AI could do for us.

The new system
adds to the team’s load.

That unease
may be where change begins.

AX DESIGN / 02 — WHAT IT IS

AX = AI Transformation. Starting from AI, changing the way we work itself.

AX DESIGN

01 — Technology

AI, by itself,
changes nothing.

02 — Learning

It starts moving only when
people learn and begin to use it.

03 — Workflow

Built into the flow of work,
it becomes everyday.

04 — Transformation

Team relationships and organisational systems change,
and it takes root.

AX Design

Starting from AI, we reconnect how people learn, how work flows, how teams relate and how the organisation runs, and turn it into change that can actually be practised. That is what Karhu Lab means by AX Design.

01 — Technology
AI, by itself,
changes nothing.
02 — Learning
It starts moving only when
people learn and begin to use it.
03 — Workflow
Built into the flow of work,
it becomes everyday.
04 — Transformation
Team relationships and organisational systems change,
and it takes root.
AX Design
Starting from AI, we reconnect how people learn, how work flows, how teams relate and how the organisation runs, and turn it into change that can actually be practised. That is what Karhu Lab means by AX Design.

OFFERINGS / 03

From concept to build,
to lasting change.

Not a menu to pick from, but the actions change needs, in the order it needs them. One of them, or all of them.

01
THINK
Find the real problem
From the friction and unease on the floor, work out the question really worth facing.
What we do
- Talks for leadership and teams on what AI actually changes
- Interviews to surface the tedious and the awkward in daily work
- Put the problems into words and set priorities
What you keep
A map of the problems, and the order to tackle them
02
DESIGN
Design the change
Redraw how work flows, who does what and how tools are used, in a shape people can live with.
What we do
- Draw the big picture of AI use (an AX strategy)
- Redesign workflows, roles and how tools are used
- Plan small experiments to test it
What you keep
A blueprint for the work, and an experiment plan
03
MAKE
Actually build it
Build small and try it. Fix it while using it. A working thing moves the discussion forward.
What we do
- Prototype workflow apps and AI tools
- Try them on the floor and fix them in use
- Write the how-to
What you keep
A working prototype, and how to use it
04
LEARN
Grow the people
Not just knowing, but starting to use it in your own work. Layer by layer, hands on.
What we do
- Generative AI training (5–100 people, in person or online)
- Project-based, hands-on talent development
- Design and run an in-house academy
What you keep
People and teams who have started using AI in their own work
05
TRANSFORM
Make it take root
Not the effort of a few, but a state that lasts through the team and its systems. Make visible how people and AI relate, and build the systems that keep it going, together.
What we do
- Make the current state visible with the RELACTIS ↗ AI-use diagnostic (with organisational survey)
- Embed it through reflection and system-building
- Ongoing support as an advisor
What you keep
Systems that last without depending on a few people

Who it’s for: Owners, DX leads, HR and team leaders at small and mid-sized companies.
Across Japan, in person or online.
How it works: First callfree
Take stock
Proposal
Delivery
Formats & fees: Talks and training for 5–100 people. From one-off sessions to ongoing support and advisory retainers.
Fees are shaped around your budget.

We start from what’s happening now,
and put together only what you need.
The first conversation is free.

SELECTED WORK / 04

Thinking and building,
close to the change.

Generative AI adoption that sticks

Not stopping at rollout: training and workplace experiments until AI is built into daily work and stays in use.

Corporate

AI talks and training for executives,
managers and teams

Layered talks and hands-on training that bring it down to “how do I use this in my job”.

Organisation / Manufacturing

Designing and running in-house academies
and DX talent programmes

Learning designed as a system that keeps running inside the company, not a one-off event, and running it too.

Learning / Org development

Problem-solving and cross-boundary learning
with local companies and learners

Programmes where learners and the workplace solve real company problems together.

Region / Education

Planning and building workflow apps
and AI prototypes

Tools that start from what’s tedious on the floor, built small, tried, and grown in use.

Operations / Prototyping

Writing and research on organisations
and people in the age of AI

Putting what practice reveals into words, and feeding it back into practice.

Research / Writing

We don’t measure results by how much we built.
What matters is that the change keeps going afterwards.

LAB PROJECTS / 05

We don’t just give answers.
We run experiments too.

The “Lab” in Karhu Lab isn’t just a name.

People and AI, people and people, work and technology.

From those relationships we explore how work and organisations could be, building and testing products and systems of our own.

AI-use diagnostic & organisational survey

RELACTIS

Making the relationship between people and AI visible.

Whether people use AI or not
tells you little about how an organisation uses AI.

How do people relate to AI, and where are the possibilities and the hesitations?

RELACTIS makes the relationship between people and AI visible,
and through dialogue and experiments, helps teams think about how they work.

Human × AI

See RELACTIS

A platform for new combinations

RESOVATION

New value from resonating curiosity.

Not connecting similar people,
but different curiosities, knowledge and experience.

From unexpected encounters with people and ideas,
new questions and projects are born.

Resovation is Karhu Lab’s experimental project:
using AI to create unlikely encounters and new combinations.

Curiosity × Resonance × Innovation

See Resovation

Small lab. Wide perspective.

We don’t only change our clients’ work.
We keep asking, building and testing ourselves.

PROFILE / 06

KOSAKU KUMAMOTO熊本耕作 · Fukuoka, Japan

AX Designer / Karhu Lab

20⁺: years in Business & Technology
AI / DX: Enablement & Transformation
OD: Organization Development

AI, work, people, organisation.

Change only one of them,
and the change in work rarely lasts.

So I talk with leadership, look at the floor, sort out the work,
build the training, and when needed, build the apps and systems too.

Without splitting it into specialisms,
I design across whatever the change needs.

CURRENT ROLES

Karhu LabFounder / AX Designer: Supporting work transformation, talent development and organisational change starting from AI. From process design to training, prototyping, implementation and embedding.
Institute of Systems, Information Technologies and Nanotechnologies (ISIT) Special Researcher: Planning and running programmes on DX and AI use for local companies, talent development, and connecting learning with practice.
NexForge Co., Ltd. CTO: New business and technology development in building maintenance, using AI, digital technologies and sensing.
Lightgear LLC AI Advisor: Supporting companies in advancing AI use and embedding it in people and organisations.

COMMUNITY & MEDIA

Itoshima 100 People Kaigi Curator: Creating a place for people active in the region to meet and talk.
HensA-gaku Radio Co-host: Conversations with practitioners on DX, learning and change.
EnterpriseZine Contributor / Author: Articles on DX, AI, talent development and organisational change.
note Writing: Writing on work in the age of AI and what practice teaches (in Japanese).

Beyond companies and organisations,
the work extends into the region, communities and media.

BACKGROUND

About 20 years in manufacturing.

From the shop floor to IT and DX, process improvement, system rollouts,
generative AI, DX talent development and organisation-building.

Not technology alone, not training alone,
not consulting alone.

The experience of making real change happen on the ground
is what I bring to AX Design today.

ABOUT THE NAME

Karhu is Finnish for “bear”.

Not just chasing new technology,
but asking what change is truly good for people and their work.

Karhu Lab is a lab that explores how we work in the age of AI
and builds the future from small experiments.

FAQ / 07

Frequently asked questions.

I don’t know much about AI. Can I still talk to you?

Yes. Starting from “not knowing much” is exactly Karhu Lab’s job. A vague sense that something’s off is enough.

What should I bring to a first conversation?

Either “what’s bothering us now” or “a hunch that AI could help”. In the free first conversation we sort out the situation and find what’s needed, together.

We’re a small company. Is that OK?

Yes. Most of our clients are small and mid-sized companies: owners, DX leads, HR and team leaders. What matters isn’t size but whether you want to change.

Do you work outside Fukuoka?

Yes, across Japan, in person or online. Talks and training are for 5 to 100 people.

What does it cost?

From one-off talks and training to ongoing support and advisory retainers, we shape it around your budget. The free first conversation is where we sketch what’s needed.

CONTACT / 08

Even if it isn’t
a problem yet.

A vague sense that something’s off,
or a small hunch that AI could help,
is enough.

Designing how we work,
in the age of AI.

We adopted AI.
But the way we work didn’t change.

Offering

Profile

Kosaku Kumamoto / AX Designer

We want to change.
But where
do we even begin?

AX DESIGN

From concept to build,
to lasting change.

Find the real problem

Design the change

Actually build it

Grow the people

Make it take root