Artificial intelligence (AI) is a subject mentioned in the story, so Rie Qudan's verbatim quotation of ChatGPT's dialogue is intended to "illustrate" the interaction between humans and AI in the digital age - which is a hot topic today. Therefore, a member of the Akutagawa Prize committee affirmed that Rie Qudan's case is completely valid.
In October 2025, Rie Qudan's Tokyo Tower of Empathy was officially released to Vietnamese readers.

Tokyo Tower of Empathy book cover
PHOTO: Publishing House
Tokyo Sympathy Tower is set in a fictional Japan where tolerance for criminals has become a dominant social value. In this context, a major project called “Sympathy Tower Tokyo” is underway – a high-rise prison in the middle of the capital, with the aim of holding criminals in “humane” and “sympathetic” conditions. The project is expected to become a new architectural icon of Tokyo, like a modern “Tower of Babel” reflecting social ideals.
The person assigned to design the project is Makina Sara – a famous architect, who also carries the haunting memory of a criminal she can never forgive. For Sara, the idea of a prison built on the spirit of humanity is completely at odds with her personal experiences and beliefs. Torn between her professional ideals and her inner resistance, she must maintain her job while searching for a way out of her inner conflict.
In parallel with the design process, Sara also chats with an AI chatbot – a source of inspiration and a place where she pours out her innermost thoughts. These conversations not only reveal the connection between architecture and language, but also reflect on how humans define and distort the concept of “justice” through words.
Rie Qudan is a Japanese female writer. In 2021, she debuted with the work Bad Music and won the 126th Bungakukai Literary Prize for New Authors. Her work Schoolgirl, published in the same year, was nominated for the 166th Akutagawa Prize and the 35th Mishima Yukio Prize. In March 2023, with this work, she also won the 73rd Selected Art Prize for New Artists. In January 2024, her work Tokyo Tower of Sympathy won her the prestigious Akutagawa Prize.
Source: https://thanhnien.vn/tac-pham-gay-tranh-cai-vi-dung-ai-duoc-phat-hanh-o-viet-nam-185251016153032665.htm
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