The world's population is forecast to soon reach nine billion. The human race is facing difficult challenges starting with how to feed this rapidly increasing global population. Other problems we face include shortages in energy resources, advancing global warming and the resulting increase in natural disasters, and aging social infrastructure. All of these issues are influenced by complex and correlated factors, leading to sudden and unpredictable changes in the current situation at any given time. The utilization of big data is seen as a means of resolving many of these complex and changing issues. Providers of advanced big data utilization technologies will be able to help their customers flexibly handle changing business environments, giving them an unmistakable competitive edge.