Produce 48

The show produced the 12-member girl group IZ*ONE, which debuted in October 2018 with the extended play 'Color*Iz.' The group was active until disbanding in April 2021 under their original two-and-a-half-year contract.

It was a collaboration between Korea's Mnet and Japan's AKS, the management company behind the AKB48 franchise. For the first time in the Produce series, Korean K-pop trainees competed alongside Japanese idol group members from AKB48 and its sister groups.

IZ*ONE consisted of 12 members: eight Korean and four Japanese. The Japanese members included Sakura Miyawaki and Nako Yabuki from HKT48, and Hitomi Honda from AKB48, all of whom later returned to Japanese activities after the group disbanded.

Yes, producer Ahn Joon-young admitted in court in 2019 that he had manipulated the final rankings across multiple Produce seasons, including Produce 48. This led to investigations, the nullification of IZ*ONE and X1's contracts, and changes to Mnet's audition programming.