The advent of generative AI, represented by Chat GPT, was a shocking wake-up call to the whole world. OpenAI of America introduced its software in November 2022 and gained over a hundred million registered members within two months. Generative AI is an innovative technology which potentially affects all sorts of industries and is changing ways of working, businesses, and ultimately society.

Tech giants like Microsoft and Google are of course in the front line of the competition, expanding large ‘foundation’ models such as LLMs. These took off particularly around 2014 as increases in available data, more computer resources, and scientific advances in the structures of neural networks created more capable systems. But LLMs do not necessarily need large numbers of parameters, and using open sources to develop them has turned out to be even cheaper and faster.

With this in mind, Ito believes that competitive superiority in this field does not lie in the size or sophistication of the model, but in customising it to fit the purposes of the users. What is wanted and being developed among the most advanced researchers now is the quality of customised models, not the quantity of universal models. And this is the future of AI models, which will be safer and more cost-effective.

As an investor in this space, Ito will dive deep into the cases, implications and future of generative AI and society, introducing notable examples from the UK and Japan and highlighting the importance of international cooperation to deal with existing and emerging challenges and problems.

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About the contributors

Ren Ito

Ren Ito is Founder and Partner of Solaris Fund Management, and is an entrepreneur, investor and former diplomat. He took the lead on the global expansion of Mercari, Japan’s first unicorn start-up running the fastest-growing marketplace app.  He served as CEO of Mercari Europe, as well as successfully orchestrated its IPO valuing the company at $6bn. He founded Solaris Fund Management and has invested in a number of leading unicorn start-ups in fintech and AI space, including AI unicorns like Afiniti and Stability AI. Prior to venturing into entrepreneurial challenges, Ren spent 15 years in diplomacy.  He held key positions in the Japanese Foreign Service where he worked on the security alliance with the US, negotiated a free trade agreement with the EU, and represented Japan at the World Bank board. Ren continues to be involved in public policy debates on technological innovation and international politics as Senior Fellow at New York University (NYU) School of Law.  Ren is the youngest member of the Trilateral Commission.