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GMO AI & Web3 Inc. will change its name from GMO Web3 Inc. on May 24, 2023 in order to focus on AI. Could you tell us again why the GMO Internet Group is focusing on AI?
Tomohiro Uchida (hereinafter, Uchida): GMO Web3 Inc. was launched on June 30, 2022, and it would not be an exaggeration to say that the year was the year of Web 3.0. It was a time when many young entrepreneurs were very excited about starting companies with Web 3.0. GMO Web3 Inc. was established to ride that wave.
However, in 2023, the enthusiasm for AI was stronger than that for Web 3.0. Given the current situation, we thought that "the era of generative AI is coming," and decided to focus on AI. The current situation is at the end of the first half of the so-called "Internet revolution."
So what is the second half of the Internet revolution? I think it is the "AI revolution." The Internet revolution began in 1995, the year Windows 95 was released. On the other hand, ChatGPT, which sparked the AI boom, was released on November 30, 2022.
It is said that the Industrial Revolution will last for 55 years, and if we apply this to our business, November 2022 will be exactly 27.5 years, the halfway point. In other words, ChatGPT appeared just as we were approaching the second half of the industrial revolution, and we felt that this was fate.
The GMO Internet Group has been fighting as an IT company until now, but we believe that in the future we will not be able to win unless we become an "AI company."
What changes do you think will occur around us as AI becomes more widespread?
Uchida: What generative AI will change is the way people work. Ultimately, it means that the way business is fought will change. Looking at the most recent financial results of GAFAM, what they have in common is that they are laying off employees, that is, reducing their workforce. And there is a growing tendency to use the saved funds to invest in GPUs.
In other words, the idea is that it is more likely to make money by investing in GPUs than by spending on labor costs.
In terms of change, we will move into an era where we will ask ChatGPT or AI rather than using Google search. If the time comes when it is faster to ask Gemini, which is provided by Google, than to search on Google, that will affect us as well.
At the GMO Internet Group, we are involved in businesses related to Internet search, such as domains and Internet advertising. To put it bluntly, if search disappears, the foundation that we have called "rock-solid stock profits" will collapse.
We feel a great sense of crisis that such a possibility has arisen with the advent of AI. Therefore, we believe that we need to drastically change our work style.
Since last year, GMO Internet Group has been promoting itself as the "No. 1 corporate group in AI utilization," and from 2024, under the slogan "Towards becoming the No. 1 corporate group creating the future with AI," we are trying to have all employees utilize AI. In fact, most employees currently use AI as a tool on a daily basis, and of course everyone uses ChatGPT.
In relation to the GAFAM story mentioned earlier, there has been a rush of layoffs in high-tech companies in the United States. On the other hand, in Japan, it is not easy to fire employees due to the Labor Standards Act, and in the words of Kumagai, the CEO of GMO Internet Group, we have a strong sense of employment responsibility, so we do not easily fire employees.
So what will we do in the future? All partners must be reborn as people who can utilize AI, that is, "AI warriors." The reason we are focusing on AI is because we feel a sense of crisis that our own business is becoming fragile, and we have a sense of mission that we must utilize it to protect the jobs of our employees.
What AI features do you think would be useful to have, and are there any areas that the GMO Internet Group will focus on?
Uchida: Speaking of convenience, I think it's the fact that you can create images and videos with generative AI. Long videos may be difficult with current technology, but I think the world will change even more when we can create long videos with generative AI.
That's why we released "ConoHa VPS GPU Server" last year, which allows you to use NVIDIA's latest GPU on an hourly basis, and on February 13th of this year, we announced that we would invest 10 billion yen in GPU servers.
After all, AI is all about computing power, and high-performance infrastructure is necessary. I think this is an area where we can develop our business by utilizing the capabilities we have cultivated.
As GMO, we should focus on the infrastructure area first, and then we should start on security. Even in the world of AI, security is extremely important, and I think this is also an area where we can expect demand to increase.
Mr. Uchida, you were also appointed CEO of GMO Oshiete AI Inc., which was established in November last year. How has it been developing the company's services so far?
Uchida: Looking at society as a whole, people who use AI are classified as early adopters in the innovator theory. I want to tell the next early majority and those who will follow that "AI is fun to use like this" and "It's useful." That's the thought behind my current business.
What gains and challenges have you gained through the service?
Uchida: In terms of what I learned, I realized that there aren't that many people who are adept at using AI. That means that "Teach Me AI" itself needs improvement, and there are various issues, such as designing the site to respond immediately when a user who wants to use it for a certain purpose appears.
In terms of such issues, I recognize that there is a problem with prompts in particular. Currently, the instructions to AI are complicated. I think that this is one of the barriers for users.
Our service "Teach Me AI by GMO" allows other users to share the prompts they create, so that other users can use them as reference and suggest improvements. I think this will contribute to improving users' ability to create prompts.
In addition, you can create and save a large number of prompts tailored to the situation and retrieve them at any time, making it a service that really hits the spot.
As the market conditions improve in the Web 3.0 field, efforts are accelerating in various areas, but how does GMO AI & Web, the three companies, view the current situation?
Uchida: In terms of market conditions, Bitcoin spot ETFs have been approved, and the halving is also coming, so it's a good year in terms of momentum.
In terms of the global economy, interest rates may be lowered soon, especially in the United States, so I think investment in crypto assets will increase relatively. As a result, institutional investors will also enter the market.
In terms of Web 3.0, I think the current situation is that only a few early adopters are excited about it. In order for Web 3.0 to spread, we need genuinely fun services and content, and I think that if something like STEPN comes out as a game, it could spread.
Web 3.0 has the idea of "decentralization," but AI is "monopoly." GAFAM, which is currently focusing on AI, is a typical example. I've always found Web 3.0 and AI to be polar opposites, and I've always found them interesting.
Given the current situation, what strategies will the three GMO AI & Web companies adopt going forward?
Uchida: If talented young people start a business in the Web 3.0 field, we would love to invest in them. Currently, we are supporting the growth of entrepreneurs who have launched startups in the Web 3.0 field by having them use GMO's assets.
As a group, we are already engaged in cryptocurrency exchanges and mining businesses, as well as issuing stable coins overseas, and as GMO AI & Web3, we would like to invest if there is an opportunity to support them and resonate with entrepreneurs in the Web 3.0 field.
What goals and missions does the GMO Internet Group need to achieve by 2024 in the areas of AI and Web 3.0?
Uchida: Our slogan is "Create the No. 1 company that creates the future" with AI.
In order for us to transform from an IT company to an AI company, all of our current partners need to become AI talent, that is, "AI warriors" who can use AI as I mentioned earlier. Otherwise, we will lose to foreign companies. Therefore, our goal this year is for everyone to become AI talent.
In addition, as a group, we are using AI to reduce business costs, and in the actual results from April to November 2023, we achieved a reduction of 96,000 hours of work. In 2024, we have set a specific goal of improving business efficiency by 1.8 billion yen for the entire group. We also have a goal of "achieving results with AI infrastructure."
In terms of Web 3.0, we don't have any specific definitions, but we are sowing the seeds, so as a group, we would like to make big moves in the areas we think are important.
Tomohiro Uchida
Representative Director, GMO AI&Web3 Inc.
Joined GMO Internet Inc. (now GMO Internet Group Inc.) in 2012 and worked in the Group Investment Strategy Office, where he was involved in building relationships (group joins) and other investment projects. In 2021, he became Head of Group Investment Strategy Office. Representative Director, GMO Web3 Inc. (now GMO AI & Web3 Inc.). Since 2023, he has been Group Executive Officer and Head of Group Investment Strategy Office, GMO Internet Group Inc. (current position).
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