TOKYO, Jun 09 (News On Japan) –
Generative AI is now not a distant idea. With options now built-in into smartphones, AI is changing into a well-known presence in day by day life. But its affect is spreading far past comfort — reaching even into Japan’s best college entrance exams and remodeling enterprise operations.
In February, the day after entrance exams for the University of Tokyo concluded, the AI startup LifePrompt performed an experiment: may AI move the grueling Tokyo University science course (Science III) examination? Competing instruments included the American ChatGPT-4 and China’s newly developed DFCR-1. The problem was to resolve precise examination questions utilizing AI. ChatGPT accomplished the duty in about 20 minutes, whereas DeepSeek, one other AI mannequin, took 33 minutes. When mixed with mock scores for the first-round exams, ChatGPT earned 374 factors, and DeepSeek scored 369 — each exceeding the 368-point threshold usually required to move.
LifePrompt, based in 2023 by graduate scholar Satoshi Endo, continues to develop AI instruments that concentrate on real-world purposes. Endo mentioned that regardless of AI outperforming in advanced topics like physics and arithmetic, it nonetheless struggles with visible duties. “When asked to select the correct graph from several choices, humans can intuitively spot the differences, but AI can’t. It’s ironic that an AI capable of passing university exams cannot solve problems that even preschoolers can,” he famous.
Still, ChatGPT’s physics rating improved dramatically from 5 factors final 12 months to 45 this 12 months. Endo attributes this to the AI’s rising capacity to mix data throughout fields. “AI can link concepts in unexpected ways, like connecting something from Japan with something from Africa. In that sense, it may even have more imagination than humans,” he mentioned.
Endo’s curiosity in AI entrepreneurship was formed by a key encounter with guide Tomo Mochizuki, vice chairman of e-commerce options agency Itsumo. Co-founded in 2007, Itsumo has over 200 employees and was an early adopter of AI, reaching 95% automation of inner operations with the assist of LifePrompt’s AI instruments.
Mochizuki defined that consulting know-how is their biggest asset, and scaling that experience from 200 to 1,000 employees effectively is crucial. Consultant Naho Yamashita makes use of AI day by day to investigate product opinions from shoppers. “When analyzing reviews, I just input the URL and move on to another task. It’s natural now — the time savings are huge.”
At day by day items producer STEC, AI instruments have been used to spice up gross sales of underperforming merchandise. The instruments analyzed key product options like deodorizing energy and longevity, processed 1000’s of opinions in 10 minutes, and generated optimized photographs and taglines. This revealed weak attraction in each product effectiveness and design. STEC then changed product photographs and clarified product use, leading to a bounce to No. 1 in gross sales rankings.
Such AI implementation is decreasing labor hours and reshaping job roles. “Tasks like creating pages, writing emails, or analyzing data may soon take just one-fifth or even one-tenth of the time,” mentioned Endo. “Companies will shift focus from routine tasks to strategy and branding — which is a good thing.”
Nonetheless, this shift brings issues. Microsoft has introduced 6,000 job cuts, largely in software program growth, whereas Salesforce is chopping 1,000 roles. At the identical time, each corporations are hiring for AI-related positions. The CEO of Anthropic, one other AI agency, has warned that half of all entry-level jobs may vanish, and unemployment may attain 20%.
While the transformation is unsettling, some see it as an answer to Japan’s persistent labor scarcity. But the transition interval could carry social pressure. Endo believes engineers are most in danger within the present wave, however added that routine desk duties and name heart operations are additionally quickly being automated.
Yet AI adoption in Japanese corporations nonetheless faces hurdles. Many corporations stay unsure about what AI can really do and the way it will match into their workflows. Endo identified that many Japanese corporations hesitate to speculate except they clearly see cost-saving outcomes. He additionally famous the issue of customizing AI to suit every firm’s distinctive work tradition and processes.
“Generic AI tools like ChatGPT often don’t align with a company’s internal know-how or workflow. Our job as AI consultants is to deeply understand each business and tailor solutions accordingly,” he mentioned.
Looking forward, Endo envisions a future the place working alongside AI turns into the norm. “Just like talking to colleagues, we’ll communicate with AI. But that also means we need to think carefully about permissions, security, and how much autonomy AI should have.”
He concluded by stressing the widening hole between those that can leverage AI and those that can not. “If using AI can make one person ten times more productive, that’s going to create real disparities. Adapting to that reality is one of the biggest challenges we face.”
Source: TBS