The future of AI looks very different in Japan

Japan is much further ahead in real AI deployment than most people realize.

Today we talk with David Ha, CEO of Sakana AI, Japan's clearly most valuable, and arguably most innovative, AI startup, and he explains how Japanese enterprises are using AI in production environments today.

We talk about selling advanced software to conservative enterprises, how Sakana is customizing existing LLMs to fit Japanese sensibilities, and why smaller, more flexible routing models will likely win out over the massive, expensive frontier models.

David also shares some great advice for anyone starting a startup in Japan.

It's a great conversation, and I think you'll enjoy it.

Show Notes

When it's best build for Japan instead of (or before) going global

How to raise money overseas as a KK and raise large rounds in Japan

It's actually very easy to start a startup in Japan

Sakana AI's three-stage go-to-market strategy

The tradeoffs between B2B and B2C strategies in Japan

How to drive AI adoption in the Japanese enterprise