Introduction
On November 10, 2024, as part of SOCIAL INNOVATION WEEK 2024, an "AI Communication & Utilization Discussion" was held at Shibuya GMO Yours Fukuras. We welcomed Mr. usutaku, CEO of Michikusa Inc., which boasts a total of 400,000 followers, and Mr. Chaen, CEO of Digirise Inc., to talk about a wide range of topics, from the forefront of AI utilization to future prospects.
The moderator was Mr. Yamashiro, CEO of GMO Oshiete AI Co., Ltd. Even though it was the final session starting at 5pm, the venue was filled with excitement.
Encounter with AI and a turning point in my career
Mr. Yamashiro: Could you tell us how you two first encountered AI?
usutaku: In my case, I first came across Midjourney in August 2022. My older sister is an art major, and she became interested in it after hearing that "AI can draw pictures." However, the real turning point for me was my experience with ChatGPT in November 2022.
At the time, I was working at Amazon, and I had to write VBA code for work, but I was having trouble. I tried consulting ChatGPT 3.5, and was surprised that it easily output the code. I realized that this was a big problem, so I talked to a friend of mine who was an engineer from Tokyo University at the company I was working for at the time, and we came to the conclusion that this was going to make classes even more difficult, so I immediately decided to start a company.
Mr. Chaeng: I've always loved technology, and since my university days I've been immersed in blockchain, creating and distributing "Chaincoin," and have always been interested in new technologies. I also taught classes on Web3, but when I came across ChatGPT, I felt a revolutionary change like never before. In particular, I had a hunch that "this might cause jobs to disappear," and decided to devote all my energy to AI.
The reality of building influence on social media
Mr. Yamashiro: Please tell us more about what prompted you to start posting on social media.
usutaku: At first, I was mainly involved in development. In early 2023, I will be developing an escape game platform using the ChatGPT API.GPT-game.net" At that time, X's algorithm was not as well developed as it is now, and the number of followers was not growing.
The turning point for me was creating a collection of high-quality prompts. After seeing the low-quality prompts available at the time, I thought, "If this can go viral, I can do it too," and spent two days creating 500 high-quality prompts. This caused a huge reaction, earning about 1,000 "likes." After that, I proactively contacted those who responded, which led to about 35 consultation cases.
After that, I also started to expand on Instagram. To be honest, I was hesitant at first because I had the impression that Instagram had a lot of fraudulent posts. This was because there were many exaggerated posts such as "Earn 1 million yen a month with ChatGPT" and suspicious posts such as "We will conquer it using AI". However, after about a year of activity on X (formerly Twitter), I was able to establish my own style of communication.
Currently, on Instagram, I post video content every day that incorporates humorous elements. I plan, shoot, and edit everything myself, and sometimes I even include songs. My seventh post caused a big stir, and from there I gained 100,000 followers in one month, 150,000 in three months, and now I have 170,000 followers.
Mr. Chaeng: In my case, I already had a follower base of about 30,000 people related to Web3 and blockchain. When I first started posting about ChatGPT, I mainly focused on practical ways to use it, such as integrating it with Google Slides and Docs. At that time, it was the early days of the AI boom, and it was a kind of bonus time when you could post anything and get more than a million views.
Currently popular AI tools and their usage
Mr. Yamashiro: Could you tell us more about the AI tools that you are currently paying attention to and how you actually use them?
Mr. Chaeng: I'm interested in the agent function of "Replit". It's a function that allows you to create applications from text, and I think it has great potential.
I use "Claude" a lot in my daily work. In particular, when creating minutes, I transcribe them in TLDV, then input them into Claude, diagram them, and send them to clients. When considering new business, I input the recordings into Claude to organize them, and after sales negotiations, I also use it to create minutes and estimates. I find it very useful for text-based code generation and code review tasks.
Actually, I pay for quite a few tools and use more than 20 AI tools. For search, I especially use Perplexity. I have a widget on my browser home screen and set it up so that I can search by voice input with one click.
usutaku: Recently, I've been paying attention to a music-making AI called "Snow." In fact, I recently bought an apartment bar and started working as a DJ. I enjoy mashing up songs I make with Snow with the AI. Sometimes I also make songs based on the content of Excel training and perform them.
As for search tools, I basically use Perplexity, Arc Search, GPT Search, Jin Research, etc. In terms of my workflow, I first use Arc Search for searches, then switch to Google with one click if I want to go to a specific page, and switch again if I need to link with Google Maps.
Mindset and branding as a communicator
Mr. Yamashiro: As a creator with a large number of followers, what are your thoughts on preventing online outrage and branding?
usutaku: Fortunately, I have never been involved in a scandal. One of the reasons for this is that I refrain from posting the latest information. New information is prone to misinformation, so I am cautious, especially when there are only two or so sources of information.
Instead, I try to provide practical information about the AI tools I actually use in my work, such as "this is usable" and "this is not usable." I often post information with a delay of several weeks, but because of this, I am able to provide information with a high degree of reliability. I also believe it is important to honestly admit mistakes.
Mr. Chaeng: On social media, you need to try various methods when you are trying to increase the number of followers, but after you have gained a certain number of followers, you can focus on more substantial communication. I manage all of the operations myself, which I think is important for maintaining the quality of my posts.
Global expansion and the characteristics of the Japanese market
usutaku: Regarding overseas expansion, I think it is important to provide AI solutions that are specialized for deep challenges in specific industries. From my experience, I have seen cases where companies can succeed by specializing thoroughly, even in very niche fields.
Mr. Chaeng: We also received some interesting suggestions about the Japanese market. A prominent researcher in Silicon Valley told us, "The food in Japan is delicious and the cost of living is low, but I was surprised at how little AI has been adopted in Japan." This is both a challenge and an opportunity.
As an approach that takes advantage of Japan's unique strengths, we are considering developing a sales support system that incorporates the concept of "omotenashi" (hospitality) into AI. Furthermore, there is great potential in AI services that combine Japanese content such as manga and anime. For example, if we could team up with Shueisha to realize authentic dialogue with characters, we could become competitive in the global market.
However, I also believe that it is not necessary to focus on global expansion. Japan's GDP is large enough that if you are serious about expanding your business, you can achieve great success just within the country.
Coexistence of AI and Humans: What is Required in the Future?
usutaku: I value the idea of "active inefficiency." While using AI to streamline everyday work, it is important to spend time on creative activities and hobbies that only humans can do. Recently, I have been enjoying a variety of activities, including fishing, traveling abroad, and DJing. I believe that these "inefficient" activities are the most human activities.
In fact, many influencers have very edgy personalities, which is one of the reasons they have such influence. As AI develops, the value of such human-like individuality is likely to increase.
summary
In this session, we were able to get concrete examples and insights from these two front-line experts on communication and utilization in the age of AI. As technology advances, efficiency and automation advance, but the value of human creativity and individuality is also being rediscovered. This thought-provoking conversation, which took place in Shibuya, was a thought-provoking one that suggested the ideal form of symbiosis between technology and humans.
