As per CEO Hiroshi “Mickey” Mikitani, Rakuten, the fintech-to-e-commerce giant, is planning to unveil its own extensive vocabulary model in the next twenty years.
Mikitani mentioned that Rakuten possesses a wealth of “highly distinctive” data for training its large language model (LLM) due to its diverse business portfolio encompassing banking, e-commerce, and communication sectors. The company aims to enhance operational efficiency internally through the utilization of this AI model before making it available for external use.
Rakuten, a prominent tech giant from Japan, showcased its brand presence at the 2019 Mobile World Congress.
The CEO disclosed to CNBC in an interview that Rakuten is gearing up to launch its proprietary artificial intelligence language model within the upcoming two months. This move aligns with the trend of tech companies venturing into the burgeoning field of AI technology.
Mikitani elaborated that Rakuten is in the process of developing its own significant language model, akin to systems supporting AI programs like OpenAI’s ChatGPT, leveraging its vast array of businesses from banking to e-commerce and communications to provide a unique foundation for the LLM.
He emphasized, “No one has a database like we do.”
The company’s objective is to internally implement the AI model to boost operational efficiency and marketing by 20% initially, with plans to extend its usage to external businesses similar to the practices of Amazon and Microsoft.
Mikitani envisions offering the model to third-party enterprises, stating, “So we can simply tell them businesses, offer it, and provide the platform for them to fully utilize it for their company.”
Rakuten is on track to complete this initiative within the next couple of months, according to the CEO.
Major tech players in the U.S. and China have already ventured into developing their own extensive language models, including OpenAI, Amazon, Google, Baidu, Alibaba, and Tencent.
While Asian companies have been slightly behind their American and Chinese counterparts in this domain, they are swiftly catching up. NTT, a telecom company, is set to unveil its exclusive LLM in March, and SoftBank’s telecommunications division has announced the deployment of its AI technology platform.
Chinese firms may gain an edge by tailoring their LLMs to the Chinese language dialect, potentially outpacing competitors.
Mikitani anticipates significant growth for Rakuten as a result of its foray into AI technology.
