01-05-2025
Gee-whiz AI event in doubt as host accused of doing something not so bright
An artificial intelligence conference in which digital clones were to be introduced may have been canceled as the corporate host of the event faces accusations of accounting irregularities.
Tokyo Stock Exchange-listed Alt is under investigation for overstating sales of its main product, an AI transcription service. The stock has lost almost three-quarters of its value since the probe was disclosed on Friday.
The company is scheduled to hold a conference on May 16 in Nihonbashi, where CEO Kazutaka Yonekura will introduce the Personaloid, a new offering that uploads a digital version of a person so that the clone can handle routine tasks for the human.
Two individuals with knowledge of the event, including one of the scheduled speakers, claim that the conference will not be happening.
The website for the conference is still posted, and the company did not immediately respond to questions about the event.
Alt was founded in 2014 and listed in October 2024 on Tokyo Stock Exchange's Growth Market at ¥540 a share. It traded as high as ¥823 a share in December.
On its website, it bills itself as a personal artificial intelligence company. Its products and services include AI GIJIROKU, which can be used to transcribe online calls and video meetings, and CloneDev, a system for creating digital clones of users.
As of December, Alt had 23 employees, each with their own AI clone for handling daily tasks, according to the company's website.
The company reported ¥6 billion in sales in 2024 and has offices in Tokyo and California.
The ¥10,000 per person conference — ONE REBIRTH - Digital revival and the destruction of 20 industries — is to include a number of speakers, including former digital minister Takuya Hirai, former MIT Media Lab director Joichi Ito and Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corporation chief digital innovation officer Akio Isowa.
Topics to be covered include practical applications of artificial consciousness and the uploading and downloading of consciousness. A panel discussion of how cloning technology will change employment, contracts and ownership will also be held.
Attendees will be invited to create their own simplified digital clones with the submission of biometric data.
Hirai uploaded a YouTube video of himself using CloneDev in October.
In the video, Hirai asks his AI version whether digital clones can be used in medicine and caregiving. AI Hirai expounded on the potential uses of AI in medicine and in caring for the elderly. It noted that AI could help with loneliness.
Dentsu Digital CEO Kou Takimoto took part in a CloneDev demonstration in 2023.
On April 25, Alt disclosed that it has been under investigation by Japan's Securities and Exchange Surveillance Commission since early April for allegedly overstating sales generated by AI GIJIROKU.
The company claimed 9,000 customers for the transcription service as of January. Alt reported that the service generated about 88% of the company's total revenue in 2024.
Regulators have alleged that Alt 'excessively' inflated AI GIJIROKU sales and the number of paid subscriptions for the service.
Alt has delayed the release of earnings, which was originally scheduled for May 14, and has assembled an independent panel of lawyers and accountants to review the accusations.
