Digital Garage’s STARTUP STUDIO “GenLab,” Supporting Startups in Generative AI, Hosted the “Generative AI Hackathon”

– STARTUP STUDIO “GenLab,” which supports next-generation entrepreneurs in Generative AI, hosted the “Generative AI Hackathon” at its incubation center “DG717” in San Francisco, California.

STARTUP STUDIO “GenLab,” operated by Digital Garage, Inc. (TSE Prime 4819; Head Office: Shibuya-ku, Tokyo; Representative Director, President and Group CEO: Kaoru Hayashi; DG), was launched in June 2023 to provide multifaceted support for startups that create new value through Generative AI and peripheral technologies. It also aims to build a community of entrepreneurs and engineers from Silicon Valley at its core, based on the global incubation stream that DG has made over the past 20 years, but with broad participation from companies in Japan, the U.S. East Coast, Europe, and other regions.

(From the left) Nicolai Wadstrom（CEO, Founder and General Partner of BootstrapLabs）Jeremiah Owyang（Entrepreneur and Investor）
Hiroki Mitsuhashi（Corporate Officer of DG）Brady Forrest（“GenLab” Advisor）James Murdza（Hackathon Winner）
Daniel Riedel（Executive Director of “GenLab”）Elana Lian（Investment Director of Intel Capital）Masha Leshchenko（Event Organizer）

San Francisco is home to the headquarters of unicorn companies active in Generative AI, such as OpenAI and Anthropic, and is a leader in developing Generative AI technologies and services worldwide. At a time of significant change comparable to the advent of the Internet, DG is building a community of engineers and entrepreneurs to support the next generation of entrepreneurs in developing innovative concepts and services.

The “Generative AI Hackathon” was an event in which approximately 100 participants, including engineers and designers, worked intensively, intending to develop unique software and services using Generative AI. New developments include an AI-based system that reads emotions from the volume and intonation of a person’s voice during speech, suggests better ways to speak, and a service that helps companies recruit more appropriately and quickly.

GitWit, the winner for its unique idea and high level of achievement, has developed a service that allows anyone to quickly build and transmit web apps without installing any system. Connecting an individual’s idea with AI will enable AI to create a unique code and send out a web app developed with one click.

■“Generative AI Hackathon” overview
Date: Saturday, September 9, 2023
Location: Incubation Center “DG717” (717 Market St, San Francisco, California)
Organizer: Digital Garage’s STARTUP STUDIO “GenLab”
Partners: Anthropic, Aiify.io
Judges:
Jeremiah Owyang (Entrepreneur and Investor)
Nicolai Wadstrom (CEO, Founder and General Partner of BootstrapLabs)
Elana Lian (Investment Director of Intel Capital)

■Comment from Daniel Riedel, Executive Director of “GenLab”
Humanity will always need more time and resources as we face global financial, healthcare, and climate crisis. Generative AI is helping speed up humanity’s ability to innovate, giving us more time and capability as a society. “Generative AI Hackathon” showed not only great innovation brought to life but also the sense of community and collaboration that permeates San Francisco. As you can see in the following images, a vibrant world has been realized, just as we had initially envisioned, with many business builders coming together to give shape to their ideas. By fostering an atmosphere of shared learning and exploration, we’re helping shape entrepreneurship’s future. As we push the boundaries of what AI can do, we must also prioritize building responsibly. Our collective goal should always be to create technology that enhances our capabilities, respects our shared ethical values, and contributes positively to society.

DG will continue accelerating startup business growth through partnerships in Asia and Europe via DG’s global network and technical support from DG’s research and development organization “DG Lab” and “DA Lab.” After carefully selecting entrepreneurs for investment, “GenLab” will differentiate itself from others by establishing a unique “GenLab” method that provides financial support and helps them implement their services into society.

Startups interested in joining “GenLab” or interested in a partnership please contact us at genlab@garage.co.jp.