Rakuten Group, a global e-commerce and fintech giant, has partnered with OpenAI to leverage artificial intelligence for enhancing customer experiences and business operations across its vast ecosystem of services.
Yusuke Kaji, General Manager of AI for Business at Rakuten Group, Inc., emphasised the company's data-centric approach: "For us, the data asset is the key corporate asset. We believe AI models, such as those developed by OpenAI, are the way to amplify the impact we can make on top of the data."
The collaboration aims to unlock value from Rakuten's extensive data, which includes information from 1.8 billion members worldwide interacting with over 70 online services. Rakuten is utilising OpenAI's API to improve various aspects of its business.
By leveraging RAG with OpenAI's models on their internal knowledge base, the company has achieved a notable reduction in customer service response times.
Additionally, Rakuten is enhancing the shopping experience for its customers by introducing AI-powered features that provide efficient summaries of user reviews, allowing for quicker access to relevant information.
Furthermore, the company has strengthened its B2B consulting services by equipping Rakuten consultants with AI-driven insights derived from the organisation's extensive data resources, enabling them to provide more valuable guidance to their clients.
Kaji stressed the importance of trust and security in implementing AI solutions, particularly in the Japanese market. "In Japan, trust is extremely important," he said. "If lost, it will take a very long time to rebuild that trust." This focus on security led Rakuten to choose OpenAI as a partner after rigorous assessments.
Looking ahead, Rakuten plans to explore real-time voice and vision capabilities, aiming to create more conversational AI experiences within its ecosystem. The company views these advancements as crucial for better understanding user needs and preferences.
As Rakuten continues to integrate AI into its operations, it remains committed to its mission of empowering people and society. Kaji concluded, "As a global innovation leader, we saw it as our responsibility to embrace AI with the objective of creating a better, more optimistic future."