People
Sharing Technology Information Leads to Growth of People, Companies, and Research Fields
Mar 4, 2024
Yoshiyuki Kobayashi, an AI specialist, has been actively sharing technology information internally and externally. His efforts led to the launch of Sony’s Tech Academy Channel (STAC), a platform for Sony Group engineers to share knowledge on various technology fields, in February 2023. In this article, we asked him about STAC, the significance of engineers sharing information, and future prospects.
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Yoshiyuki Kobayashi
Distinguished Engineer
Sony Group Corporation
The value of delivering information
──Kobayashi-san, you’ve shared various types of technology information internally and externally, both in your private and working life. What led you to start those initiatives?
When I was in high school, I submitted a program I created myself to a computer magazine, and to my surprise, my inbox was flooded with letters from all over Japan. This experience taught me that I could create new value by spreading information, even on an individual level. This belief remained unchanged after I joined Sony.
The spread of the Internet has made it easy for anyone to share information anytime. In addition, the evolution of video streaming options has shifted platforms from being “a space where a few individuals upload finished content” to “a space where everyone can communicate casually on a daily basis.” Back when YouTube first started gaining traction, I utilized it to showcase demos of software I had personally created, but these days, I believe communication with videos has become an essential tool for companies’ research and development.
──What kind of video content have you created so far?
In 2017, I launched the Neural Network Console Channel as an individual researcher of the Sony Group and spread technology information. Later, in 2021, the nnabla Deep Learning Channel was launched by Sony’s deep learning library development members. While companies must take the needs of various stakeholders into consideration when disseminating information, we have continued to receive positive feedback on the impact of these two channels both internally and externally, indicating that they are contributing to improving the skills of engineers.
──Could you provide us with more details on the Sony’s Tech Academy Channel (STAC), which started in 2023?
The activities I mentioned earlier led to the launch of the STAC video series in 2023. In this series, Sony’s engineers who are experts in various fields of technology share introductory educational content for each field. Since this was a new initiative for the company, we decided to start with content based on lectures given at universities and internal training. All the content is centered around basic information, which is common knowledge for experts. For example, the field of AI, which I specialize in, is currently in a transitional period toward widespread adoption like the Internet and computers. As numerous people are interested in AI, we are striving to deliver information to as wide an audience as possible with a level of difficulty that university students can understand.
In an era of information overload where everyone can easily contribute, we find it meaningful to offer easy-to-understand explanations from the perspective of specialists who have an in-depth understanding of each field.
Benefiting the audience, engineers, and companies
──What is the advantage of sharing technology information through STAC and other channels?
We believe there are advantages for the audience, engineers, and companies, respectively.
Firstly, the advantage for the audience is that they can use the videos as learning materials. In fact, I am part of the audience who benefits from STAC. Learning about fields outside my specialty through video content and expanding my knowledge allows me to consider collaborations between AI and other fields that have the potential for new value creation. I have also heard about teams sharing our videos to deepen their understanding of technology. Additionally, for job-hunting students, our videos are an opportunity not only to gain information and knowledge, but also to learn about Sony employees. There are an unlimited number of ways to leverage disseminated technology information.
Secondly, the advantage for engineers. With a university lecture or face-to-face seminar, you can reach at most 100 to 200 people at a time. On the other hand, with the Internet and online video platforms, you can potentially reach thousands or more with a single piece of content. This shift from a one-on-one approach to approaching multiple people, multiple times enables the efficient distribution of technical education.
I also feel that communicating with my own voice through videos, in a repeatable audible form, is effective for delivering my thoughts and achievements as a researcher to society. In some cases, through repeated video communication, I can make my personality and specialty known in advance, which facilitates smooth internal and external communication. I am always delighted when someone reaches out to me before I contact them.
Lastly, for companies, video communication serves as an opportunity to make themselves and their services utilizing technology known to a wider audience. In the past, we received feedback stating that people became interested in our Neural Network Console service through our YouTube videos. Currently, the Sony Group has about 110,000 employees, while the global population is about 8 billion. Instead of limiting ourselves to within the corporation, I believe that communicating with experts worldwide, gathering like-minded individuals, and accelerating technological development will lead to greater growth for the company.
In this way, we believe that sharing technology information benefits three different parties, and we hope to see similar initiatives spread further around the world.
A platform that provides life-changing discoveries
──Please tell us about the future prospects of STAC.
We would like to continuously share videos on various fields while delivering more specialized, cutting-edge content. Additionally, videos are a form of communication from companies and engineers to an audience. If the audience can get a better sense of the unique personalities of the participating engineers, this will better convey the atmosphere of the company. By creating a system where engineers can benefit from sharing technology information, we aim to create even greater value in even more scenarios.
──Please give us a message for your audience.
The greatest advantage of STAC is that you can listen to Sony technology specialists whenever and as many times as you like. I hope you will utilize it not only as a first step for learning about technologies that are attracting attention, but also as a tool for finding your interests and broadening your opportunities and horizons. I hope you make life-changing discoveries with STAC.
To students, if you are struggling to decide what to study, I encourage you to start from something you have even a little interest in. This could eventually lead to a moment where you think, “I want to learn more!” For that sort of situation, we would like to make STAC into a platform where specialists provide accurate information in plain language to satisfy your curiosity.
※ Linked to YouTube "Sony - Technology"
※ The contents contained STAC are in Japanese only. Please use the YouTube's translation feature when viewing.
