​This installment of TAI x Society examines the structural tensions inherent in the rapid development of artificial intelligence. While individual actors (investors, founders, and enterprises) are economically incentivized to accelerate deployment, the long-term risks are often externalized and absorbed by the collective system.

​This panel brings together perspectives from venture capital, product management, and international law to dissect how competition forces risk, how these risks manifest during the engineering lifecycle, and where the burden of accountability lies when autonomous systems fail. We will move beyond high-level ethics to discuss the practical mechanics of incentives and the legal frameworks attempting to govern them.

​Who is this for?

​This event is designed for both technical and non-technical professionals, including engineers, researchers, product, and business leaders.

​Agenda

• ​18:30 – 18:55: Doors Open

• ​18:55 – 19:00: Introduction by Organizers

• ​19:00 – 19:45: Panel Discussion: The AI Risk Lifecycle

  • ​Phase 1 (Koshu Kunii): Macro-incentives and the economic "why" behind rapid deployment

  • ​Phase 2 (Elizabeth Oda): Technical reality and the "how" of risk manifestation in product development.

  • ​Phase 3 (Harold Godsoe): Legal accountability and the "who" is liable when risks materialize.

• ​19:45 – 20:00: Moderated Q&A with the Audience

• ​20:00 – 21:00: Closing Mixer

​The flow of the panel moves from the macro-economic drivers (incentives) to the practical implementation (technical trade-offs) and finally to the regulatory consequences (accountability). This progression ensures you see the root causes before discussing the downstream effects.

​Experts:

​Moderator: Julie Harvey is TAI's lead for the AI x Society group. She is also a GTM enablement strategist and facilitator with leadership experience across APAC, Europe, and the US, specializing in cybersecurity and startup ecosystem growth.

​Panelist 1 - Incentives: Why Competition Forces Risk

​Speaker: Koshu Kunii (General Partner at Lifetime Ventures)

​Abstract: AI systems are being deployed at unprecedented speed, not because they are fully ready, but because competition demands it. As a panelist, Koshu will share how competition, capital pressure, and market dynamics push organizations to prioritize speed over safety, and why slowing down is often not a viable option.

​Bio: Koshu Kunii is a General Partner at Lifetime Ventures, where he focuses on investing in emerging technologies and building startup ecosystems in Japan. His work centers on how capital allocation, competition, and market forces shape the pace and direction of technological adoption.

​Panelist 2 - Reality: How AI Risk Shows Up in Practice

​Speaker: Elizabeth Oda (Technical Project Manager, Braid)

​Abstract: Behind every AI system is a series of tradeoffs between speed, safety, and delivery. As a panelist, Elizabeth will share how risk actually manifests in real-world products, where compromises are made, and why many safety challenges are difficult to anticipate or retrofit after deployment.

​Bio: Elizabeth Oda is a Technical Project Manager at Braid, where she leads the development of AI systems for advanced engineering design. Based in Tokyo, she brings a background in molecular biology and applied machine learning and specializes in translating research into deployable products. Her work focuses on building AI systems grounded in science and guiding multidisciplinary teams to deliver reliable solutions for high-stakes applications.

​Panelist 3 - Accountability: Who Owns the Risk When Things Go Wrong

​Speaker: Harold Godsoe (Head of Legal, Noeon Research)

​Abstract: When AI systems fail, responsibility is rarely clear. He will examine how accountability is assigned across developers, companies, and users, where current legal and governance frameworks fall short, and how emerging technologies challenge existing models of liability for organizations operating in uncertain regulatory environments.

​Bio: Harold runs the legal function at Noeon Research, a Tokyo-based AI lab, and serves as Counsel at Kojima Law Offices, where his practice spans cross-border corporate, regulatory, and technology matters. He also chairs the AI  Law practice group for the Mackrell International legal network.

​Organizers

​Julia Harvey: GTM enablement strategist and facilitator with leadership experience across APAC, Europe, and the US, specializing in cybersecurity and startup ecosystem growth.

​​​​​Ilya Kulyatin: Fintech and AI entrepreneur with work and academic experience in the US, Netherlands, Singapore, UK, and Japan, with an MSc in Machine Learning from UCL.

​Supporters

​​​Tokyo AI (​​​TAI) is the biggest AI community in Japan, with 4,000+ members mainly based in Tokyo (engineers, researchers, investors, product managers, and corporate innovation managers).

​Value Create is a management advisory and corporate value design firm offering services such as business consulting, education, corporate communications, and investment support to help companies and individuals unlock their full potential and drive sustainable growth.

​​Sakura Deeptech Shibuya is a new global innovation hub at Shibuya Sakura Stage, created by Tokyu Land to support world‑class deeptech startups through industry–government–academia collaboration. Anchored by partners such as MIT, UTokyo IPC, and Shibuya City, it provides a community, programs, and facilities designed to accelerate breakthroughs in energy, materials, carbon, AI, and robotics.

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