Panasonic Brings Its Founder Back to Life with AI | Generative ai use cases in healthcare 2020 | Generative ai use cases in manufacturing | Generative ai in banking mckinsey | Turtles AI

Panasonic has created a digital clone of its founder Kōnosuke Matsushita, using AI to reproduce his management philosophy. The AI ​​will provide support to the younger generation in managing the company, keeping the founder’s vision alive even after his death. The project aims to preserve the legacy of the Japanese "god of management" through an AI model trained on historical materials and interviews.

Key points:

• Panasonic has developed an AI that replicates the company’s founder, Kōnosuke Matsushita. 
• The AI ​​is powered by over 3,000 audio recordings and texts by Matsushita, to preserve his leadership philosophy. 
• The initiative aims to provide management advice to the new generation of employees, echoing the founder’s approach. 
• The project supports the company’s innovation, expanding its commitment to AI and digitalization.

Panasonic recently launched an ambitious project to digitally bring its founder Kōnosuke Matsushita, who passed away in 1989, back to life using an AI that mimics his management philosophy. The Japanese company chose to develop a digital clone of its founder to preserve and transmit his leadership vision, believing that it is essential for future generations of employees to understand and apply his principles. Matsushita, who transformed his company from a small business into a global giant, was a legendary figure in Japan, so much so that his management philosophy is still studied and respected today. The project was born out of the need to find a way to transmit Matsushita’s thinking, at a time when the number of people he personally trained is dwindling. Matsushita’s AI was created using a vast archive of historical materials: over 3,000 audio recordings, writings, interviews and lectures were digitized by the Peace and Happiness through Prosperity (PHP) Institute, which Matsushita founded. The company has partnered with the Matsuo Institute, which is affiliated with the University of Tokyo, to develop an AI that not only mimics the founder’s thinking and communication style, but can also respond to business management questions, providing advice based on Matsushita’s insights and teachings. Panasonic hopes that this AI will be an ongoing resource for its employees, offering an updated interpretation of the management philosophy that has made the company what it is today. It is not a simple replication of past business techniques, but an attempt to apply a humanistic, long-term view to modern management challenges. This project is part of Panasonic’s broader strategy to strengthen its AI capabilities and demonstrates its commitment to digital innovation. The company has launched several other technology initiatives in recent years, including the development of generative AI models such as ContextFlow++, which are used in areas such as predictive maintenance and anomaly detection.

Despite its call to tradition, Panasonic is not afraid to experiment with advanced technologies, seeking to combine Matsushita’s legacy with the opportunities offered by AI.