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2025.04.07

People of aiESG] Li Chao
Creative Engineers Driving AI Innovation

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At aiESG, innovation is driven by members with unique skills and perspectives as well as enthusiasm. One of them is Li Chao, Chief Data Scientist of the Research AI Department. In addition to his impressive academic background as a PhD student and specially-appointed assistant professor at Kyushu University, we spoke with him about his ingenuity and practical approach to the practical application of AI for a sustainable society.

Li Chao:D. from Kyushu University, he has been a Distinguished Assistant Professor at the Institute of Urban Research, Kyushu University since 2022. He also worked as Chief Data Scientist at aiESG, where he led research and deep learning modeling on a wide range of industrial and policy issues related to economic development, investment, and trade from an ESG perspective. He is also involved in analyzing investors' ESG propensities based on a proprietary large-scale linguistic model.

I am often asked why I am in Japan and why I am building an AI model for a sustainable future at aiESG, a company in Fukuoka, Japan. Looking back, it has not been a simple path. My academic experience started in my home country of China, where I majored in urban planning as a bachelor's degree. To be honest, my initial choice of major was not driven by a passion for urban development, but by economic reasons. The real estate industry was booming at the time, and as a young man I felt I could gain expertise with a promising future.

However, things began to change during my master's program. I found algorithmic research that I could really immerse myself in and gradually became fascinated with understanding complex systems.

Discomfort I felt on my first steps into the business world

My first experience in the business world was...intense. As a student intern, I worked about 80 hours a week while also doing my schoolwork. It was an experience that gave me a lot of insight, but I felt very uncomfortable because there was no time to rest or think about new things, and no work-life balance. This led me to make the decision to stay at the university and continue my research instead of finding a job. There was an environment in academia that I could control and continue to explore my own ideas.

The connections I made through my research activities led me to Kyushu University in the form of doctoral studies, and I was so fascinated by aiESG representative Mr. Manaki's research paper that I took the plunge and contacted him directly, and in no time at all, I had decided to move to Japan. Moving to Japan was a big step, but the research environment is very attractive and I am enjoying working there. In retrospect, if I had been blessed with a comfortable environment during my first internship experience, I might have stayed in my home country.

Ambition as Chief Data Scientist

I am currently working on a really fascinating project at aiESG as Chief Data Scientist in the Research AI department. I am trying to develop AI models to analyze everything from real estate industry reports to news from around the world to assess and analyze ESG-related risks and opportunities for improvement. One project we are particularly proud of is our spatial data visualization system. It can predict population, land use, and economic data down to the finest level and is already in practical use. It is very rewarding to see the system I worked on actually being put to use, and it gives me the drive to take on the next challenge.

One of my priorities for the future is predictive modeling of stock prices. If we could accurately predict how a company's ESG-related activities and improvements would affect its stock price, I believe we could create a paradigm shift. It would provide an incentive for companies to prioritize sustainable business decisions from the standpoint of economic rationality, rather than simply because they have to.

As I now feel myself, aiESG offers freedom of exploration, flexibility to work in a personalized way, and the opportunity to work on cutting-edge technologies that make a real difference in the world. I encourage anyone interested in this environment to consider working at aiESG. Each and every one of us is a team that is passionate about what we do and is committed to creating something special here in Fukuoka and beyond. And of course, Fukuoka is a great city to build a career and a great place to live.

Extra: My home-built computer

This may sound a little strange, but I am not only into data analysis in the cloud, but I am also into hardware. In fact, I customize and build my own PCs. It may be like playing with a child's blocks, but I enjoy being able to choose the high-performance GPU and processor I want. With that said, my office desk area is...what can I say, unique. Cooling fans and air circulators are not for decoration, but are essential to cool the heat of the computer during model runs. This makes my office surprisingly warm in the winter!