- Reka disrupts Singapore’s AI scene.
- Founder demands hands-on coding approach.
- Small team achieves big results on modest funding.
Yi Tay, a former Google Brain researcher, is shaking up Singapore’s AI landscape through his startup, Reka.
Emerging from stealth mode in July 2023, Reka quickly gained attention for its large language models (LLMs) targeting customer support and caption generation.
Tay’s team, comprised largely of ex-Google and DeepMind talent, has achieved impressive results on a modest $60 million in funding.
Coding trumps meetings
Tay argues that Singapore’s AI ambitions require a paradigm shift in thinking. He emphasizes the need for hands-on senior talent who actively code, rather than management-heavy approaches.
“The people making impact are the people who are on the ground,” Tay asserts, challenging the notion that AI progress stems from policy discussions or intern-driven projects.
Small teams, big impact
Reka’s lean team of 22 has proven to be a competitive advantage. Tay believes this structure allows for deeper client relationships and focused problem-solving.
Looking ahead, he sees artificial general intelligence (AGI) and reasoning capabilities as key frontiers in AI development, though he cautions that defining concrete milestones remains challenging in this rapidly evolving field.
To read the original article: https://www.techinasia.com/singapores-ai-scene-doers-talkers-reka-founder
