“Technology makes the world a plus island.”

Jared Quincy Davis, CEO of Mithril AI, delivered a keynote speech titled “The Era of Unprecedented Opportunity in AI Transformation: The Role of AI Pioneers” at the “2025 Global Hyper-Gap Tech Conference” held at the Walkerhill Hotel on the 28th. He stated that technology creates new value and enables a world of positive outcomes where everyone benefits.

“Without technology, the world would remain a zero-sum game, where one person’s gains are someone else’s losses,” said CEO Gerard Quincy Davis. “On the other hand, technology enables a plus-sum world where everyone benefits by creating new value.”

This perspective becomes more persuasive when we consider the historical conflicts in the Middle East.

Behind the conflicts that appear to be religious or political, there is a scarcity of resources, such as a shortage of materials.

On the other hand, in the early days of industrialization in the United StatesThe expansion of technology and capital has led to an optimism that “anything is possible” spreading throughout society, which has led to social harmony.

In this context, startups play an important role not only as profit-seeking organizations, but also as entities that create new value.

“As Peter Thiel said, companies are judged on two axes: ‘How much value do they create?’ and ‘How much of that value do they capture?’” said CEO Gerard Quincy Davis. “Many companies focus on the latter, but true success depends on the former.”

Gerard Quincy Davis, CEO, stated, "Technological advancements are happening faster than ever before. Technologies once considered science fiction—AI, self-driving cars, biotechnology, drones, robotics—are becoming a reality." He added, "AI, in particular, is a core technology that can be expanded into diverse fields, to the point where it's often called a 'root node technology.' The strategies demonstrated by AI in Go suggest the potential for generalized problem-solving methods applicable to diverse fields, including healthcare, education, and energy."

He stated that there are three conditions under which AI can be effectively applied.

First, the number of possible combinations is so large that it is a problem that cannot be solved by simple calculation, and second, there must be a clear objective function that can define 'what a good result is.'

Third, he said that if there is a large amount of data or an accurate simulator, AI can achieve amazing results.

In the past decade, computational power in the AI field has increased by about a million times. In particular, in the field of deep learning, the amount of computation has been doubling every 3.4 months.

This is a much faster rate than Moore's Law in the past. At the same time, computational efficiency for the same performance is doubling every 16 months. In other words, we've entered an era where better results can be achieved with fewer resources.

These technological advances present unprecedented opportunities for startups.

Startups with limited initial resources benefit from a faster pace of change. The resources and systems of established large corporations can actually hinder their agility to change. Now is the time when entrepreneurs can exert their greatest influence.

CEO Gerard Quincy Davis noted, "On the other hand, the path to building a great company is never easy. Entrepreneurs must balance 'paranoid realism' with 'world-changing optimism.'" He added, "Andy Grove's dictum, 'Only the paranoid survive,' and Steve Jobs's dictum, 'Those who believe they can change the world are the ones who actually do,' perfectly capture the inner tension entrepreneurs face."

This tension is explained by the concept of 'consergrity'.

This means finding the optimal balance within a structure that, like the tension in the cables supporting the Golden Gate Bridge, can collapse if it's too tight or too loose. Startups are no different. They must strike a balance between perfectionism and prioritization, curiosity and focus, and optimism and skepticism.

Ultimately, great companies are not created solely through technological prowess. We need entrepreneurs who possess multiple, conflicting capabilities, and the social support to support them.

"This is why the Korean government actively supports startups," said CEO Gerard Quincy Davis. "We live in a time of both uncertainty and possibility. At the same time, this is the moment when the greatest challenges are possible."

"Dream big. Embrace your vision. What seemed impossible will become possible," said CEO Gerard Quincy Davis. "These words are not mere encouragement. Right now, we are riding the wave of technology, moving toward a new future."