Join the Global Affiliates Program at Shorenstein APARC as our 2025-26 cohort of Global Affiliates visiting scholars presents findings from their research. This capstone event marks the culmination of their year-long research projects addressing Asia-Pacific issues related to their work.

In the first of two sessions, each of the five speakers will present their research for approximately 15 minutes, followed by a brief 5-10 minute Q&A session with the audience. 

AGENDA:

Does IP Strategy Create Firm Value? A Cross-Country Analysis of Patents and AI Innovation Premiums in the U.S. and Japan

Taiki Oki, Japan Patent Office

In today’s innovation-driven economy, competitive advantage depends not only on tangible assets, but on how effectively companies general and leverage ideas. Yet a key question remains: do patents and AI-related innovations translate into measurable firm value?

Oki examines the gap between the large number of patents held by Japanese companies and their comparatively lower market valuations relative to U.S. firms. Drawing on data from publicly listed companies across seven major industries over the past five years, he explores how firms in the U.S. and Japan use intellectual property strategies to drive corporate value.

Focusing on patent productivity, patent quality, and the emerging role of AI-related inventions, this presentation will highlight whether and how these factors contribute to a measurable market premium. The findings offer practical insights into how companies, particularly in Japan, can more effectively align innovation strategies with global competitiveness and long-term value creation.

Multimodal IP for Multimedia in the AI Era

Edward Zeng, NextG Tech Limited

As artificial intelligence rapidly advances, it is doing more than enhancing existing tools–it is becoming a foundational layer that is reshaping how creative industries operate. From film and streaming to gaming and immersive digital environments, AI is increasingly embedded in the systems that produce, distribute, and scale cultural content worldwide. 

At the same time, creative ecosystems are no longer confined to single platforms or formats. Instead, they are evolving into interconnected, multimodal networks where intellectual property can expand across mediums, audiences, and technologies–unlocking new opportunities for growth while raising important questions about ownership, value creation, and control. 

Zeng explores how AI-driven infrastructure and multimodal IP ecosystems are converging to transform the global creative economy. Drawing on interdisciplinary research and real-world examples, the discussion will also address the challenges of governance, cultural representation, and institutional design in an AI-native world, and what it will take to ensure these systems remain innovative, inclusive, and aligned with human values. 

The Impact of the Rise of SNS and AI on the Financial Literacy of Retail Investors in Japan

Kota Shimoda, Ministry of Finance, Japan

Description TBA

Product Innovation and Growth in General Insurance in Asia Pacific: The Changing Logic through Embedded and Parametric Models

Yibin (Ken) Zhao, Shanghai Narada Group

As risks grow more complex across the Asia-Pacific region, traditional insurance models are being pushed to evolve. New approaches–such as embedded insurance and parametric solutions–are reshaping how coverage is designed, delivered, and scaled to meet emerging needs. 

This presentation explores how these innovations are transforming the logic of general insurance, drawing on practitioner-led case studies including CMA CGM’s Cargo Value Serenity and China’s first rainfall-based parametric solution for the Meiyan hydropower project. These examples illustrate how data-driven, responsive models can expand access to protection and improve resilience. 

The discussion will also consider the broader implications for closing the region’s significant protection gap, and the role of the regulatory frameworks in enabling innovation. In particular, it will highlight the importance of more flexible, function-based supervision to support sustainable growth in the insurance sector.

The Evolution of Leadership Under Uncertainty: Connecting Succession, Longevity, and Change

Yasushi Maruyama, Egon Zehnder

Two years ago, Maruyama’s research began with a central question: how should CEO succession systems evolve for global companies in a dynamically changing world? In last year’s presentation, he focused on corporate governance reform in Japan. This year, he extends that inquiry by reframing CEO succession not simply as leadership replacement, but as a broader question of how leadership is transmitted, how organizational longevity is sustained, and how change is created at both the individual and organizational levels. 

He examines long-lived Japanese companies and family businesses to identify leadership patterns that sustain performance over time, with a focus on succession, values, and long time horizons over short-term optimization. He then explores the kind of leadership required in complex environments where clear answers do not exist, considering how leaders make decisions, learn, adapt, and drive change. Building on these insights, he explores how such perspectives may be translated into practical implications for individuals navigating uncertainty, and seeks to offer ways of apply them in real-world contexts. 

Through this work, Maruyama draws on Japanese cases as a lens to address a broader global question. It connects succession, longevity, and change into a more integrated understanding of leadership.