KOCHI: People around the globe have been discussing the impact of artificial intelligence in the last couple of years, thanks to the ChatGPT boom. However, Tojin T Eapen’s interest in AI began much before. Tojin with Daniel J Finkenstadt an assistant professor at the Naval Postgraduate School (NPS) in Monterey, California, recently authored a book titled ‘Bioinspired Strategic Design, Nature-inspired Principles for Dynamic Business Environments,’ after a long research on the subject.
His interest in learning how companies manage innovation began during his career as a new product development engineer, motivating him to explore deeper into the field. “Innovation and new product development are interdisciplinary fields. We often think of engineers as the ones bringing new products to market, but in reality, it requires an interactive and interdisciplinary environment,” he reflects.
After earning an MBA from the Indian School of Business in Hyderabad in 2010, the Thiruvalla-native co-founded a company focused on innovation management.
“We concentrated on the front end of innovation — the idea phase. Most companies lack a systematic approach to developing good ideas, so we aimed to fill that gap, collaborating with several Fortune 500 companies. We also discovered that, regardless of the company, the innovation process is quite similar, even though the specific methods for building a product may vary,” Tojin explains.
After moving to the US, Tojin received early exposure to machine learning and AI too. “Machine learning and AI entered the picture during my PhD research in the US. I studied how companies can evaluate ideas using machine learning. Back then, nobody expected AI to be creative — we saw it as a tool for automating tasks, prediction, and analysing text,” he says.
In 2022, generative AI gained prominence with tools like ChatGPT and Stable Diffusion. “What fascinated me about the new capabilities of Gen AI is that the underlying technology is not new. But the sheer volume of data have led to remarkable outcomes such as the ability to write poems and create artwork. It marked a milestone in the history of technology,” he adds.
In November 2023, Tojin and a colleague co-authored an article in Harvard Business Review on how Gen AI can augment human creativity and democratise innovation. Soon after, he started on the book with Daniel. It explores how organisations can draw inspiration from nature and living organisms to develop innovative business strategies.
“We began by thinking — can we apply the principles of survival observed in nature to build more sustainable human organisations? Few had explored this area in the past. Our research revealed that these principles derived by observing living systems are simple. By applying them to businesses, startups, the military, non-profit organisations, and more, we can develop new strategies and concepts using a process of analogical reasoning,” he explains.
As a native of Kerala, Tojin believes the state has the potential to become a hub for AI for major companies and entrepreneurial ventures. “The state’s general capabilities are appropriate, and with the right training, we can excel. We need to focus on improved communication with a global audience because many business opportunities arise from such interactions. We have an abundance of resources and should concentrate on creating opportunities,” he says. “We need to incentivise professionals from big cities to come and stay in Kerala, provide better infrastructure and encourage the diaspora to settle here. This will help us understand global culture better,” Tojin explains.