Empowering Borderless Communication: VMFi CEO Shares Global AI Translation Vision in Exclusive Tokyo Govt Interview

Aug 12

2 min read

Updated: Aug 20

The following is an interview conducted by the Tokyo Metropolitan Government. Please see the original article here: https://tokyo-gc.metro.tokyo.lg.jp/interview_en/vmfi/

Real-Time AI Automatic Interpretation System to Accelerate Intercultural Communication

We spoke with CEO Maxwell Peng and Assistant Min-Yeh Chiang at JETRO Akasaka.

Q: Could you tell us what inspired you to start your own business and why you decided to expand into Japan?

The business was founded in September 2020. In around 2020, many companies in Japan and Europe were seeking multilingual interpretation and translation services. Therefore, we first considered expanding into Japan, given its proximity to Taiwan.

Q: Could you describe your career path so far?

Originally, I was an engineer. I studied coding at university and worked in Silicon Valley in the USA for seven years. After traveling around the world, I was involved in establishing a studio with 200 starting members for a gaming company set up by an American firm in Shanghai 20 years ago when the Chinese market was experiencing rapid growth.VMFi is my third company. In 2025, on the fifth anniversary of our company’s founding, we established a Japanese subsidiary, marking our first expansion overseas. Currently, there are five employees, including Japanese nationals.

Q: Are you considering expanding overseas outside of Japan?

We have received awards from Japanese companies, and our recognition has been growing, so we are gradually considering expanding into Germany. This is because I believe the situations in Japan and Germany are similar. Both countries face challenges in communicating in foreign languages, but they are also in a situation where they must accept foreign workers and address the realities of an aging society. I believe that the need for interpretation and translation services is more pressing than ever.Furthermore, many international events are held around the world. Our service provides a solution to eliminate language barriers.

Q: Could you tell us about the strengths of your company's products?

Our technology focuses on speaking. Our product is capable of translating spoken language instantly. It is referred to as real-time translation, and I believe we excel in this aspect compared to other companies. Furthermore, we have confidence in the quality as well. It has already been used by Taiwan’s TSMC and in the Hsinchu Science Park.Our customers tell us that our products are safe and easy to use. This program will never use the content of your conversations.It is automatically updated every two months. The latest version has been upgraded to allow for easy updates using AI and is now usable offline.