i-PRO CPO discusses a responsible approach to innovation

International Security Journal hears exclusively from Gerard Figols, Chief Product Officer, i-PRO.

How are you finding the right balance between innovation and responsible technology development?

We connect all the points together. On one side, we of course have video technology.

The power of this technology – such as the Ambarella SoCs we deploy – needs to be properly communicated with the market, so that it is aware of the technology’s capability to produce high quality images, video footage and to run accurate edge computing analytics.

But beyond this, we want to ensure we are always in line with and supporting ethics and human rights. This is why i-PRO has joined the United Nations Global Compact, underscoring our commitment to sustainable and responsible corporate governance.

There are different steps that we need to take to ensure this and one of them is education. As a leader in technology and product development, we need to tell the market what approach we are taking at a business level.

When it comes to compliance and preparing for the future, what is i-PRO’s perspective?

i-PRO is going to be the leader in AI on the edge in five years’ time. As a company, we were established five years ago and took with us over 60 years of experience from our time as part of Panasonic.

Over this five-year period, we made a big move towards bringing edge technology into our alignment – but we are aware that this is going to keep evolving massively.

From a legislation perspective, we actually have a dedicated team based in Japan which is continuously seeking and evaluating how new and different regulations are going to look and how they are having an impact.

For example, we are paying great attention to developed regulations like the EU AI Act, because we have a developed operational footprint in Europe.

However, it will still be two years or so until many of the provisions in this new act will apply because, naturally, there are many questions that need to be resolved and answered.

By investing in this team’s capabilities and continuously engaging with local authorities – as well as lawyers who provide i-PRO with advice regarding potential impacts that any existing or pending legislation might have on our current product lineup – we can ensure that the technologies we currently offer and the technologies that we are developing are ready to be used in a compliant way.

Compliance and adherence with regulations is the key to building trust in the market. This is exactly why we take ethical and responsible use of technology very seriously.

There are many people who do not truly understand edge computing and AI, which means that some people give it bad press for no valid reason. We therefore invest a lot of time into helping people understand this new technology  and its benefits, particularly since AI can pose a threat if misused.

That’s why we are in favour of legislation – and that’s why we want the third-party companies we work with to certify and commit to using AI responsibly as well.

How do you see GenAI being brought into the video technology space in the future?

One thing is for sure – GenAI is going to enter the video technology space and it is not that far away from doing so. It might take two or three years until it is prominent in the sector, but it will appear.

I think it will play a key role in facilitating the transfer of video data into insights; the camera will do it all automatically.

I anticipate that you will be able to configure numerous rules on the camera, enabling analytics to make the camera a more proactive tool for security overall. In the past, security has always been reactive. In fact, when forensic video search capabilities first emerged, especially during the early analytics days, the number of false alarms was crazy.

Approximately ten years ago, in fact, the majority of these systems were switched off because they were not reliable. However, as analytics increase in accuracy, we can start moving into a more proactive security phase. The introduction of GenAI will really speed this up.

Currently, the main difference between GenAI and cognitive AI is that within cognitive AI, you take the algorithm and deploy it. It doesn’t keep learning continuously.

The introduction of new training models will probably be the next step in this scenario, however, so that the AI can be continuously updated – and actually learn – based on a range of different scenarios.

This is why all such advancements need to be properly regulated. Otherwise, particularly when you look at mission critical applications, people may look to exploit this technology.

This can have a big impact on not only security and safety, but also reputation; damage to reputation is something many businesses struggle to recover from. It’s better to do things the right way.

You have highlighted why responsible technology use is important to i-PRO. Do you look for similar values when selecting your integration partners?

Yes, this is so important to us. I remember when GDPR came into place in 2018 and everyone was asking us: “Are you GDPR-compliant?” and I would actually reply: “No, we are GDPR ready – ready to be GDPR-compliant.”

I would make this point because, ultimately, it doesn’t matter that we are GDPR-compliant – it also depends on the use of our products and technologies.

To ensure that we are responsible and compliant, it is important that we choose the right partners that are also utilising technology in an ethical and responsible way. It is a full chain. It’s not just our responsibility as a manufacturer, it’s the responsibility of everyone.

We provide some of the best technologies available – but also strive to ensure they are being used in the proper way. We expect that those both using and reselling are following the same guidelines.

Can you tell us more about your culture and the people at i-PRO?

Security is a human business. Companies are built around people. Business is done among people. That’s why we want to be approachable and humble.

We are a newly established company with many years of experience, but we also possess a lot of passion and energy.

We want to do things differently, but you can only demonstrate this when you are approachable and focus on building strong relationships with the people you are close to.

We recently did a launch of our Partner Community in the Americas at a big event in Arizona.

So much of the feedback I received was focused on how people had never seen so much passion for our business. It’s not about the price and all the technologies – it’s about how you are treated.

When you build a company, you need to be proud of what you are building. Otherwise, it’s just a job. For us, it’s more than a job. I have been here since day one and this is an element that is part of our DNA.

We are always trying to develop the culture inside of the company and follow the approach of Masato Nakao, Representative Director, Chairman of the Board and Chief Executive Officer at i-PRO.

He’s an approachable and accessible CEO and strives to unite us every day. He wants all teams – whether they are product management or marketing – to work together as one.

At the end of the day, we all have the same goal. We all want to make sure that this company is growing like it has been growing. In-line with where we want to grow, and inside of the business, we see such a lot of enthusiasm, motivation and passion to do this.

That’s why i-PRO was established. Many large corporations are not dynamic and that’s why our three pillars of ‘Flexible, Bold and Trusted’ are key to our ongoing success.

Gerard Figols

Gerard has served as i-PRO’s Chief Product Officer since May 2024, driving all i-PRO products from security to medical and industrial.

He has also been a strong driving force behind the development of i-PRO’s AI ethical principles and governance structure, pointing the way for i-PRO to pioneer the edge computing era and lead the industry as the first camera manufacturer to set standards and rules for the ethical use of AI.

In 2021, upon the establishment of i-PRO EMEA, he was appointed President of i-PRO EMEA, where he rapidly grew the business from its foundation in the EMEA region.

In January 2024, he was appointed Senior Vice President, responsible for global sales in Asia Pacific in addition to EMEA, while also serving as President of i-PRO APAC, contributing to i-PRO’s global sales expansion.