Closed vs. open AI ecosystems: Kanjun on Decoder

44 min read

Last updated 24 Apr 2026

Our CEO, Kanjun Qiu, went on The Verge‘s Decoder podcast to discuss the question hanging over the AI industry today: whether it will resemble the more open, user-centric vision of the early internet or the closed, walled garden approach of the social web. Listen to the full episode here.

Discussion Highlights

Hayden Field (00:00) Hey there, and welcome to Decoder. I’m Hayden Field, Senior AI Reporter at The Verge...

Hayden Field (01:56) So let’s jump right into our first story of the week...

Kanjun Qiu (02:42) I think that this is all to be expected...

Hayden Field (03:17) How so?

Kanjun Qiu (03:19) Yeah, I think right now we’re kind of at a crossroads...

Hayden Field (05:34) That makes sense...

Kanjun Qiu (06:09) Yeah, I think that part is going to be quite similar to what we saw in the last 10 years...

Imbue’s Decentralized Approach

Hayden Field (06:54) I think it’s a really hard problem...

Kanjun Qiu (06:54) I think it’s a really hard problem and the moment in time we’re at is, kind of where we are in our digital environments today...

Hayden Field (09:49) Got it. That makes sense...

OpenAI vs. Decentralized AI

Hayden Field (12:05) We need to take a quick break. We’ll be right back.

Kanjun Qiu (12:05) We need to take a quick break...

Reflections on Sora 2 and AI Video

Hayden Field (13:19) I think Sora shows what happens when AI capabilities meet platform incentives...

Kanjun Qiu (15:59) I think it’s a really complicated situation because...

The Impact of AI in Recruitment

Hayden Field (21:00) So this is actually a perfect example of when AI mediates human relationships...

Kanjun Qiu (23:21) I’m really glad you brought that up because...

Hayden Field (24:22) I think AI is so fundamental a technology...

Kanjun Qiu (29:25) I think this is part of why it’s important for these systems to be more explainable and controllable...

Conclusion

Kanjun Qiu (38:49) Yeah, same.