David Ha, a double University of Toronto alum and founder of Japanese company Sakana AI, has been named to the Time100 AI 2025 list.
The annual list recognizes “innovators, leaders and thinkers reshaping our world through groundbreaking advances in artificial intelligence.”
Ha, who earned an honours bachelor of science in engineering science and a master of mathematical finance from U of T, was recognized for the unprecedented success of AI Scientist, a new system for scientific discovery — created by Sakana AI — that can independently generate research questions, run experiments, write papers and review them.
In March, AI Scientist crafted the first-ever AI-conducted and written paper to be accepted by peer reviewers at a machine learning conference.
The milestone represents "promising early signs of progress" towards a new era of science, Ha told Time, although he noted his team will proceed responsibly and cautiously before claiming AI can legitimately produce significant research.
Founded in 2023, Sakana AI is the fastest Japan-based company to achieve a $1 billion valuation.