CAMBRIDGE, England, June 29, 2026 /PRNewswire/ -- From June 17 to 18, the 19th Global Dairy Congress, themed "Fit for Purpose," was held in Barcelona, Spain, bringing together dairy industry leaders and representatives from around the globe. On the opening day, Dr. Ignatius Szeto, Vice President of Yili Group, delivered a keynote speech titled "Creating High Value Functional Product Opportunities" during the Industry Leadership session. Marking Yili's tenth appearance on the Congress stage, his presentation focused on high-value nutritional and health solutions, shedding light on new opportunities for the innovative development of functional dairy products.
During a round table discussion, Dr. Szeto emphasized, "Precision nutrition represents the next crucial growth driver for dairy innovation. Advancements in dairy technology have made it possible to develop functional products tailored to specific demographic characteristics and health needs. Meanwhile, the natural nutritional advantages of dairy give this sector immense potential for growth."
During the congress, Dr. Szeto also delivered a presentation titled "Goat Milk: Digestive and Absorptive Characteristics and Precise Nutritional Value for the Whole Family," where he provided a comprehensive overview of Yili's latest innovations in the goat milk category, unlocking refined approaches to whole-family nutritional health.
A major highlight of the Congress was the official announcement of the 2026 World Dairy Innovation Awards. Driven by its cutting-edge technology and market-oriented innovations, Yili was recognized with two Winner titles, alongside ten Finalist and seven Commended honors. Notably, the Changqing Lemon & Oat Popping Beads Probiotic Yogurt earned the distinction of Best Yogurt, while Gonglao's Hulunbuir Strain Milk Skin Yogurt was recognized as Best Artisan Product. The recognized products spanned multiple categories, including adult nutrition, liquid milk, ice cream, milk powder, and cream. This marks the seventh consecutive year that Yili has been honored at this prestigious event.
Richard Hall, Chairman of the Global Dairy Congress, commended Yili for its remarkable ability to consistently deliver award-winning innovations year after year despite growing industry challenges. He emphasized that the Chinese dairy sector is now at the forefront of global innovation, noting that Yili has become a crucial driving force for the industry worldwide through its continuous technological advancements and precise grasp of consumer needs.
Beyond the main stage, Yili showcased a robust lineup of products at its exhibition booth, addressing diverse and highly specialized health scenarios, such as blood sugar management, bone health, cardiovascular care, gastrointestinal nutrition for the whole family, and sports immunity. These offerings garnered significant attention and praise from attending experts.
Over the years, Yili has maintained a steadfast consumer-centric approach, leveraging precise insights into consumer demands to build a comprehensive health product portfolio that covers all demographics, life stages, and consumption scenarios. According to its latest financial report, the revenue share of Yili's new products rose to 16.4% in 2025, serving as a key engine driving the company's high-quality growth.
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Yili Group Showcases Dairy Innovation and Functional Product Development at the 19th Global Dairy Congress
Yili Group Showcases Dairy Innovation and Functional Product Development at the 19th Global Dairy Congress
LONDON and TOKYO, June 29, 2026 /PRNewswire/ -- BRAHMA AI and Hakuhodo Technologies today announced a strategic partnership to develop, commercialize, and deploy high-fidelity digital humans at enterprise scale across Japan and the Asia-Pacific (APAC) region.
Formalized under a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU), the partnership establishes a joint framework to combine BRAHMA AI's advanced AI-driven digital human technology with Hakuhodo DY Group's deep creative expertise, client network, and market leadership in Japan and APAC.
Strategic Collaboration
The partnership will focus on:
- Developing and deploying advanced AI-powered digital human technologies (including Interactive models)
- Delivering AI products, and services tailored to the Japanese market
- Commercializing lifelike digital humans called ATMANs for enterprise clients
- Creating new storytelling formats, branded content, and immersive customer experiences
- Integrating digital humans, ATMANs, into Hakuhodo DY Group-led campaigns and platforms
- Expanding applications across industries and intellectual property (IP) owners in Japan and APAC
Core creative and technical teams from both organizations will work in close collaboration to drive concept development and deliver high-quality, culturally nuanced content.
A Proven Foundation
This partnership builds on a successful prior collaboration, most notably the debut of the digital likeness of Hibari Misora, created using proprietary AI models, ATMANs, trained on historical footage and audio.
The digital performer was featured in a BS Nippon TV special program "Hibari Misora brought back in the Reiwa Era" (broadcast January 7–8, 2026), appearing alongside contemporary artists. The project demonstrated both the creative and commercial potential of high-fidelity digital humans, ATMANs in modern media.
Strategic Objectives
Through this partnership, the Parties aim to:
- Accelerate enterprise adoption of digital human technologies
- Establish a new category of AI-driven communication through digital humans, ATMANs.
- Deliver culturally adaptive, high-fidelity digital humans, ATMANs, tailored to regional markets
- Unlock scalable commercial opportunities across media, entertainment, retail, and communications
Roles and Contributions
BRAHMA AI
- Provides core AI technology and digital human, ATMAN, systems
- Leads innovation in high-fidelity digital human, ATMAN, development
- Supports enterprise deployment and scaling
Hakuhodo Technologies
- Lead client integration, creative direction, and market deployment
- Provide access to enterprise clients across Japan and APAC
- Contribute creative strategy, production capabilities, and localization expertise
Future Outlook
Looking ahead, the partnership will expand joint initiatives across Japan and the broader APAC region, focusing on:
- New visual formats and creative applications
- Deeper integration into enterprise workflows in order to implement digital humans, ATMANs
- Co-development and co-commercialization opportunities
- Scalable, content-driven business models leveraging digital humans, ATMANs
Executive Commentary
Prabhu Narasimhan, CEO, BRAHMA AI:
"Digital humans, ATMANs represent a fundamental shift in how brands and audiences connect. Our partnership with Hakuhodo enables us to deliver culturally nuanced, high-fidelity digital humans, ATMANs, at enterprise scale across APAC."
Jo Plaete, CTO, BRAHMA AI:
"By combining Hakuhodo DY Group's creative heritage with BRAHMA AI's technological innovation, we are establishing a new category of communication. This partnership empowers brands to explore entirely new methods of expression through digital humans."
Ken Matsuzaki, Creative Technologist, Hakuhodo Technologies:
"BRAHMA AI's exceptional digital human technology has played a pivotal role in advancing our creative initiatives. By integrating this innovation with our expertise, we look forward to strengthening our collaboration and delivering greater value to clients across Japan and APAC."
About BRAHMA AI
BRAHMA AI is an enterprise AI content platform enabling organisations to create, manage and distribute AI-driven media through BRAHMA AI Studio and BRAHMA AI Core, guided by its Mind² foundation and delivering industry-leading fidelity, trust and governance. BRAHMA AI is founded on technology which has won eight Academy Awards for Best Visual Effects, including for Interstellar, Tenet and Dune Parts One and Two. Its goal is to bring Hollywood-grade AI content to enterprise, setting the standard for quality, fidelity and trust.
Visit: www.brahma.io
About Hakuhodo Technologies Inc.
A technology strategy company that plans and develops various technology strategies, including full-funnel marketing, the consumer interface market, media, and creative domains. Established in April 2022 for the purpose of consolidating the development structure of the Hakuhodo DY Group, and strengthening and evolving that structure.
Visit: https://www.hakuhodo-technologies.co.jp
Photo: https://mma.prnasia.com/media2/2998280/BRAHMA_AI_Hibari.jpg?p=medium600
Logo: https://mma.prnasia.com/media2/3001661/BRAHMA_AI_Logo.jpg?p=medium600
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BRAHMA AI, Hakuhodo Technologies Partner to Scale High-Fidelity Digital Humans Across Japan and APAC
