BGU PhD Graduate Leads the Future of Responsible GenAI
BGU PhD Graduate Leads the Future of Responsible GenAI
March 12, 2026
Dr. Yair Adato PhD graduate of Ben-Gurion University of the Negev. (Photo Credit Pulse 2.0)
Pulse 2.0—Dr. Yair Adato, a PhD graduate in Computer Science in Computer Vision from Ben-Gurion University of the Negev (BGU), in collaboration with Harvard University, is the Founder and CEO of Bria, a company redefining how enterprises use visual Generative AI (GenAI) responsibly. In an interview with Pulse 2.0, Dr. Adato explained that his vision is to build a world where human creativity and AI innovation thrive together. “My mission is simple: make AI work for people, not against them. Every line of code we write is guided by the principle that technology should amplify human creativity and respect data ownership, not replace it.”
With more than 50 patents bridging AI research and commercial applications, Dr. Adato has built a career translating cutting-edge technology into real-world impact. Before founding Bria in 2020, he served as CTO of Trax Retail, scaling the company from a 20-person startup into a global unicorn with nearly 1,000 employees. That experience shaped his enterprise-first mindset. “AI only succeeds when it fits real production constraints: infrastructure, governance, and business accountability,” he noted.
The inspiration for Bria began in 2014 when Dr. Adato first encountered early GenAI research. While he recognized its transformative power, he also saw risks tied to intellectual property and data ownership. Together with co-founder Vered Horesh, he built Bria on 100% licensed data with a patented attribution engine designed to ensure compliance and compensate creators. “Generative AI would either become the next Napster, stealing from creators, or the next Spotify, fairly compensating them. We chose to build the Spotify model.”
Bria’s platform is structured around three key control layers: how AI behaves, how it is deployed, and how it integrates into enterprise systems. Its offerings include image generation and editing APIs, brand-specific model training, product shot generation for e-commerce, advertising automation, and full production pipeline integration. Moving beyond what Dr. Adato calls “prompt and pray,” Bria enables deterministic, rules-based workflows. “We’re not just another AI tool,” he emphasized. “We’re the legal, ethical foundation that makes AI safe for business.”
Since its launch, Bria has raised $40 million in a Series B round, bringing total funding to $65 million, and reported more than 300% growth in annual recurring revenue. Strategic partnerships with Microsoft, AWS, NVIDIA, and Getty Images have helped position the company as a leader in enterprise-grade visual GenAI. Looking ahead, Bria is expanding into video and pioneering a “Premium IP” model that allows copyright holders to monetize their assets responsibly. As Dr. Adato concluded, “The future belongs to AI companies that empower rather than exploit. We’re building that future, one licensed pixel at a time.”
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