We asked the Up to Us community to think about what they would do if they had $389 billion - the amount paid on national debt interest. Frederick Uy talks about E-Learning, Artificial Intelligence, and Underrepresented Communities and Venture Capitalists.
The Future of E- Learning Industry
Personally, if I had $389 billion dollars, the interest paid on the national debt, I would invest it in the e-learning industry. The industry of e- learning is the future of education, which is a huge pillar to stimulate innovation. If we think about it; without education, there would be no innovation because education has always been a way for different individuals to relay knowledge and ideas. Currently, e- learning is delivered through different mediums such as videos, audios, flashcards, and we even have virtual courses.
However, if we look at the rising technology around us; we can see electric cars, artificial intelligence, blockchain, and even customer intelligence which can predict the next time a customer will come back to a store and the probability that he/she will get a certain item. It is very clear that not enough innovation is being done in the field of e- learning. Therefore, I believe that within the next 5 to 10 years, an investment in E-learning would be very profitable.
According to Forbes, the E-learning industry is projected to grow $325 billion dollars by 2025 from $107 billion dollars in 2015. If we think about it, that is more than a 300% growth! Therefore, if I would have invested $389 billion dollars in the e-learning industry by 2015, I would have tripled my money and have gotten a significant return of almost a billion dollars! Additionally, just online courses itself, it produced a massive yearly income of $46 billion dollars and really, it does not cost much to produce an online course! All you need is a camera, microphone, and willingness to teach other students in a creative and engaging way!
Lastly, it is also very important to mention how universities and different institutions have been transitioning to online courses. As our lives become busier, not everyone can go to in person classes. Therefore, a lot of these institutions have been using video and other learning management systems such as Moodle or Blackboard to convey information.
But, is this really the peak of innovation in delivering knowledge? Just through video? I don’t think so. I think of a future where students have access to virtual reality and holographic. Instead of sitting on a laptop the whole day trying to learn, students can stand and immerse themselves in a completely different environment in the same room by having interactive models that utilizes virtual reality.
I imagine a course module that consists of different algorithms, big data, and data tracking that enables the monitoring of a student performance throughout a module so the module can adjust to the student needs to maximize learning capabilities.
I am very excited to see how the e-learning industry is going to significantly change in the future. But, for this to happen it needs people who are willing to believe and invest. Are you ready to join me as we jump to the future of learning?
3 Reason On How Investing in A.I is Profitable
When I wake up in the morning, if you are like me, the first thing that I do is check my smartphone and look at my Instagram, Facebook and Snapchat. I reply to my friends’ messages and at this point, I would start looking through my emails as well. Then, I would open my Spotify and play the daily music playlist as I take a quick shower and get ready for the day. I would then wear my Samsung watch to track my steps as I walk to my first class in the morning.
If you think about it, artificial intelligence has a huge impact in our daily lives. From the moment we opened our smartphone when we woke up; all the way to tracking our daily steps, our smartphone is constantly running in the background to collect data and it utilizes it to deliver more personalized results. Even if we don’t notice it, we are constantly utilizing machine learning and AI even as something simple as doing a quick google search on “The nearest fast food restaurants around me”.
Therefore, it just makes perfect sense for me to invest $389 billion dollars, the interest paid on the national debt, to the artificial intelligence industry because it is something that billions of people use. Additionally, it is very evident that we have not reached the peak of A.I yet. There are still so many capabilities that it is capable of and is currently on the research side.
1. AI Can Transform Hunger
There is enough food production across the world to feed the entire population, but we don’t have the technology to extend expiration dates and store it effectively. In fact, just U.S. alone wastes $165 billion dollars of spoiled food that ends up in trash. It is a very sad dilemma, but it is also something fixable with machine learning. By 2025, it is expected that AI’s will be able to create complex supply chains with big data to solve food storage issues.
2. AI: The Future of Investing
Brokerages already have a smart feature where investors can just put their money in their “fund” and the brokerage will automatically invest it in ETF’s and mutual funds. However, there are still a lot of people who tend to choose the stocks they invest to manually. Therefore, there is room for improvement on how AI can be better utilized to increase the demand of AI managers in the financial realm. Charles Schwab and Vanguard, just to name a few, are some major brokerages that are leading the race for AI managers in financial sectors.
3. AI Can Revolutionize Transportation
Flying Cars! Spaceship to Mars! Less Traffic! Do I have to say more? I don’t think so!
Overall, investing in AI would be a great investment because it is not only something that we use daily, it is also full of potential that is yet to be discovered and implemented. I cannot wait to see how AI will change the landscape of the future. But, for this to happen, it needs people who are willing to believe and invest! Are you ready for the future? Let’s go!
Funding Venture Capitalists for Underrepresented Communities
If I would have a starting balance of $389 billion dollars, the interest paid on the national debt, I would invest it in hundreds and thousands of minorities, women, and LGTBTQ entrepreneurs over the next few years.
Now, you might be thinking how I am going to do that. Am I going to travel around the world and just handing out money to random entrepreneurs to support their business? Well, it’s actually pretty close to that. But, with more regulations and a team backing me up. To be more specific; I would create a venture capital fund that funds minority entrepreneurs to turn their ideas to fruition.
Looking at various data from Growwire and Forbes, it’s evident how most VC’s are male and white dominated from ivy leagues which leads to most startups are also in general, not diverse. This is a huge problem because the African- American, Hispanic, and Latinx community are constantly growing which means that the U.S. Population will become increasingly more diverse. Therefore, the need for minority entrepreneurs is becoming a need more than ever and there is definitely a huge untapped market in this area.
Yes, there are various venture capitals that are driven to drive change in the realm of startup funding, but most of them are not even travelling to search for talent. They are just utilizing their network to find these “Diverse entrepreneurs” and use them as a “model” to promote that they are a VC that is diverse. Additionally, most of the diverse entrepreneurs that is on their scout are also usually from an affluent community as well
Growing up in a low-income community in the Philippines, I personally have witnessed so many individuals with innovative ideas that could have changed the landscape of our community. Sadly, most of their ideas did not come into fruition due to lack of funding and not having an extensive network that can help them turn their dreams to reality. I also have seen so many students who are willing to cross bridges just to achieve their dreams.
In fact, I can still vividly remember when my friend told me how their teacher used to go to class 30 minutes earlier than the allotted time so she can draw the entire Microsoft Word layout in a blackboard. The classroom is filled with promising students, passionate and dedicated to learning without making excuses that they don’t have the proper resources. This is exactly the energy that I am looking for when finding entrepreneurs that I strongly believe that have the proper attributes to make a startup the next biggest company.
I understand that creating a Venture Capital is very risky because it involves seed funding, the first money an entrepreneur raises. In fact, 75% of startups fail. But I believe that starting a VC that is modelled towards minority entrepreneurs is something more than generating a profit. It is about making an impact over income. It is about changing lives so that they too feel inspired to cultivate and prepare the next generation.
Are you up for the challenge to change the landscape of entrepreneurs and the venture capital? If so, join me in my adventure!