WEBVTT - Wemimo Abbey, Esusu 0:00:00.080 --> 0:00:02.920 Afro Tech is a global gathering where inclusive tech companies 0:00:02.960 --> 0:00:05.320 meet innovators. It's the only tech event you. 0:00:05.280 --> 0:00:05.880 Need all year. 0:00:06.080 --> 0:00:09.039 Get ready for afro Tech twenty twenty three in Austin, Texas, 0:00:09.160 --> 0:00:11.600 November first through the fifth. We built a whole temper 0:00:11.640 --> 0:00:13.280 you can use to help you get your employer to 0:00:13.360 --> 0:00:16.400 sponsor your trip and enjoy experiences built for every stage 0:00:16.440 --> 0:00:18.720 your career. Whether you're a college student looking for your 0:00:18.720 --> 0:00:21.400 next internship, or if you work in avention capital looking 0:00:21.400 --> 0:00:23.560 for your next business to invest in, and if you're 0:00:23.560 --> 0:00:25.639 looking for a co founder, a people that's on your team, 0:00:25.760 --> 0:00:28.360 there's no better place to be. The massive corporate layoffs 0:00:28.400 --> 0:00:30.520 of twenty twenty two and twenty twenty three have affected 0:00:30.520 --> 0:00:33.040 our community in a big way. An Afrotech wants to 0:00:33.040 --> 0:00:35.200 help you get back on your feet with skill development, 0:00:35.360 --> 0:00:37.800 making it easier to switch industries. If that's your route. 0:00:37.840 --> 0:00:40.120 In an afro tech, you'll make connections to help you 0:00:40.159 --> 0:00:43.640 get your next opportunity. Visit afrotech dot com slash conference 0:00:43.640 --> 0:00:47.280 to learn more. This next conversation is a fireside the 0:00:47.320 --> 0:00:52.920 importance of investing in innovative fintech financial technology through investments 0:00:52.920 --> 0:00:56.720 in fintech, financial institutions and startups alike and harness technology 0:00:57.040 --> 0:01:02.600 to democratize access to financial services, reduced disparities, and promote 0:01:02.800 --> 0:01:06.679 wealth accumulation. Owen Douglas, who has been on this stage before, 0:01:07.240 --> 0:01:10.759 and win Memo Abbey will discuss the role of fintech 0:01:10.800 --> 0:01:14.280 in creating new avenues for wealth building and financial inclusion, 0:01:14.760 --> 0:01:18.559 highlighting how innovation can be a driving force behind sustainable 0:01:18.680 --> 0:01:24.679 financial growth. So when Memo Abbey is co founder of 0:01:24.720 --> 0:01:29.160 Asusuit as well as a three times social entrepreneur name 0:01:29.240 --> 0:01:31.959 to the Forbes thirty Under thirty list is not an 0:01:32.000 --> 0:01:35.679 easy list to get on, so he's the truth. Olin Douglas, 0:01:35.680 --> 0:01:40.120 CEO of Hanover Street Advisors is Prior to starting the 0:01:40.160 --> 0:01:42.640 consulting business, he was the founding and managing partner of 0:01:42.760 --> 0:01:45.720 Motley Fool Ventures, founded in twenty eighteen. 0:01:45.760 --> 0:01:47.880 He led the growth of the venture capital. 0:01:47.560 --> 0:01:51.720 Firm from zero zero dollars to two hundred and fifty 0:01:51.760 --> 0:01:54.720 million in five years. Please welcome to the stage. I 0:01:54.800 --> 0:01:58.000 moderated Olin Douglas and panelists with Mimo Abbey. 0:01:58.800 --> 0:02:00.800 That's you know what. 0:02:03.160 --> 0:02:17.360 Change I missed that, But hello everyone, it's a pleasure 0:02:17.360 --> 0:02:20.359 to be here. Thank you for afro Tech Investing. I'm 0:02:20.440 --> 0:02:25.080 an afro tech executive for inviting us and mimo. Welcome 0:02:25.200 --> 0:02:25.760 and welcome. 0:02:26.040 --> 0:02:26.520 How about you? 0:02:26.919 --> 0:02:30.720 How's everyone doing? Come on, man, this is church man. 0:02:30.720 --> 0:02:35.080 We got all black people off. How's everyone doing? Much better? 0:02:35.200 --> 0:02:35.720 Much better? 0:02:36.200 --> 0:02:39.600 Very good? Very good. Well, let's dive in. Just in 0:02:39.639 --> 0:02:41.040 the spirit of full disclosure. 0:02:41.320 --> 0:02:44.799 I've known this gentleman for about five or six years now, 0:02:44.919 --> 0:02:49.480 so we are more likely to not Man, We're gonna 0:02:49.480 --> 0:02:52.200 go off script a little bit, I'm sure, but let's 0:02:52.200 --> 0:02:54.760 start off for the audience. Can you tell us a 0:02:54.760 --> 0:02:57.679 little about what does Suzu do in What was the 0:02:57.760 --> 0:02:59.120 motivation for starting? 0:03:00.120 --> 0:03:03.560 Yeah, thanks a lot. It Sushu really stems from my 0:03:03.720 --> 0:03:09.040 personal experience and my co founder sameir For me particularly, 0:03:09.360 --> 0:03:12.560 I grew up on the slums of Legos, Nigeria. I 0:03:12.600 --> 0:03:14.880 lost my dad at the age of two, and I 0:03:14.919 --> 0:03:18.119 was raised by my mom and two very spirited sisters. 0:03:18.480 --> 0:03:21.160 And one thing my mother fundamentally believed in was just 0:03:21.280 --> 0:03:24.600 importance of education. My mom used to work at the 0:03:24.680 --> 0:03:28.440 National Post Office in Nigeria for twenty one years and 0:03:28.480 --> 0:03:31.680 I spent over sixty percent of our salary to afford 0:03:32.040 --> 0:03:37.600 my education back on in Nigeria. So that education is 0:03:37.600 --> 0:03:40.520 what led me to the United States. I immigrated from 0:03:40.680 --> 0:03:44.040 eighty degree weather in any Nigerians in the room, we're 0:03:44.120 --> 0:03:47.480 always everywhere there we go. I only say in Nigerians 0:03:47.480 --> 0:03:51.800 were like the Chinese of Africa or where everywhere. So 0:03:52.360 --> 0:03:55.600 immigrated from eighty degree weather in Legos to negative twenty 0:03:55.640 --> 0:03:59.400 two degrees in Minnesota. It was real, man, my people 0:03:59.440 --> 0:04:03.320 living in a reason I don't get it. But during 0:04:03.360 --> 0:04:06.440 that transition something happened. My mom and I did not 0:04:06.560 --> 0:04:08.920 have a credit score. We walked into one of the 0:04:08.960 --> 0:04:12.880 biggest financial institutions to borrow money and were turned away 0:04:12.880 --> 0:04:15.520 and had to go borrow money from a predatory lend 0:04:15.520 --> 0:04:19.400 at over four hundred percent interest rate. In addition to that, 0:04:19.520 --> 0:04:22.000 my mother sold my dad's wedding rink. We brought money 0:04:22.000 --> 0:04:24.960 from church members, and that's how we got started in America. 0:04:25.279 --> 0:04:28.240 So really inspired by that experience, having had distinct in 0:04:28.320 --> 0:04:32.840 wall streets and big consults and firms across the country, 0:04:33.800 --> 0:04:35.960 my co founder and I started a SUSU on three 0:04:36.000 --> 0:04:39.320 core premises. No matter where you come from, the color 0:04:39.320 --> 0:04:43.200 of your skin and particularly your financial identities shouldn't determine 0:04:43.200 --> 0:04:45.560 where you end up in the wealthiest nation the world 0:04:45.680 --> 0:04:48.720 is ever sin and what we do at is susy simple. 0:04:49.520 --> 0:04:53.200 Did you know that renters send roughly one point four 0:04:53.279 --> 0:04:58.360 trillion dollars to their landlords every year and less than 0:04:58.480 --> 0:05:02.040 ten percent of that data it's factored into their credit score. 0:05:02.800 --> 0:05:05.440 And who are the people that are rent It's predominantly 0:05:05.480 --> 0:05:10.039 people of color. So we created the technology to capture 0:05:10.160 --> 0:05:14.480 rental data, transform it and report it into the consumer 0:05:14.560 --> 0:05:16.800 rights and agencies. So when you pay your rent, it 0:05:16.839 --> 0:05:19.360 shows up on your credit score, and one day, when 0:05:19.360 --> 0:05:22.040 you want to go get a home or a order loan, 0:05:22.520 --> 0:05:24.640 you can do that with a good credit score and 0:05:24.720 --> 0:05:28.240 being excluded. And then when people can afford to parents, 0:05:28.279 --> 0:05:31.120 we give them zero interest loans so they are not 0:05:31.320 --> 0:05:35.840 evicted because as a society we shouldn't mis solving eviction backwards. 0:05:36.240 --> 0:05:40.880 So today ISSUSU is in roughly five million rental units 0:05:41.000 --> 0:05:43.679 or fifty state. We see over one hundred billion dollars 0:05:43.720 --> 0:05:46.880 in rental volume. And because of this man and a 0:05:46.880 --> 0:05:49.400 lot of the things he has done since day zero, 0:05:49.880 --> 0:05:52.200 it SUSU is valued add a billion dollars and we've 0:05:52.240 --> 0:05:53.920 raised over one hundred and forty five million. 0:05:58.400 --> 0:06:03.520 Yes, a powerful story. Every time I hear it's amazing. 0:06:03.640 --> 0:06:06.719 So like you and I both come from humble beginnings. 0:06:06.760 --> 0:06:11.320 You're from Lego Stagierias, from the inner city Baltimore, Maryland. 0:06:12.480 --> 0:06:16.800 When you think about financial inclusion, like you know, I 0:06:16.839 --> 0:06:18.599 know what you know the general means, but how do 0:06:18.640 --> 0:06:21.039 you internalize that and how do you keep that spirit 0:06:21.680 --> 0:06:23.800 of financial clusion going through the business? 0:06:24.080 --> 0:06:30.280 Absolutely, Atisusu. We did something that was unapologetic. We came 0:06:30.480 --> 0:06:32.440 out and said we're going to start a start up 0:06:32.560 --> 0:06:36.040 with a vision which is to leverage data to breach 0:06:36.120 --> 0:06:39.600 the racial world gap. And when people yeah that, ayre 0:06:39.640 --> 0:06:43.040 like is this a nonprofit? Like, no, we're adventure backed company. 0:06:43.560 --> 0:06:47.280 But one of the things that's important to me is 0:06:47.360 --> 0:06:51.960 this matter of proximity. When you think about it, the 0:06:52.120 --> 0:06:56.000 average white family as ten times as much wealth than 0:06:56.040 --> 0:06:59.880 the average black family in the United States. Number two, 0:07:00.320 --> 0:07:03.320 there are over forty five million people that do not 0:07:03.440 --> 0:07:06.520 have a credit score in this country. The average debt 0:07:06.560 --> 0:07:09.760 in America is ninety one thousand dollars. If you do 0:07:09.840 --> 0:07:13.680 that math, forty five million times ninety one thousand, you 0:07:13.720 --> 0:07:20.480 can unlock over six trillion dollars in capital that in 0:07:20.560 --> 0:07:24.440 and of itself is not only good for the US economy, right, 0:07:24.880 --> 0:07:30.120 it's good for even businesses that could let folks participate 0:07:30.280 --> 0:07:33.560 more in the American financial system. And that's been a 0:07:33.760 --> 0:07:37.600 thesis or in when we started, and you believed in 0:07:37.680 --> 0:07:41.160 us since day zero, it's always been about that thesis 0:07:41.240 --> 0:07:46.040 of we need to make sure not be rhetoric, you know, 0:07:46.600 --> 0:07:49.080 math and lit. The King got a dream, but I 0:07:49.080 --> 0:07:52.480 have a plan, and the plan is very very simple. 0:07:53.200 --> 0:07:57.720 How can we unlock quality financial products for our people? 0:07:59.000 --> 0:08:02.560 The cheaper in America? The easiest thing to get, what 0:08:02.680 --> 0:08:06.040 this nation is built on is cheap debt. Go back 0:08:06.080 --> 0:08:10.240 to the institution of slavery, go back to what happened 0:08:10.360 --> 0:08:15.800 during you know, the New Deal. Think about FHA loans 0:08:16.320 --> 0:08:19.360 for families to essentially get a leg up. And that's 0:08:19.400 --> 0:08:21.680 what we're trying to do. And I'm proud to say 0:08:22.000 --> 0:08:25.960 through our walk establishing and building credit scores for people 0:08:25.960 --> 0:08:28.400 and we measure what they've gone on to do. Eventually 0:08:28.760 --> 0:08:32.000 we've unlocked over that ten billion dollars in capital for 0:08:32.160 --> 0:08:34.760 folks that didn't have it. That's something we're really proud of. 0:08:37.320 --> 0:08:39.720 Very good, thank you. 0:08:39.840 --> 0:08:42.800 So we're in a room of executives here in this 0:08:42.960 --> 0:08:46.960 acro tech executive. Part of the wealth creation certainly is 0:08:46.960 --> 0:08:49.960 creating wealth for the founders and other folks in the world. 0:08:50.400 --> 0:08:53.200 Tell us a little bit about well, tell us the 0:08:53.240 --> 0:08:56.720 parts about the fundraising journey that you want that you want. 0:08:56.600 --> 0:08:57.240 To talk about. 0:08:57.440 --> 0:08:59.200 Give us a little bit of a Can we keep 0:08:59.200 --> 0:09:03.160 it real? Are we on a record? Yeah, okay, we're 0:09:03.200 --> 0:09:04.839 not gonna do it like we're not gonna throw the 0:09:04.920 --> 0:09:12.680 kitchen think, yeah, okay, we'll keep it pig. Raising money 0:09:13.480 --> 0:09:21.240 was hard. When we started a SUSU, three hundred and 0:09:21.280 --> 0:09:24.440 twenty six investors said no to us. And one of 0:09:24.480 --> 0:09:29.320 the tough first period of this journey was my co 0:09:29.440 --> 0:09:32.760 founder and I just closed that first contract, you know, 0:09:33.120 --> 0:09:35.679 at my alma mater in Minnesota. They're like, yo, we're 0:09:35.720 --> 0:09:39.240 just gonna give him a chance. This idea and we 0:09:39.280 --> 0:09:43.080 had put all that money into a SUSU because we 0:09:43.120 --> 0:09:45.920 couldn't raise money and we were one hundred thousand dollars 0:09:46.000 --> 0:09:49.839 in credit card debt. We had a great idea. The 0:09:49.920 --> 0:09:52.760 idea was how about and we couldn't afford an hotel 0:09:52.840 --> 0:09:55.920 room we had to stay overnight. We're like, how about 0:09:55.920 --> 0:10:00.560 we go to Denny's get the Grand Slam walk all 0:10:00.640 --> 0:10:03.199 nights because we just you know, and then take the 0:10:03.880 --> 0:10:06.240 next flight eilding the morning to go raise money in 0:10:06.280 --> 0:10:11.120 San Francisco. Great idea, so we we decided to do that. 0:10:11.320 --> 0:10:15.120 But unfortunately, because when I perpetual motion machines, we started 0:10:15.200 --> 0:10:22.480 falling asleep in that Dennis And unfortunately the restaurant manager 0:10:22.559 --> 0:10:25.200 came and to guys, you know, got to kick you 0:10:25.240 --> 0:10:28.000 guys out because I'm going to get fired. He knew 0:10:28.040 --> 0:10:32.040 what we were trying to do. And that was one 0:10:32.080 --> 0:10:36.800 of the darkest periods of this journey because I had 0:10:36.880 --> 0:10:41.480 walked that big financial institutions had run deals and with 0:10:41.720 --> 0:10:48.200 multi billion dollars from inception through execution, But why was 0:10:48.520 --> 0:10:51.960 folks not just going to bet on us? We got 0:10:51.960 --> 0:10:54.880 to break eventually, We got to break because of people 0:10:55.000 --> 0:10:58.319 like all In. I met all In, you know, at 0:10:58.360 --> 0:11:01.920 a conference for leadership developments, and we had this idea 0:11:01.920 --> 0:11:05.600 and Olin was like, wait, you got to really focus 0:11:05.640 --> 0:11:08.280 on certain things, and you have to think about this 0:11:08.440 --> 0:11:12.800 idea and if you do abc things, I would invest 0:11:13.320 --> 0:11:17.840 in the company. And you know, we're like, great, We 0:11:17.920 --> 0:11:23.480 took his word for it, held him accountable, held us accountable. 0:11:23.480 --> 0:11:27.640 And when the time was right. Olin came in invested 0:11:27.679 --> 0:11:29.880 in US when it was on sex its invest in 0:11:29.880 --> 0:11:33.199 a company like US. Ellie On led US Series D 0:11:33.320 --> 0:11:37.440 around the finance and at ten million dollars we raised 0:11:37.640 --> 0:11:41.040 ten point six million dollars, give us a very good 0:11:41.400 --> 0:11:45.400 valuation when people were trying to, like undercord Us put 0:11:45.480 --> 0:11:48.360 founders first. You know, there's a lot of folks when 0:11:48.360 --> 0:11:51.000 you raise money, there's a lot of interesting things that happened. 0:11:51.400 --> 0:11:56.079 Fought for us on apologetically, and then six months later, 0:11:58.480 --> 0:12:01.840 you know, we became a billion dollar company and raised 0:12:01.800 --> 0:12:04.880 one hundred and forty five million dollars and are just 0:12:05.320 --> 0:12:10.760 really really grateful, And it's more exciting because it's someone 0:12:10.960 --> 0:12:14.720 like him that invested in US and believed in US. 0:12:14.800 --> 0:12:18.400 And when we started off, it's not only Olin, it's 0:12:18.440 --> 0:12:23.040 people like Sean Mandy are concrete rows seventy five percent 0:12:23.120 --> 0:12:25.600 of our cap table. So the folks that invested in 0:12:25.640 --> 0:12:29.320 the company are either women or people of color. And 0:12:29.360 --> 0:12:32.880 when we met them, they probably had combined one hundred 0:12:32.920 --> 0:12:36.240 and twenty million dollars on their management. And today the 0:12:36.240 --> 0:12:39.280 companies they've been able to invest in now they've been 0:12:39.320 --> 0:12:42.120 able to raise over billion dollars and that's the true 0:12:42.200 --> 0:12:44.520 impact of what we're trying to do, and it takes 0:12:44.600 --> 0:12:47.160 investment because of people like you that make it up 0:12:47.160 --> 0:12:48.240 and so thank you so much. 0:12:48.800 --> 0:12:52.840 They're great. That's very nice. 0:12:52.920 --> 0:12:55.560 So in the Spirit's convers I'm gonna tell the other 0:12:55.600 --> 0:12:57.120 side of that story. 0:12:58.400 --> 0:12:59.960 Olin is also a board members. 0:13:01.360 --> 0:13:04.200 Afro Tech is a global gathering where inclusive tech companies 0:13:04.280 --> 0:13:06.680 meet innovators. It's the only tech event you. 0:13:06.559 --> 0:13:07.200 Need all year. 0:13:07.400 --> 0:13:10.360 Get ready for afro Tech twenty twenty three in Austin, Texas, 0:13:10.480 --> 0:13:12.920 November first through the fifth. We built a whole temper 0:13:12.960 --> 0:13:14.600 you can use to help you get your employer to 0:13:14.679 --> 0:13:17.720 sponsor your trip and enjoy experiences built for every stage 0:13:17.760 --> 0:13:20.000 your career. Whether you're a college student looking for your 0:13:20.040 --> 0:13:22.720 next internship, or if you work in avention capital looking 0:13:22.720 --> 0:13:24.840 for your next business to invest in, and if you're 0:13:24.880 --> 0:13:26.959 looking for a co founder of people that's on your team, 0:13:27.080 --> 0:13:29.720 there's no better place to be. The massive corporate layoffs 0:13:29.720 --> 0:13:31.840 of twenty twenty two and twenty twenty three have affected 0:13:31.840 --> 0:13:34.280 our community in a big way. An afro Tech wants 0:13:34.280 --> 0:13:36.520 to help you get back on your feet with skill development, 0:13:36.679 --> 0:13:39.080 making it easier to switch industries. If that's your route 0:13:39.160 --> 0:13:41.440 in an afro tech You'll make connections to help you 0:13:41.440 --> 0:13:44.960 get your next opportunity. Visit afrotech dot com slash conference 0:13:44.960 --> 0:13:45.560 to learn more. 0:13:46.600 --> 0:13:47.120 So nice. 0:13:47.440 --> 0:13:50.640 So we met at the conference. He was in an 0:13:50.679 --> 0:13:55.600 accelerator program. The person say, hey, I had this entrepreneur. 0:13:56.559 --> 0:13:58.680 I really would love you to be an executive ventor 0:13:59.080 --> 0:14:02.199 for him to do it. I don't know sure, right, 0:14:02.320 --> 0:14:04.760 So I meet this guy and like everyone loved him 0:14:04.800 --> 0:14:06.240 right away he told. 0:14:06.040 --> 0:14:08.000 Me his idea. I was like, dude, man, that's jankie. 0:14:08.000 --> 0:14:09.000 I'm not doing that right. 0:14:09.120 --> 0:14:13.800 So and he was like what And I was like, yes, 0:14:13.920 --> 0:14:15.559 we talked, but he was he was actually. 0:14:15.320 --> 0:14:17.040 Ahead of it. And he was like, yeah, I know, 0:14:17.800 --> 0:14:22.480 we have another idea. It's like this, and he pitched 0:14:22.480 --> 0:14:22.800 it again. 0:14:23.000 --> 0:14:25.600 So all those three hundred and twenty six investors and said, no, 0:14:25.680 --> 0:14:27.160 I was two of those, right. 0:14:27.880 --> 0:14:29.720 He came the second time the idea. I was like, 0:14:29.960 --> 0:14:31.960 I still love it. I said, no, you're not. 0:14:32.160 --> 0:14:34.200 You're not ready for the stage where I am. But 0:14:34.640 --> 0:14:38.080 what I am going to commit to do is help you, right. 0:14:38.280 --> 0:14:40.520 And so I can't give you my money yet because 0:14:40.520 --> 0:14:42.640 it's not my money, it's somebody else's money, and it's 0:14:42.680 --> 0:14:45.640 for ducer responsibilities, but I can show you the path 0:14:45.680 --> 0:14:47.440 to get there, and I think that's something a lot 0:14:47.440 --> 0:14:50.760 of bass don't do today. And so, to his credit, 0:14:50.800 --> 0:14:54.880 as you might imagine, laid out the roadmap, say do 0:14:55.000 --> 0:14:58.960 these things, and I'm there. They were ridiculous, impossible. 0:14:59.320 --> 0:15:01.360 He did him. And then I didn't got to him 0:15:01.400 --> 0:15:03.200 and I was like, oh the God did it? You know? 0:15:03.520 --> 0:15:05.400 So I think I'm in right. 0:15:06.080 --> 0:15:08.480 There's a saying if you anger around the barber shops 0:15:08.480 --> 0:15:10.160 soon or later, you're going to get to air quarts. 0:15:12.480 --> 0:15:12.840 Yes. 0:15:13.280 --> 0:15:16.120 And then and then the part he doesn't tell is 0:15:16.200 --> 0:15:17.920 so I did lead day round. 0:15:17.720 --> 0:15:20.440 We have a really great relationship. But when it. 0:15:20.360 --> 0:15:25.680 Came time to do the big round, there were a 0:15:25.720 --> 0:15:27.200 lot of people that wanted to get it, a lot 0:15:27.200 --> 0:15:31.000 of people that wanted want it in. He actually took 0:15:31.040 --> 0:15:34.160 a haircut on his valuation so that people like me 0:15:34.400 --> 0:15:35.600 and some others could have an. 0:15:35.480 --> 0:15:38.280 Opportunity to continue to invest in his fund. 0:15:38.320 --> 0:15:40.920 Like that's the part that doesn't come out. That's part 0:15:40.920 --> 0:15:47.560 of the means. And he and his co founder didn't hesitate, 0:15:47.840 --> 0:15:50.560 you know, negotiations to get there, to get tight and 0:15:50.560 --> 0:15:52.240 he was like, look if it means a little bit 0:15:52.320 --> 0:15:52.760 less for me. 0:15:53.400 --> 0:15:56.320 I'm going to do that. So we appreciate you for that. 0:15:56.400 --> 0:15:58.800 I've told him I'm with him until the end, no 0:15:58.800 --> 0:15:59.800 matter what that end is. 0:16:00.000 --> 0:16:03.240 We just we just you know, we just life. 0:16:04.800 --> 0:16:05.040 Good. 0:16:05.080 --> 0:16:07.120 So I know I got the hand signals. So we're 0:16:07.120 --> 0:16:08.520 gonna kind of wrap this up and leave a little 0:16:08.520 --> 0:16:10.680 bit of time for Q and A. But so I 0:16:10.680 --> 0:16:12.200 would leave it to you if you reflect on this 0:16:12.280 --> 0:16:17.840 conversation even changes, maybe it's this other one, like it's 0:16:17.840 --> 0:16:20.240 hard work what you're doing. I mean, it's really really tough, 0:16:20.440 --> 0:16:23.400 and as you think about what you can share with founders, 0:16:23.440 --> 0:16:25.360 like what's the anchor that keeps you steady, Like what 0:16:25.800 --> 0:16:29.480 keeps you going when everything inside of you saying like 0:16:29.680 --> 0:16:31.120 this is just too much. 0:16:37.480 --> 0:16:41.960 This journey is very lonely. I think everyone sees you know, 0:16:42.640 --> 0:16:45.760 you're raising one forty five, you're value added billion. I 0:16:45.800 --> 0:16:49.080 think the billion does the muggage and doing well is 0:16:49.120 --> 0:16:53.160 the premium that proves the billion does. What keeps me 0:16:53.480 --> 0:16:59.640 up at night is really the fight when it's this 0:17:00.120 --> 0:17:05.160 Entry was built on the back of black people and 0:17:05.200 --> 0:17:09.760 a bunch of folks that have imaginalized and I'm sick 0:17:09.800 --> 0:17:12.399 and tired of all the talk. I just want to 0:17:12.480 --> 0:17:16.840 roll up my sleeves and do the walk. She's there. 0:17:21.200 --> 0:17:25.840 I think given the things that people have gone through, 0:17:26.480 --> 0:17:34.040 were indestructible, won't breakable. And you know, I just want 0:17:34.080 --> 0:17:38.520 to see a ward whereby my children can grow up 0:17:38.520 --> 0:17:40.760 in this country or anywhere in the world and just 0:17:40.840 --> 0:17:47.879 say I am enough. And you know, like what this 0:17:48.000 --> 0:17:50.639 reminds me of something really messed up, not messed up, 0:17:50.680 --> 0:17:53.480 this kind of comical happened when we raised that around. 0:17:53.560 --> 0:17:57.919 I called my mom. She just sacrificed everything. You know, 0:17:58.040 --> 0:18:00.080 when I told her I was leaving Corporate America. I 0:18:00.160 --> 0:18:02.320 used to pay my mother's rent, by the way. She's like, 0:18:02.359 --> 0:18:06.919 oh my god, I thought we made it. And I'm like, oh, 0:18:06.920 --> 0:18:10.240 I'm going to go co found Distant called Susan. She's like, 0:18:10.480 --> 0:18:13.800 oh man, this is rough. So I'm like, hey, mom, 0:18:13.920 --> 0:18:16.280 you know, we just raised one hundred and forty five million, 0:18:16.400 --> 0:18:18.639 and you know the company's valued at a billion. You 0:18:18.680 --> 0:18:20.560 know what my mother said, I was like, ah, I'm 0:18:20.560 --> 0:18:22.720 so proud of you, but I was the wedding planning going. 0:18:25.720 --> 0:18:28.760 She just doesn't get it. But what that matters is 0:18:28.880 --> 0:18:34.480 it's proximity, right, my mother cannot necessarily comprehend what that means, 0:18:34.600 --> 0:18:36.800 the economics of what that means, and how I could 0:18:36.840 --> 0:18:40.159 fundamentally change our lives. And there are many of us 0:18:40.359 --> 0:18:44.640 that have imaginalized by the system. And what I want 0:18:44.680 --> 0:18:47.400 to do and wake up like gets me out of bed. 0:18:47.600 --> 0:18:50.520 This journey is hard, you know, I went to bed 0:18:50.600 --> 0:18:53.440 at three thirty am this morning. It's not sexy. There's 0:18:53.440 --> 0:18:55.920 a bunch of issues you have to deal with on 0:18:56.080 --> 0:18:59.240 this journey. Knowing what I know now, would I do 0:18:59.359 --> 0:19:04.400 it again? You know, maybe yes, but I won't recommend 0:19:04.440 --> 0:19:06.800 it for everyone. That's just the truth. There's a lot 0:19:06.840 --> 0:19:09.359 of things that you carry. If I do well at 0:19:09.400 --> 0:19:11.960 a SUSU, there's a good chance my marriage is suffering. 0:19:13.040 --> 0:19:14.760 So there's a lot of things you have to juggle. 0:19:14.880 --> 0:19:17.159 And I'm not here to give people bullshit. I'm just 0:19:17.240 --> 0:19:22.600 here to tell people the truth. So for me, it's 0:19:22.720 --> 0:19:25.520 just the walk, man. I just I wake up to 0:19:25.680 --> 0:19:30.440 every time. I know I want to walk tirelessly to 0:19:30.600 --> 0:19:34.280 bridge the ratio walth gap. And one day, when my 0:19:34.640 --> 0:19:38.600 least expires in this construct called life, when I am transitioning, 0:19:39.200 --> 0:19:44.040 I want to know no regrets. I did everything to 0:19:44.359 --> 0:19:46.840 narrow that gap, and that's what gets me up every day. 0:19:50.760 --> 0:19:51.200 I can't. 0:19:53.040 --> 0:19:56.600 I think that's a great comment to stop on. I 0:19:56.680 --> 0:19:58.800 don't know if we have a time for a couple 0:19:58.840 --> 0:20:00.520 of qunit questions. 0:20:01.440 --> 0:20:04.920 I'm for too, maybe three questions depending on how fast 0:20:05.000 --> 0:20:06.760 they are, So listen, let's chop. 0:20:06.680 --> 0:20:08.280 These uf NO six part questions. 0:20:09.119 --> 0:20:09.239 Hi. 0:20:09.280 --> 0:20:10.080 My name is Dan Green. 0:20:10.119 --> 0:20:12.680 I'm one with from Midley, and my question for you is, 0:20:12.720 --> 0:20:18.200 I've noticed an uptick in certain social media areas encouraging 0:20:18.560 --> 0:20:23.200 specifically young black men and women to forego school because 0:20:23.240 --> 0:20:26.639 of the debt and inequalities that I can accumulate. And 0:20:26.720 --> 0:20:28.960 that influence also is saying that it's better to work 0:20:29.000 --> 0:20:31.359 with your hands rather than trying to go to school. 0:20:32.160 --> 0:20:35.320 And I'm curious because personally, for me, I'm kind of 0:20:35.359 --> 0:20:37.520 torn on that. I understand that it's very difficult to 0:20:37.680 --> 0:20:39.320 go to school and accumulate that debt and it's not. 0:20:39.480 --> 0:20:40.920 Very easy to get that access. 0:20:41.600 --> 0:20:44.159 But on the other side, you know, we worked with 0:20:44.240 --> 0:20:46.520 our hands already, and so I'm kind of torn, and 0:20:46.600 --> 0:20:49.000 I'm curious with your experience, what would you say to 0:20:49.080 --> 0:20:53.320 that influence, especially to very young and impressionable minds of 0:20:53.400 --> 0:20:55.080 that age, we spend a lot of time on social 0:20:55.160 --> 0:20:57.960 media hearing these things and what that would mean for 0:20:58.040 --> 0:20:58.439 the future. 0:20:59.320 --> 0:21:02.160 And just to make sure I got your question, you're saying, 0:21:02.200 --> 0:21:05.760 what's the importance of education? School now. 0:21:08.080 --> 0:21:11.200 Towards the influence towards young black men and women are 0:21:11.280 --> 0:21:12.840 saying school isn't worth it. 0:21:13.320 --> 0:21:15.320 It's better to work with your hands in this day 0:21:15.320 --> 0:21:15.640 and age. 0:21:18.480 --> 0:21:23.440 Look for me, I can speak for myself, and education 0:21:23.640 --> 0:21:27.480 changed my life. You know, when I was growing up 0:21:27.520 --> 0:21:29.520 in the slums and I was going to school with 0:21:29.680 --> 0:21:33.080 the minister skids or like the former president's kid, and 0:21:33.280 --> 0:21:37.639 when I was the best econstudent literally in the entire university, 0:21:37.800 --> 0:21:40.440 it gave me a sense of worth that I'm like, Wow, 0:21:40.560 --> 0:21:42.760 you know, might be living in a place where we 0:21:42.800 --> 0:21:46.159 don't have functioning toilets, or we don't have constant electricity, 0:21:46.240 --> 0:21:48.639 but there's something I could do very well. And then 0:21:48.720 --> 0:21:52.560 when I came to the United States, right like when 0:21:52.640 --> 0:21:56.400 I found out that you guys pay people to essentially 0:21:56.600 --> 0:21:59.760 teach other people at the Academic Assistance Center, I'm like, man, 0:21:59.760 --> 0:22:02.600 people who paid me to be smart? That's like game changing. 0:22:03.040 --> 0:22:05.119 And then the network I got when I went to 0:22:05.800 --> 0:22:09.760 graduate school just down the street at NYU opened up 0:22:09.800 --> 0:22:11.919 my mind and that's where I even met my co founder, 0:22:12.640 --> 0:22:16.639 like over ten years ago. Right, So, I think what 0:22:16.960 --> 0:22:21.720 education does, in my opinion, it expands your intellectual frame 0:22:21.800 --> 0:22:26.000 of reference. Right, you see things from different walks of life. 0:22:26.040 --> 0:22:29.600 But that's not the only way, right, you can folks 0:22:29.680 --> 0:22:34.160 have all the alternative. But for me, it fundamentally transformed 0:22:34.200 --> 0:22:37.960 my life and the experience as you gain in those institutions, 0:22:38.400 --> 0:22:39.200 my life changing. 0:22:40.320 --> 0:22:40.520