Global Innovators in Business: Recent Episodes
Christopher Rathbun
The Global Innovators in Business Network is a podcast for Undergraduates and MBA students to learn and discover innovators who have challenged the status quo. We invite some of the most successful leaders to share their thoughts and advice to students at Penn and beyond.
Daniel Yu is the Founder and CEO of Wasoko. Wasoko aims to unleash African commerce from various aspects. Using Wasoko’s services, shopkeepers and suppliers are more efficiently connected. By simply ordering products via the mobile app, shopkeepers can receive deliveries at their doorstep. Additionally, Wasoko has been able to support and finance small retailers. Daniel is also conversant in more than 8 languages and has taken the founder's pledge to transfer 70% of his proceeds to effective interventions in reducing suffering.
In this episode, you will hear about:
💡 Daniel’s inspiring story of how he explored the world at a young age and found his passion: applied to a music major but later changed minds, dropped out of college to start a business in Africa…
🌍 What pain points does Wasoko solve and how does Wasoko address it?
🚀 What is the biggest challenge of building Wasoko in Africa, a developing market, compared to if Wasoko was built in a more developed market?
💼 For-profit enterprises V.S. Nonprofit enterprises, which one is more needed in the developing market?
🎓 Daniel’s advice to the young generations?
Basil Moftah, the General Partner at Nclude, a venture capitalist fund and Fintech innovation engine with a core focus on the Middle East and North Africa. As an influential force in the venture capital space, Basil is at the forefront of the Fintech revolution in Egypt, a country experiencing a quantum leap forward in its Fintech ecosystem.
In this episode, you will learn:📚From a student with an engineering degree in Cairo to a venture capitalist in San Fransisco, what led Basil to where he is today?📈Differences in the business lifecycle of a startup in an emerging market V.S. a startup in a well-developed market. 🤝Why financial inclusion is the key issue in the Middle East and Africa and what are possible ways that can improve the current financial inclusion situation?
🚀What development phase is the Middle East Fintech market, especially the Egyptian market, in right now?
🌟Why creating a “sandbox for growth” is important for business in the developing Fintech market? 🌾What is the most undervalued sector in the Egyptian economy?
❤️What about being a VC does Basil love the most?
🔍Basil’s advice to the young generation.
Vikas is the Founder & CEO of abillion. abillion is a social media platform focused on helping people create better daily habits and rituals, starting with what they eat and buy. abillion’s mission is to become the definitive global ecosystem for everything sustainable.
In this episode, you will hear about:
💼What’s the motivation for founding abillion?
💡 How did Vikas make plans for his early career path?
🥩 What’s the future of cultivated meat?
🌍 How to pick the right ecosystem for your business?
👨🏫 Advice for young entrepreneurs: Start with a big name V.S. Start your own business right away.
Jim Rogers, a well-known investor, author, and financial commentator. He is the co-founder of the Quantum Fund, a hedge fund that achieved an impressive record of returns, and the author of “The Investment Biker”.
In this episode, you will learn:
🎓 Jim’s early life journey from Yale to Oxford
💼 The Quantum Fund – how it beat the S&P by nearly 4200% in 1970s?
📈 Jim’s way of thinking about investments in today’s volatile market
🏍️ What has Jim learned from his travel around the world on his motorcycle?
🌍 How does Jim see the US-China relationship?
💡 One investment advice - How catastrophes can lead to huge opportunities
👨🏫 If Jim could only choose one advisor, who would it be?
💰 Jim’s take on the future of cryptocurrency?
📚 Advice for students and the young generations
This interview is dedicated to Helen Keller International, an organization that provides critical nutrition to children around the world at risk for vitamin A deficiency - a condition that can lead to blindness and death (https://www.hki.org/).
Pierre Paslier is the co-founder and co-CEO of Notpla, a leader in the sustainable packaging and container manufacturing industry.Notpla is replacing the use of plastic in packaging with seaweed and plants that biodegrade in weeks to make our world more sustainable.
In this episode, you will hear about:🌱 How do biodegradable plants, especially seaweed, make food takeaway boxes more sustainable?💼 How did Pierre find his way into the packaging industry and finally start his own business?🚀 How did Notpla grow from scratch?💡 Pierre’s advice on how to find innovative ideas and make it happen.🏆 Pierre’s thoughts on how to think about the competition a start-up faces when entering the market as well as other insights on how to manage a start-up.
This interview is dedicated to 5 Gyres, a non-profit organization focusing on reducing plastic pollution by focusing on primary research (https://www.5gyres.org/).
Atish Davda is CEO and Co-Founder of EquityZen, a company working on bringing private markets to the public. Atish talks about his journey to starting EquityZen and what this company means to the future of investing in innovation.
The interview is dedicated to PennPAC. PennPAC works with nonprofit organizations to help solve their business challenges through the engagement of Penn alumni who serve as pro bono consultants for short-term projects. (https://pennpac.org/about/)
Irving Fain, the founder and CEO of Bowery Farming. Bowery is the leading vertical farming company in the United States, serving almost 800 grocery stores and major e-commerce platforms, such as Whole Foods, Giant, Walmart, and so on. Join the conversation and learn how technology can play an important role in the Agriculture industry's future and how Bowery brings high-quality products to our table in a more efficient and sustainable way.
This episode is dedicated to the D.C. Central Kitchen, a nationally recognized "community kitchen" that recycles food from around Washington, D.C., and uses it as a tool to train unemployed adults to develop work skills while providing thousands of meals for local service agencies in the process. (https://dccentralkitchen.org/)
Rick Bates, CEO and Co-Founder of RxSense. RxSense is a healthcare technology company that provides advanced cloud-based enterprise solutions. RxSense also contracts with the nation's largest pharmacies (including CVS, Walmart and Walgreens) to deliver consistently low prices directly to consumers on prescription drugs through its SingleCare (www.singlecare.com) prescription savings services.
Tune in to learn how Rick entered the drug industry and what led his way to start his own company, how RxSense improves transparency in the healthcare industry, and his advice onhow to navigate through challenges in the career.
The episode is dedicated to Heading Home, Boston's leading provider of emergency shelter, transitional, and permanent housing for low-income families and individuals, (https://www.headinghomeinc.org/).
In 2015, Joey Zwillinger co-founded Allbirds with his partner Tim Brown. Since its founding, Allbirds has gone to design what Time Magazine has called the “World’s Most Comfortable Shoe” and has been worn by Barack Obama, Leonardo DiCaprio, and many others. But even more fascinating is Allbird’s no-compromise mentality to developing sustainable and eco-friendly shoes. Join us to learn more about Allbirds and Joey's journey with the brand!
The event is dedicated to raising awareness for Stiles Hall, an organization helping low-income, youth of color students succeed and excel in the education pipeline: http://www.stileshall.org/.
Steve Gu, CEO of AiFi, talks about how he is using AI to automate stores around the world. While AmazonGo and other large conglomerates are pursuing a cashier-less future, Steve Gu talks about how AiFi is shaping this emerging landscape and what to expect in the not-so-distant future.
In this interview, you will learn:
- How do computer vision and machine learning work in the context of an autonomous store?
- How does AiFi technology differentiate someone taking an 80g bag of chips versus taking a 120g bag of chips?
- What will our experience be like when we enter a retail store in 30 years?
All donations and charitable contributions will go to Evidence Action - Deworm the World Initiative, which is an Effective Altruism recommended organization that has shown through research to deworm a child in India for $0.35 per child, and in Kenya, for $0.66 per child, vastly improving their quality of life. donate just $3.50 to help change the lives of 10 Children. Learn more about Deworm the World Initiative here: https://www.evidenceaction.org
Tracy Young, the co-founder and CEO of TigerEye, a sales and go-to-market platform that helps leaders track and predict the future performance of their business. She was previously the co-founder and CEO of PlanGrid, a construction productivity software. PlanGrid grew from 5 co-founders to 450 people and helped build over 1 million construction projects around the globe before being acquired by Autodesk in 2018 for $875 million.
This episode is dedicated to the World Wildlife Fund, a non-profit organization committed to building a future in which people live in harmony with nature. Check out https://www.worldwildlife.org/ to see the work they are doing.
Fred was a part of the original founding team of Zappos and alongside Tony Hsieh and others, helped Zappos grow into a company with more than $1 billion in gross merchandise sales before it was bought by Amazon in 2009. He is also the founder of Las Vegas-centric investment fund Honus Capital, and the co-founder of luxury fashion brand Ross and Snow.
This full interview is dedicated to the Goodie Two Shoes Foundation. The Goodie Two Shoes Foundation provides disadvantaged children and children in crisis with new shoes and socks, as well as other items deemed essential for good health and positive development (https://goodietwoshoes.org/)
We talk with Matthew Bannick, the Former Managing Partner of Omidyar Network, Former President of eBay International, and former President of PayPal on his advice in entering the impact investment sector as one of the pioneers in the industry. The conversation also covers Matt's advice on helping a company achieve global expansion, strategies to measure impact and what it takes to be a great leader.
This full interview is dedicated to BRAC. Its mission is to empower people and communities in situations of poverty, illiteracy, disease, and social injustice. BRAC has been a leader in poverty reduction efforts through encouraging social and economic empowerment, both in Bangladesh and around the world.
There will be a Q&A section with questions selected from the comments section! Post your questions below.
Check out Omidyar Networks website here: https://omidyar.com/
Deciding Our Future: Interview with Annie Duke, the author of How to Decide and Thinking in Bets. She was previously a professional poker player, winning a WSOP Poker Bracelet. She is now a renowned speaker and expert in the decision strategy space.
This full interview is dedicated to Alliance for Decision Education. Their mission is to improve lives by empowering students through decision skills education. https://www.alliancefordecisioneducation.org/
There will be a Q&A section with questions selected from the comments section! Post your questions below.
Coronavirus: What will the pandemic mean for globalization? In this interview with Geoffrey Garrett, the Dean at the USC Marshall School of Business and former Dean at the Wharton School, we discuss the impacts on global trade and commerce as a result of the pandemic and the preceding trade war.
The interview is dedicated to Southern California Counseling Center (SCCC) which works with volunteers to change lives and strengthen communities by providing affordable mental health care to people in need (https://sccc-la.org/)
Irving is the founder and CEO of Bowery Farming, a cutting-edge vertical farming company that is revolutionizing the way we grow food. Irving has demonstrated an unwavering commitment to using technology to create a paradigm shift in how we produce agricultural goods and interact with the world, the land around us. Today’s discussion will not only cover the traditional founders story, but also how to provide healthy, quality and sustainable food at scale.This Interview is dedicated to DC Central Kitchen. Check out their website to learn more: http://www.dccentralkitchen.org/
Laura is the CEO and founder of Helaina, which aims to be the first company to put human proteins into food. Through harnessing the power of precision fermentation, Laura and her team seek to create the glycoproteins found in breast milk to help enhance existing infant formula, and in the future open a whole new class of ingredients for food. Laura is also NYU’s youngest-ever adjunct professor in Food Science & Technology in 2017 and was featured in Forbes’ 30 under 30 list in 2022.
This interview is dedicated to the Good Foods Institute - Find more about them here https://gfi.org/
Sankarshan Murthy talks about the constraints of space and how Bumblebee Spaces is seeking to disrupt the industry by innovating a new way of living, with AI and robotics to maximize livable space.
The interview is dedicated to Evidence Action - Dispensers for Water Initiative at https://www.evidenceaction.org/dispensersforsafewater/
Find more about Bumblebee Spaces at https://www.bumblebeespaces.com/
Life-Saving Drone Delivery: Interview with Keller Rinaudo, the co-founder and CEO of Zipline a drone delivery company that transports critical and lifesaving products precisely where and when they are needed.
This full interview is dedicated to Malaria No More (www.malarianomore.org). They mobilize the political will and global resources required to achieve malaria eradication within our generation.
Check out https://flyzipline.com/ for more information on Keller's company.
This episode is sponsored by · Anchor: The easiest way to make a podcast. https://anchor.fm/app
Impact through International Development with Stephanie von Friedeburg, Senior Vice President, Operations, at International Finance Corporation. This interview is dedicated to the Women Entrepreneurs in Finance Initiative: https://www.ifc.org/wps/wcm/connect/t...
Stephanie von Friedeburg is IFC’s first Senior Vice President, Operations. She most recently stewarded the institution in the midst of the pandemic and led the implementation of IFC’s strategy to create projects, attract private investment, and ultimately support a resilient and inclusive recovery in emerging markets. She currently leads all IFC investment operations and advisory services and manages IFC’s $60 billion debt and equity portfolio in more than 100 countries. Her priorities include increasing opportunities for women, scaling up investments to fight climate change, and promoting digital development. Her career spans almost three decades in the World Bank Group. She started at IFC, where she also served as the first Chief Operating Officer and has spent more than two decades in investment operations, developing strong expertise in Africa and Central and Eastern Europe and in sectors such as telecom, manufacturing, and a wide array of technologies. In addition to an MBA from the Wharton School, she holds a Master of Arts from the Lauder Institute at the University of Pennsylvania and an undergraduate degree from the School of Foreign Service at Georgetown University.
ZOOM INTERVIEWS FOR CHARITY: Becoming a Startup hero - Interview with Tim Draper, Founder of Draper VC and Renowned Venture Capital Investor who invested in Tesla, Baidu, Skype, Hotmail, Robinhood etc. The event is dedicated to Draper Heroes institute, a mission to research, develop and share educational models and methods that encompass, explore and/or promote entrepreneurial career paths. (https://www.draperhero.org/) There will be a Q&A section with questions selected from the comments section! post your questions below. Find other interviews like this by checking out our channel and subscribing Check out Tim Draper's book How to be the Startup Hero on Amazon: https://tinyurl.com/y5j53hl2Also more information about Tim Draper at https://timothydraper.com/
This episode is sponsored by · Anchor: The easiest way to make a podcast. https://anchor.fm/app
All Proceeds from this original live podcast was donated to the Basser Center at Penn. Learn more and donate at https://www.basser.org/. Jon Steinberg is the current President of Altice USA News and Advertising. Jon is also the Founder of Cheddar, the former CEO of DailyMail and the former President of BuzzFeed. This podcasts discusses the future of media and his advice for undergraduates.
This episode is sponsored by · Anchor: The easiest way to make a podcast. https://anchor.fm/app
Kenneth E Behring, a multi-millionaire real-estate developer and the former owner of the Seattle Seahawks shares his life story and advice for undergraduates.
This episode is sponsored by · Anchor: The easiest way to make a podcast. https://anchor.fm/app
Grace Knight's Poem on Cystic Fibrosis
This episode is sponsored by · Anchor: The easiest way to make a podcast. https://anchor.fm/app