Joy's Profile

Interesting read! Call me traditional, but I’m squarely in the camp that there is something to real, human interaction that can’t be replaced by even the smartest AI “Amy’s or Als” of today. Executives want assistants with great organizational skills, but also those with charm, creative thinking ability, and frankly, an interesting personality as well. Could AI learn and eventually compete with human beings on that level? Is there opportunity for X.AI to produce a mass market product that can be compatible with smartphones and could help young urban professionals organize their daily lives?

I think demonstrating success and establishing a proof of concept here is going to be integral to the long-term viability of an idea of this nature. Learnings and outcomes from the Massa Lombarda project in Italy should give us some insight. In the meantime, could WASP think about partnering with advanced academic institutions with expertise in engineering to conduct further R&D efforts, ensure structural integrity, and continue to innovate? If this idea proves viable, I agree that it should garner the attention of NGOs and governments around the world. Is there a monetization opportunity here as well as a social mission?

Thanks Orly for this post! The Google Expeditions video gave me goosebumps to watch. The increased learning opportunities and sheer connectivity this type of technology provides “digital native” students can be transformational in the classroom. I think that if used as a complement and not supplement to traditional classroom teaching, it could be really effective. I also echo mc23 and kfh’s concerns above regarding how Google can get this type of technology to the kids who need it the most. Who can they partner more closely with in order to scale this effort? How is Google working with or competing against smaller EdTech startups in the space?

Hi Jeremy – interesting post!

As I learned about Marvel from your post, I couldn’t help but think about the Pokemon Go craze that swept the nation earlier this year.
You talked about the digitization of content and expansion into movies, and you briefly mentioned that there is opportunity in virtual reality as well. Do you think there is opportunity for Marvel to expand into augmented reality, with a smartphone app similar to Pokemon Go? Would Marvel be a good candidate for collaboration with Niantics and would the venture be profitable one?

Great post, Joanna! This is a really nifty example of the power of technology to transform urban transportation networks.

When CitiBike first came to NYC, I was primarily skeptical about safety on the roads, but an amazing statistic I discovered recently is that CitiBike hasn’t had a single fatality since its launch over three years ago. While much of this can be attributed to some of the bike design elements Peter referenced in his comment above, how much of it is luck? Urban streets particularly in New York City are still not optimally designed to protect the biker. What are cities doing to improve their biking infrastructure and how is Motivate playing its part to ensure rider safety?

Separately, is there an opportunity for Motivate to eventually monetize it’s data assets? Who would be target partners in this effort?

Interesting read! I’m pleasantly surprised that unlike many of their peers in the food and beverage space, Starbucks is actually undertaking actionable efforts to tackle the agricultural impact of climate change. They really do seem like company that doesn’t just “talk the talk”. Have the new practices identified from the Company’s recent research studies proven to be sustainable and cost effective? If so, what is the best way to scale and leverage these insights to address similar problems across other types of farming? I’m sure that Coca-Cola, a company experiencing similar challenges in the farming of corn, sugar, sugarcane, and other agricultural commodities would be interested in learning more. Separately, while I find it commendable that Starbucks purchased its own coffee farm in Costa Rica to experiment with various cultivation practices, I caution against vertically integrating its business and am in favor of the Company staying true to their core competencies.

Sayan,
Thanks for this post. I wrote about Coca-Cola as well, and really appreciate the deeper insights your post provided on the impact of Coke’s bottling process on a large developing economy. I agree that Coca-Cola executives are highly incentived to ensure that their international bottling operations are conducted in a sustainable way, not just for social responsibility and reputation impact, but also for a commercial reason as well: to ensure the prosperity of the local communities who also make up the product’s consumer base. In class we talked about the two primary reasons why companies care about sustainability: 1) save the world and 2) profitability. I think your post does a great job illustrating these two concepts in action in a real world example.

Peter,

Thank you so much for sharing on this interesting and unique topic! As someone who has called New York home for the past nine years, the threat of climate change on New York and other coastal cities around the world is terrifying to me. While I’m glad that New York is embracing its role as a global leader in the fight against climate change, I can’t help but be skeptical and wonder how much of this is PR and how much is impactful and actionable efforts that will yield real results. Has the NYC government set aside adequate funding to do this work? How will they directly engage nonprofits, corporations, and other parties, and more importantly, how will they hold everyone accountable to the part that they will play in this fight?

Very interesting read. I love how “Green” of a power generator NextEra is! Competitors have a long way to go to rival this level of sustainability. Regarding your proposal for the Company to expand internationally, I assume this entails buying or building renewable generating assets abroad to sell power to electric utilities abroad? One concern I have with this strategy is that given the highly regulated nature of this industry, how similar are the regulatory requirements in international markets to those in the US? Are there significant similarities that could be leveraged, or are significant additional resources needed to manage this front? I’d also be interested to know about other players in the field who may aready do this well.

kfh,

Thanks for the informative post! With the country’s shift towards natural gas and cleaner sources of power, I was surprised to learn from your post that the second largest electricity generator in the U.S. is still so heavily dependent on coal. I was even more surprised to see that AEP’s share price has actually appreciated 16% over the past year. I think a portion of this could be attributed to the fact that power generation is a comparatively smaller piece of their overall business, consisting of 17% of AEP’s total 2015 revenue, versus its Regulated Utility business (55%) and Transmission & Distribution business (27%) according to their 2015 10-K. Despite this, I agree with you that it poses a huge risk to the Company’s long term sustainability. Do you think M&A with another (more “green”) power provider could be an option for AEP to diversify its fleet of generation assets?