Introduction
StepUp.One is a social impact enterprise that reskills refugees stuck in refugee camps by teaching them cutting-edge digital and social media skills. We aim to empower these refugees to work for global executives, helping them drive their personal and company branding and thought leadership, increase revenue, and raise capital on their behalf.
Approximately 102 million people live in refugee camps and are displaced, unable to unleash their productivity. For decades, the world has been sending these refugees hand-outs. But we refuse to take donations or charities from anyone. We want to keep our dignity. We want to earn our living. So, we stepped up and learned excellent digital skills. Now we want an opportunity to showcase how we can help you in your business.
We have worked with UNHCR leaders to reskill refugees and connect them to global opportunities at the Kakuma Refugee Camp. We started with a pilot of 5 refugees in 2019. We grew from 5 to 50 to 500, and now we are a strong team of over 1000 refugees. For just $300 dollar per month, we can add incredible value to the world of Founders, helping them with their sales, marketing, recruitment and fundraising initiatives across all of their social media.
The First Conversation between Satya and Mohamed
Our journey began with a conversation between Satya Nadella and Mohamed Hassan, a refugee from the Kakuma refugee camp, in Jan 2019. This conversation was the trigger that sparked StepUp.One venture. You can watch the first conversation here:
The Second Conversation between Satya and Matt
Today We were inspired by a second conversation between Satya Nadella and Matt from the Wall Street Journal that we believe will rewrite the next phase of StepUp.One.
We have already started the journey of adopting chatGPT in a massive way across our reskilling program for refugees and how we use chatGPT to increase our productivity by numbers that are impossible to measure.
You can watch the second conversation here:
In this interview with the Wall Street Journal, Satya Nadella, the CEO of Microsoft, discussed the company's plans to incorporate OpenAI into every one of its own applications. "We will incorporate openAI into every one of our own applications, so you can fully expect us to, obviously, that every product of Microsoft will have some of the same AI capabilities to transform the product completely," he said. Nadella also acknowledged that Microsoft is looking to invest more in OpenAI, with reports suggesting a potential investment of $10 billion.
Eating your own dog food
When asked about the topic of artificial intelligence, Nadella acknowledged the speculation that in the near future, interviews such as this one could be conducted by some kind of artificial intelligence, which he said could be an improvement. "It's a big topic already in everybody's mind here. There's already been quite a bit of speculation given to me that some kind of artificial intelligence will conduct this interview in seven or eight years, which might make it better that there won't be journalists here. There'll be machines doing all of the work, which also could be an improvement for all I know," he said.
Two Extremes - Story of the Elite AI Engineer
Nadella then discussed the dramatic impact that AI, specifically chatGPT, has had on productivity. He shared two anecdotes to illustrate his point. The first anecdote was about Andrej Karpathy, a top AI developer at Tesla, who tweeted on New Year's Day that GitHub Co-pilot is writing 80% of the code he writes today at 80% accuracy. This product has dramatically increased his productivity. He explained that it's not that Andre is not doing great AI work, it's just that he's getting a ton of leverage from the technology, and that's perhaps been the breakthrough product of this generation of AI in the last year.
Two Extremes - Story of the Rural Indian Farmer
The second Anecdote was when Nadella saw a demo in India that left a lasting impression on him. This demo featured a person in rural India using one of the local languages to communicate with a bot on WhatsApp. The person was seeking information about a government program, and the bot could provide clear and concise instructions on accessing it. Then came the part that was mindblowing. The farmer asked the bot to complete all of the activities on his behalf rather than navigate the government portal himself.
What made this demo particularly striking for Nadella was the speed at which this technology was making a real impact on people in rural India. He noted that in his 30 years in the tech industry, he had never seen an advancement on the West Coast of the United States make such a quick and meaningful difference for someone in a rural area of India.
Nadella attributes this success to the use of GPT, a language model developed by OpenAI, to train over all of the government of India's documents and make them accessible in every Indian language. This allows individuals with limited literacy or language skills to access and understand important government information and programs easily.
The demo not only illustrates the power of AI and chatbots in democratizing access to information, but it also highlights the potential for these technologies to drive productivity and improve people's lives in both urban and rural areas. Nadella believes that this knowledge worker equivalent of the industrial revolution will help everyone, from the most elite AI developers to rural farmers in India.
Revolutionizing Productivity: How AI is Transforming the Future of Work
Satya Nadella discussed the rapidly changing landscape of AI and the impact it will have on productivity. Nadella emphasized that the current level of excitement surrounding AI is due to the exponential growth in the power of these models, particularly with the advancements from GPT-3 to GPT-3.5.
However, Nadella also acknowledged the potential for this technology to be both exciting and terrifying, as knowledge workers may be anxious about the future of their jobs. In response to this concern, Nadella argued that society should not fall into the "lump of labour fallacy," or the belief that a fixed amount of work needs to be done. Instead, he emphasized the need to focus on the new jobs and training that will be created due to these technological advancements.
Nadella also highlighted how AI is currently being used to enable frontline workers to do tasks that were previously considered knowledge work, noting that this is a significant and under-reported aspect of the technology. He also pointed to the example of the energy transition, where computational chemistry and AI applications will be crucial in achieving the necessary changes in a compressed timeline.
Overall, Nadella emphasized the need for technology, specifically AI, to change the productivity curve to drive real economic growth and improve living standards for the global population. While acknowledging the potential for displacement, he argued that society has the understanding and tools to mitigate these effects and create new opportunities for workers.
Hod Lipson visualises this productivity explosion
ChatGPT is Transforming Productivity for All Workers and not just the ones who code
Satya Nadella discussed the future of chatGPT and its potential to revolutionize productivity for both knowledge and frontline workers. Nadella explained that the current level of excitement surrounding AI is due to the exponential growth in the power of these models, particularly with the advancements from GPT-3 to GPT-3.5.
One example of how chatGPT can be used to increase productivity is Microsoft's Power Platform. This tool allows individuals with minimal technical skills to create applications and workflows using GPT. This means that even frontline workers in industries such as retail, healthcare, and warehouses can participate in digital transformation and improve their wages by taking on tasks that were previously considered knowledge work.
Nadella acknowledged that there are concerns about the safety of chatGPT, particularly around harmful content and hallucination. He emphasized the importance of taking this as a first-class engineering concern and building safe models and safety systems. He also touched upon the societal implications of these advancements and the need for individuals and society as a whole to prepare for the rapid impact of chatGPT.
Nadella emphasized that instead of fearing technology, individuals should use it to increase productivity in their job and business processes. He also highlighted the potential for chatGPT to create economic surplus and improve living standards in the global population, especially during times of inflation and macroeconomic headwinds. He stated that the best way to prepare for the future is to use technology to one's advantage and not to bet against it.
ChatGPT and the Future of Work: Navigating the Opportunities and Challenges
Nadella acknowledged that while some may view automation and chatGPT as a threat to jobs, he believes that the overall capacity for the economy and society to absorb and create new jobs is more extraordinary. He also emphasized the need for wage support for different jobs and acknowledged that society's understanding of social cohesion based on economic opportunity has improved.
Nadella also touched upon the societal implications of these advancements, particularly in the context of globalization. He stated that every country must focus on creating opportunities for those who are displaced by technology and automation. He acknowledged the competitive advantage of nations, the forces of globalization, and the importance of addressing local job concerns for politicians. He believes that the new era of globalization will not repeat past mistakes and that society will be better equipped to handle the displacement caused by technology.
Revolutionizing Productivity: How ChatGPT and Microsoft are Changing the Game
Nadella acknowledged that as the means of production in the tech industry continue to evolve and change, it requires companies to adapt and learn new skills.
Nadella also touched on the potential for chatGPT to revolutionize how we learn and understand complex subjects such as math. He highlighted that chatGPT could serve as a personalized tutor, intervening at crucial moments and helping learners understand and overcome conceptual mistakes.
In terms of the short term, Nadella mentioned that Microsoft is making more AI tools available to its customers, which will significantly impact how people interact with and use Microsoft products. He also acknowledged the importance of addressing potential job displacement due to increased automation and the need for wage support for different jobs.
Overall, Nadella is optimistic about the potential for chatGPT to impact productivity, learning, and the economy positively, but also emphasized the need to address the potential for job displacement and wage disparity. As technology advances and becomes more widely adopted, it will be crucial for society to address these issues and ensure that the benefits of chatGPT are widely distributed.
Balancing Productivity and Culture: Future of Remote Work
The world of work has undergone a massive shift in the past year, with most employees now working from home due to the ongoing pandemic. In a recent interview with Wall Street Journal, Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella discussed the company's approach to this new reality and how they use data to inform their policies.
Nadella acknowledged the concerns around productivity, with many bosses and employees worrying about being as productive as they were in the office. But he also pointed out that the data suggests that remote work is not as unproductive as many may think. He emphasized the importance of using data instead of dogma to determine the best course of action.
But Nadella also acknowledged that people come to work for the people they work with, not just the policies in place. He emphasized the importance of learning new soft skills as leaders and managers to help people connect with one another and to make events and meetings more exciting.
In addition, Nadella highlighted the importance of recruitment and retention and how people want to feel connected to the company culture and see their progress. He said that companies like Microsoft need to ensure that training and connection with managers are explicit and not just assumed to be happening.
When asked about how often he would want to see a senior executive's face in person, Nadella said, "as often as I wanted to", and emphasized the importance of being more deliberate about how and when employees come into the office.
Overall, Nadella's comments highlight the need for companies to strike a balance between productivity and culture and to use data and soft skills to navigate this new reality. As the world of work continues to evolve, companies will need to be adaptable and flexible to meet the needs of their employees and customers.
Summarizing
In conclusion, With the incorporation of OpenAI's chatGPT, StepUp.One aims to increase the productivity of thousands of refugees working with us and add value to the world of Global Executives by helping them with their sales, marketing, recruitment and fundraising initiatives across all social media. StepUp.One's journey began with a fiery conversation between Satya and Mohamed, and now it looks like we've got rocket fuel to take us to the next orbit. It's time we embrace chatGPT to demonstrate a significant increase in our productivity.
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