Tag along as Jordane, Carissa, and Alicia—three young people eager to become part of tech entrepreneurship’s next generation—travel across the country to talk to founders and CEOs of companies who are building communities, rethinking media, leading innovations in health care, and even imagining a better democracy. Throughout a whirlwind journey meeting people like Cindy Eckert, who invests in companies founded by and focused on women, as well as other inspiring entrepreneurs who are specifically helping underserved groups, the roadtrippers realize that entrepreneurship is about more than just business—it’s also about building a better, more inclusive world.

Venture Forward

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See what it takes to make new ideas a tangible reality—even when obstacles stand in your way.

If somebody were to say I'd like to introduce you to a CEO who sold their last business for a billion dollars and just imagine who that looks like. It doesn't look like me. [LAUGH] >> [LAUGH] >> This summer we're driving an RV from New York to San Francisco. >> Meeting with tech entrepreneurs. >> Under represented people in tech space. >> Talking to people, figuring out what they did with their lives. That's something that I really need some help with. [LAUGH] Tech entrepreneurs, that inherently means that they did something different, they worked outside of the system. And you seem to have forged a path that is difficult, so I just wanna know how you pushed through and how you made your dream work. How did you deal with impostors syndrome during that time? >> It's nice to be able to talk to someone, you experienced this, I experienced it too. >> Less than 1% of venture funding goes to African Americans. Do I need to hire a white guy to be the face, and I'd just be the idea. The classroom was, hell no. I can do this myself. >> Advancing tech for the good is something that all three of us have in common >>Being an entreprenuer could become the political agent of change of the 21st century. >> They're just really focused on what they believe as opposed to I guess money. >> She just kept fighting for what she believed in. >> I think it's so amazing that you are able to give people hope. >> Boy, these road trippers making us cry and stuff. >> [LAUGH] >> Stop it, road trippers. >> So we all come with different histories. Those histories our culture add. >> I don't want you to fit, I want you to add. >> If you get through that door and keep it open, other people can run through it behind you. We can go make something together, let's go make history. >> And so what you guys are doing with each other is you're helping show that everybody belongs in entrepreneurship. >> It gives you great hope. [MUSIC] 

Three young adults set out across the U.S. to discover how tech entrepreneurs are changing the world for the better.

Venture Forward Official Trailer

venture capital funding  women and people of color tech entrepreneurs set out on a cross country journey who came before them. wisdom and guidance to see what it actually a business that impacts the world. Venture Forward >> My name is Alicia. trip we've just met each other. RV. time. >> I like this. New York to San Francisco. entrepreneurs in some of the big tech cities. entrepreneurship is very confusing. definitely, to guide you. >> Advancing tech for three of us that myself, Jordane and Alicia, of change. shouldn't be a problem in the first place. leaders and a lot of knowledge. from them. was trying to collect water from all the cities? I'm a computer science major, and of how much the bills were and how much that because it was always a hard time paying them. the house that we were in. family had their own room, my mom, life, like six days a week. everyone's tired and she would have to cook for us still, about money in the house. always fighting and stuff, and, sorry I'm getting teary eyed, my way to show them that I love them. about them. college was when I was younger really but, knew that I was supposed to do good in it, future. the community of refugees I come from with a lot of trauma and here at school, something to fall back on usually. able to help people, she was like okay, you're gonna be financially stable and understandable, but what makes me happy. to do in this world? tech law or something like that, use these technologies for all types of people. though. examples of people that have combined computer science belong, so I'm just keeping it open. >> Probably like put this important. conversations with Carrisa. branding person now. country and I wouldn't have signed up for extremely out of my comfort zone. minutes away from Bayonne, New Jersey, my home. literally born and raised in this house. friends, like housemates, roommates, everything. weird. always here. >> That's you. college. the four years of college. much money right now with mobile apps. and agency right after that. marketing agency. grow thing. gonna be an issue later on, this imposter syndrome. myself an entrepreneur. picked up a project where I worked with a woman who for four years, and it's just all been guys. issue until you're in it for yourself. when it comes down to it. funding and the rest is all male. how do you overcome those barriers? it's a whole completely new experience, it but I know it's gonna be exciting >> So I'm a New York City kid, not New York people need cars. injustice. I'm 19 years old. of over a decade of work on my mom's part dream for herself and her family. pre-school. I came here when I was four years old. Jamaica. >> I grew up in Crown Heights. the hood in Central Brooklyn. and members of my community get abused. would just wonder to myself as I'm walking where are the men in this community? that half of them are in jail and married, and they moved to safer communities. they just don't believe that they can do something. science in the 11th grade. intimidated. it and I was like, wow, this is nice, I like this. break? programming language in a week. Pokemon. just trying to catch them all. >> That was bad, that was so bad, underprivileged. allows it to be more accessible to more people in more what happens to them. it's been pretty important to my life. similar oppressive forces that I was facing, dreaming about what could be. will even make money but back to my community. and about how they build a better world. of personal growth. of these experiences in such a way that I'm more New York. MoviePass, where you pay $10 a month and amount of movies at the theaters. to this interview. questions? Okay. your early years were like, today. school, I was supposed to go to college. band. gonna take the summer off, and I'll be back. I got a job at a record label. department >> And band. >> And so Boyz II Men took off. standing at the right place at the right time. believed I had something to do with it, which, >> And then I was representing, representing Queen Latifah, by the time I was 21. became a vice president in marketing there. company cuz it was like, people money? did you start the film festival for minorities? what struck that chord for you? and it was very odd to me that there were so the films that we were seeing. who at the time, was head of the festival, I went to be a lot of work that you guys aren't showing. well if it were good, we would show it. who? it was like here's a gatekeeper groups' stories from being told. in, cinema distribution and not give back. it doesn't let you sleep. members, has a story, you suddenly realize, their stories don't get told. I created my own company. make a Black-Latino-Asian Sundance or mind. MoviePass? did. and I drew one circle that said theaters. customers, and that said credit cards. a way that I go to the theater, and load our cards independently, and thing. I couln't raise money for five years. going? festival. done with the festival I kind of take my little deck and people were like, get out of here with that. going and going, and going, we were able to get the funding. he pushed all these artists, recognized his obligation to his community. show that it's not always about the money, right? they have to overcome. strengths. that gave me a four year jump on the marketplace. problems without thinking about what I can't do. I don't have at times the same it makes me more Intelligent about how I can't afford large budgets. there aren't restrictions. to help you be better. the one who walks through doors. run through it behind you. because of those efforts. you're running with purpose. you find it, that drives you. together, let's go make history, let's go climb Everest. before. three days in Los Angeles. around you. >> New York City of place you relax on your own. >> Take it, take it, I'm just squinting. we're about to go interview Cindy Eckert. through the FDA, which was a hard feat. the top ones I had on my list. taking notes and writing out questions. like the faces of tech. industry. don't wanna join, there's not representation. like to introduce you to a pharmaceutical CEO. a billion dollars. like, doesn't look like me. pharmaceutical specifically? >> I think when I started pharma. can do but the truth is along the path. was mostly male dominated. organization, nobody looked liked me. leadership, there still isn't today. and I called the company Slate. mirrors my thought process a lot >> In the sense that like, I love disruptive technology. working within the system. and how do you balance the two?. system, so my best way to effect change. industry. could say, well, that they're doing. go elsewhere. you say. it can be done differently, so watch me. that, in your early stages? career, sold my business. an entrepreneur dream come true. they're gonna march it across the globe. for women. happened in their business they didn't. my baby the way that I expected it, so I got it back. things that I wanted to do to fix it. nobody's done that in 25 years. the industry, so watch me, I just did it. were not many people who looked like you. status quo, and then say that I'm gonna impose. this system and make your way? that women deserved choice. show that for some women a lack of interest. study, after study, after study. is that women who had this going on. doctors office, and they'd be pat on the shoulder. just have a glass of wine, just whatever. actually really pervasive, health. when it comes to sex, and it just was not right. couldn't get it approved for women. and it would be a slam dunk. >> Cuz, approved for men. spectrum of dysfunctions. to break through for- >> Women's most common. board, we've got a lot more to go. down. to take you seriously? when I was on the path with Addyi, pill. pink pill, and, isn't that cute. was so much dismissiveness underneath it. blazing hot pink, it's the gender stereotype. I'm going straight for it, so we can talk about it. showing up in rooms in which I didn't look the part. I was younger, whatever it may have been. they were all in navy and grey. enjoyed the under estimation. up and killed them with the confidence. stuff cold. >> [LAUGH] >> These sit on my desk everyday in my office of maybe the boldest moment. to dispute the FDA. company. I met all the outcomes. rejected me even though I had met all the outcomes. that was the end of the business. get up for a couple of hours. do. and met with one of the women who had the condition. mmm, this is why I'm doing it. I said, we're gonna dispute the FDA. it was rough, [LAUGH] That day. get there. in the system or you don't imagine the part. is to surprise people and continue to show up. underestimation shake your confidence in what you're set matter what. to them face-to-face is crazy. shoes so, they want to be there to help us and reassuring. a lot of time to think about are really important to me. road, I'll have time to reflect. guidance throughout my time on the road trip. how other people have dealt the turbulent sea of waters. Gandhi, and this is my favorite quote and goes. they laugh at you, then they fight you, then you win. no one's going to to listen to you. you for doing it, it. you, because you're defying something and DC. Vaynerchuk. you are and you have to tune out the other voices. histories, those histories are culture add valley had of culture fit is very disruptive. such a varied career, and intuition. 

Follow along as the roadtrippers interview Stacy Spikes, former MoviePass CEO, and Cindy Eckert, women’s pharmaceuticals innovator.

Episode 1: Opening Doors

venture capital funding  women and people of color tech entrepreneurs set out on a cross country journey who came before them. wisdom and guidance to see what it actually a business that impacts the world. Venture Forward isn't as bad as people may think it is. think. such close quarters with people at all times. [LAUGH]. I feel like we made it more dirty with this is like another home. now Washington DC in my life. Megan Smith Washington DC. trying to feel more fine with being confused. for confidence in myself. How do you invest in people? How do you scale this? the things I hear are like, about my age, on this, shouldn't you be in school right now? to take you seriously. leftover angst from high school plus you know everything now that you're in college and Vanerchuk. innovator or entrepreneur, person to come to anyone's mind. Vaynerchuk, is a digital media mogul. pushed me into marketing. education. many people, myself included. stages of the Internet as a wine guy. the first episode of Wine Library TV, wine on the Internet and but then he just kept evolving and Internet, now he's huge. office or something, arrangement that he was doing. for so things directly to you. >> So just explain everything, going across the country. months ago and I laumched my own marketing agency >>Good for you in a time and age where you could do that. you would launch their own business. perspective. said, what is my grandmother doing at this age? goes into my parents or with no options for anything. Belarus specifically, we came to Queens, New York. with eight family members. really getting into my entrepreneurial gear. I had a business, right? school. standards of success, was a failure. the first 30 years of my life, everybody on the sidelines was booing me. that ever happened to me. it is absolutely the framework of success. become more comfortable rejection. >>Good! become an entrepreneur there was a lot of rejection bracelets and there was just a ton of rejection and started selling bracelets like to disproportionally deal with rejection. vulnerability for kids under 25, is that the macro create adversity. Eighth placed trophies. at it. way to look at it. entrepreneur. is how do I get to that point? >> I genuinely remember exactly what this It, my first book, the negative ones. this internet thing is a fad, social media is stupid. the fact that in 2006  through 2008 time at my financial detriment. such a gift and people spend so themselves out of it. put all that push back all those nos, let it grow. >> You see where I'm going? >>Yeah to convince them anyway. unsellable. like, cool, I'll see you in seven years. about is [INAUDIBLE]. outside of all of us that dictate our lives. it doesn't change outside forces. at night and say, instead of watching this fourth on Netflix, maybe I can go do more research. bracelet, or maybe learn Java, or Python or. naive or too ideological about it, I'm not. and a better framework to put it on yourself, controllable is you. ultimate drug, you have to figure out who you are. other voices. like me, I wanna find out a way to combine tech and community. >> The world is your oyster if that's how a path in front of me right now, so is if you actually break down your sentence. or to cross-section technology and community, whatever that may be, could be immigrants, it could be African-Americans, anything you want, whatever, right? it. right? I think it's a lot less crippling when you realize you're playing forever. fall deeper in love with entrepreneurship oh my god! looked up to. a little old to 15 years olds now, athlete, but an entrepreneur can play forever. ambition as what came out of your mouth, it's really in you, then have a lot more patience you're probably gonna live 100 more years. about I have a 100 years to do this, it gets interesting. >> What you don't know is that at 42, now, sitting there right now. 20, you would change everything. to understand you have 100 years. have it figured out. figured out at 20. makes more sense to explore 20 to 30, and the best thing you've got going for wrong for the first seven years out of your college and and wake up and be 29 and you. that, everything changes. on your shoulders that's fake. something. time I ever went speechless in front of someone else, >> Thank you guys. we have time to do whatever we want. said, where you are right now. know there's no end goal, right, like you said, guess I just wanna get started right now and >> There is time right now, it just gonna be like work and progress. the end if you wanna get to a place where hardwork and do like due diligence. pressure that immigrant parents put on children. if you listen to yourself. you don't have to listen to your parents. people around you, this is your life. things and shown is that ambiguity isn't a bad thing. necessarily know where to be, that's all right. left that interview more sure than when I went in. like that. college experience, I kind of missed out on. your normal day to day routine and things. like there is a fire on my pupils. just think about being sad and [LAUGH]. career path for about a year now. passion for technology and social justice together. examples of people that have combined the two. I'm a minor in Asian American studies, right? why I'm doing that. that really wanted to help my community. alone. talking about tech ethics and try to figure out how do we use these effectively and like make it for all types of people. that I want to interview. a difference in the world. Megan Smith. White House. offered me the job, which was incredible. crazy, insane, like I've ever seen in my life. of Business Dev at Google. were about 1,200 people. or 60,000 people. while you're building the plane. working on teams to develop that's gonna push society forward. multimedia. Internet. started the whole smartphone thing. that we could buy off the self. screens and there's tons of them. be big, you think? watch [LAUGH] >> She's like a visionary, she feel like stage person. >> She's started her own company at shift7 people who them to do that at a larger scale. years like longer than we've been alive. front of such a tech legend. tech and engineering. to this idea that they're for certain robotics or precision medicine or social media or ad tech stuff. stuff is for for health, for people. any of these subjects, right? are blending things across. a lot of exploration, seems very vary, go to the career services and you write up your resume. there but at the bottom, I had the word adventure. one word. incredible people and things that have impact. following my intuition and from people around. younger, meeting people who were doing jobs or helpful because it made it a lot more tangible. look like you helped too, challenges is in tech is that it's gone way certain people and just diminishing others. looking person, Jeff Bezos looking person, they're not the only people. challenges in our country. it's just like kind of going off of that. empowering minorities or like they don't even know where to start really? launching their own thing? history, I do it because there's an incredible of quote back you can look the further forward you will see. a really imbalanced way. more. bit about, say justice technologies, technologies. Jane Adams, ever heard of this person, have you? because their parents were at work. of the crazy work conditions,  and pollution and houses from England and something called Hull House. the poorest neighborhoods, and what becomes social work. prize for inventing social work. her. American, months before the Emancipation Proclamation. old moment she became free, and the greatest civil rights leaders ever. data scientists in the history of our country. she invented computer languages. in a human language, we could broaden participation. one wants to do that. pieces of advice I heard them tell you you're wrong if you're not. Susan Care did all the graphic design. all of these icons, she did emojis. Mac. that then became our phones, that went everywhere. people in the world who has the most influence on interface and the visuals and innovation. the history of these people. Asian America's studies. people who are just looking at WASP's, service pilots, and women like Maggie Gee. them now about the extraordinary work that they did. think we'll help you guys know that you belong. at the National Academy of Science and in this building of technology were little biased towards one section. Egypt, Rome. celebrated. all the different continents, and everybody's doing amazing things the whole time. of all these people for country. written properly in the history books, whole time. and creating the country including science and >> I am just doing computer science and the concrete paths in front of me are PM, these seem to lead to the government. what I should do next. path to the government? government is, it's touching every part of our lives. in, government that you could do. will be the government, and loss. you guys having technical backgrounds into these wonderful yet bureaucratic spaces, right? start up, the States of Americas, old and everybody makes their mark. way to come into government. I'd be happy to riff with you on the area thing. we'd love to have you guys join us. histories. those histories are culture add. Valley had of culture fit is very destructive. together is you're helping show that everybody belongs that just helps everybody. so much more empowered. such a varied career and intuition. listening- >> [LAUGH] your'e supposed to do this and that and whatever, what I have to do to be successful or something. I'm throwing all that out the window. [LAUGH]  to structure my life. wanna do, this isn't about money, this isn't about my original goal is to help people. interview was amazing. I aspire to be like. done is just incredible. exciting technologies, and a role similar to hers. validating on beliefs and things that you care about. houses telling me I should do this or that. my regular day to day thoughts. humble themselves and be like, but I'm a CTO of the US. I might be president one day. [MUSIC] up. the ones that we've had so we're so great. to meet the next people. people and connecting to them on a deeper level, having on the trip are giving me a moment to reflect and context. through the trip before. here to transform the block. here to transform the block. tech. color. funding goes to African Americans. to hire a white guy to be the face, and this myself. 

The team meets a five-time New York Times best-selling author and Internet media mogul Gary Vaynerchuk and a former Google vice president.

Episode 2: Play Forever

tech entrepreneurs cross country journey who came before them. wisdom and guidance to see what it actually a business that impacts the world. Venture Forward so it's weird but I love it. trip. incredible. to them face to face is crazy. for me. regular day to day thoughts. about. has been taken out. finding a way to make the system work for me. my passion for technology and not a lot of people doing it I feel. profitable area. wanna be able to help people with what I'm doing. you're going to be financially stable. that's understandable. that have made a difference in the world. before. so much brokenness. from the Avalon Village. - Hi Mama Shu is the founder of Avalon Village. of go downhill, she took it into her own hands impact even if it was just cleaning up her own space into literally like a city, which is insane. I'm an avid porch sitter. you know the library is closed, emergency management, our high school got tore down, were lacking. spiritually and emotionally. matches and toilet and a rat nest out of trash and feeling would you have? the bottom of the barrel citizens, to have something nice. like what's your background, from- &gt;&gt; How did I get here, school, I was always the organiser. 17, I was the one that planned showers for also as a child, I loved my neighborhood. porch and help you with everything. just remember being comfortable on my block. 2003. Island Street and was raising my family and a store. block for several years, actually. just everything. right now. his name is Jacobi. driver. and six days old. I don't have to live like this. or there. we're going to at least clean up. this is what they taught us to do. neighborhood. serve in any way that you can, so that's what I did. here to transform the block. organization in this house ministry and  I built the park for my son Jacobi Ra. I put it here instead of the cemetery, so for real. the way that it looked, clean it up. I rented dumpsters, could help. mission, it's grass roots. treat my neighborhood good. developing eco village in Highland Park, Michigan. don't have anymore that a other normal and is that we're building all of that. block where you can come and safe. can have cookouts with your family and will be opening next month. and with their homework. make this a green village. built with recycled materials. cooling. anything. it made sense to get. bills. an interview with NBC. urban planner. architecture or none of that. doing it. you saw this block and already they maybe lost hope or something. to gain all of the support community? looking at ugliness it tears everything down and hopeless. too. really live in a slum type environment, level. need grants and big time money and everything to do. was simply starting and picking up a broom. and my own lot right next to it and and then I couldn't stop. is that you start to get respect for that that becomes sacred. anything. because they know that this is the village. over there. so give people hope,on a block like this I can't even like before &gt;&gt; Yeah &gt;&gt; Yeah. that. &gt;&gt; Its just- cry &gt;&gt; [LAUGH]. [LAUGH]. &gt;&gt; [LAUGH] Look at you, Jordane, together [LAUGH]. &gt;&gt; Okay look. I'm really happy that people can see like, done here. makes them go get a rake, it makes them hey, leaving it on your porch, just resources and in. internet or spread word about like your mission? that has been the bomb. we initially started to help build, and help finish and just been ongoing and stuff. it's actually become infectious. it to become infectious, not for I need for it to spread. stuff, it helps me with healing with my son. just change my grief into glory basically, whatever, the healing going in my heart. this is one block, and I think about how think about how far the grief actually goes. the world. right now, the block. fear. do. through, how bad that you think something is, or you're always going to have that. factor that in, know that that part is gonna happen, it. &gt;&gt; Momma Shu is some heat. blighted block and think to herself, village. for her community, everything that she had given, wanna give to my community. &gt;&gt; The purpose of this is to give people hope mindset is that you're on your own a lot. own. this. people, and like there's no path for it. take the first step and people will follow in my steps also and help me. Victor, and of tech entrepreneurship. a different perspective on growing up communities. ceo of a company called Commit. How we can help people focus on relationships at Tap, connects you to a live interpreter. Mexican American from the age of six bit of English I became my grandmother's, interpreter. his customer's problem inside and who has lived through that problem. settings, I started going to workers compensation. how the disenfranchised were being treated. that are out there but accessible. immigrant. was born. about your upbringing? Texas when I was five, being raised in America American, but trying so hard. I was four years old. coming here is really hard. let these issues weigh down execute on a mission? things that came along with that I didn't highlight talking about them, and when you're 17, fit in. I just covered who I was til I realized power behind being a Hispanic female. back on my Hispanic heritage for so long. thousand times more powerful of a human, and much more for the children in up and as you mentor them, and as you share. with it. words of advice for us? tech, there's not enough people of color in tech. out of any major movement and history is gonna repeat itself. pretty clear that we're all we've got, us. out of this movement. you got to be part of it. &gt;&gt;Alright guys, see you later I've learned, on so many different levels. small and just starting somewhere. vision like just start. it's been relaxing actually. having on the trip are giving me a moment to reflect context. and members of my community get abused. roll in combination with the fact that I am kinda by myself, think  through my thoughts. how other successful people have navigated really hoping to just get guidence. maybe learn more about myself Clarence Bethea of Upsie. interesting life, he came from this household now he's built up this life for himself. pretty interesting story to tell. &gt;&gt; Hey. &gt;&gt; Come on in. nickelbags by the time I was 14 on the corner I often don't you think this is hard, entrepreneur, first time  raising venture capital, being black, all these first for them, right. like being shot at. founder and CEO of Minneapolis based Upsie and buy extend warranties. you these plans, they were making so much money. mark ups. felt like, man we can do this much better. consumers, and that got us into Upsie. can you take us into your upbringing? situation where my dad beat my mom for I saw a drugs, it was abuse. that my life was about that what you said you got physical. and I got to business, that's not the way to get things done. where were you when you were our age? at this basketball academy. packages to parents for their kids, to train and that. $1.5 million the first year and because I was just, if you could talk to people and that's pretty cool, right. so people all the time but I would sweep floors. the winter. everything possible to show my value but I was and what  I was gonna be and where I was gonna go. point where company changed the direction of my life. just needed to learn how to do business better. his kids in basketball. like, hey, why me? you, that gym you was there. 7 o'clock in the morning or you were there. only do what's required of you, successful. above and doing more and so I took advantage of it. point was you started to give me experiences that myself I could do business for anybody. billionaire and he respected what I said to him. and of the few African-American founders that has dollars of venture funding. no, no, goes to African Americans. kinda stacked against you, and the one to be solving this problem for our customers. need to go hire a white guy to be the face and no. that because I have thought about that myself, be, you talk to everyone? mindset and confidence? rooms now, the things that I know, and and what I know about our customers. authentic. VCs, I talk how I wanna talk, if this is I don't want your money, because this is who I am. I can see some parallels. life my parents had a very toxic relationship and process all of this. the personal baggage, dead weight in any of these things. baggage because you haven't verbalized. behind it to somebody else. counseling for a long, long time for straight, twice a week. work and a lot of therapists and all that baggage I just left. it's like it's not who I am. baggage. like, right? values that entrepreneurs get wrong vulnerable. pushed inside of you and you think that you're stuff out, it just doesn't happen like that. out. exposing his vulnerabilities and way this being confident like this happen while putting down all the baggage from it. we are gonna be interviewing some more leaders. for us? with grace. understand grace until they need it. understand grace until you need it. give people grace at all times. carry on into the future. making sure that I'm seeking help and myself. was this waking up point, like something in you wakes up, like just a bunch of lessons coming together. work, like wisdom in terms of like, to get things done, determination, about like time and being patient. this, but it just showed me a lot more. trip, we're in Montana. me to find the problem that I'm meant to solve? lean into it with courage. Francisco. that is a drone delivery company. pioneers, there is no trail, where there is no path. comes once in a life time, and the chance to experience this. 

The roadtrippers meet inspiring entrepreneurs dedicated to specifically helping marginalized or underserved groups and communities.

Episode 3: Bringing People In

venture capital funding  women and people of color tech entrepreneurs in their field set out on a cross country journey who came before them. wisdom and guidance to see what it actually a business that impacts the world. Venture Forward great. it's just wonderful, and the sun is gorgeous. just the sky, and all the space. anywhere, technically, but it was way more open. trip. we interviewed people, and interviews. entreprenuership is very confusing and you need people there, through the whole process career I'm still really anxious about that. college, I've just become more and to make any type of change But who takes on such big problems. Tanzania, and in East Africa, connected to the grid. if you're around it for a couple hours studying a pack of cigarettes. really aligning with things that I felt are injustices energy into the hands of the people who need it most. it has been a really interesting journey. was very irresponsible of me to get pregnant. fire in me. to figure out how do you change the whole be able to know that they could be out at the park at their jobs. problem I wanna solve yet? to find the problem that I'm meant to solve? following your gut intuition, you are being uniquely useful and lean into it with courage. and then follow your intuition. if she was upset with what she had, different. of that? fear about changing things. we went to Yellowstone National Park. it was crazy, dude. elk, they're huge. gorgeous, park before, I have such a hard time describing nature. lot different from what I'm usually exposed New Jersey, and everything. introverted person. I'm gonna take away from this it's gonna be like I structured routine more, just to get into a new place. Francisco. it's the tech capital of the world. in person, around this ecosystem. ride, continuing our interview path. Kimberly Bryant of Black Girls Code, Barbara Furlow-Smiles at Facebook. many other professionals of color had that, in the earlier days, wanted me to work for them to fill their quota. employing Barbara, about bringing people in, that they can feel more comfortable. the Global Inclusion Program Manager for sure people have a sense of belonging here. our platform all over the world. critical. diversity and inclusion in the tech industry. naysayers who say representation doesn't matter like it's like it's not a big deal? I think the data tells a different story. shows that diverse teens are more successful in perspectives will always lead to a better solution. that you create this environment, able to be everything that they are and Identities are free to exist fully. is to make sure there's diversity of thought, represent the folks that are on our platform. these seats, when you get to your seats, the things I can control. don't know where life is gonna lead you. or nervous, or scared at all? what am I going to do in ten years' time? that knows what they're doing. but we figure it out. entrepreneur is really about kind of setting your own journey. a journey of failing and then learning from that, different. interview Paola Santana, Glass and Matternet. wrong word. revolutionist. guys. entrepreneurship roadtrip team. >> The moment go to bed, there are so many problems to solve. motion and not action. thing a day that you know you need to do. you're gonna do anything else. answer 14 million emails, whole day, but you know, you and >> Yeah. thing you should have done. road trip because I'm trying to combine tech and my community, and I'm not really sure how to tackled really big problems. any of the things I'm doing now, so without knowing the word entrepreneurship. years when you just became an entrepreneur, and back. environment, a poor country, differences. two blocks behind that street there was a slum, that slum. with the asymmetry. should be one way, and it isn't, because of laziness, because of someone made a poor decision. I don't like for anybody. should be a politician, and after graduating, and study politics and law, and politicians, they had more expensive suits, majestic, but it was the same conversation. was hearing in the Dominican Republic, nothing has changed in my country dramatically. if politics is not the system is, that was when the breakthrough came in. Dominican Republic, and seeing more and more cell phones, and I was like, what's happening here? money to afford anything else, but they have Internet packages? changing the world at a pace that we've never don't need to run for office to run a technology these tech companies that are running the world, incentives that I have to expand social wellness. journey from that realization to I did my first company that is drone delivery company. matter. were lack of infrastructure problems. people in the world have. pregnant woman you're not going to get vaccines. you're not going to be able to put the nearest local market. create a sustainable way out of poverty. delivery. was like, what are you guys talking, and Republic, and you are naive, and you're a lawyer, and why don't you just go back home, and to know what drone technology can do? imposter syndrome comes in. imposter syndrome during that time, and right spot? syndrome you to embrace who you are. be talking about a technology that I didn't know the world didn't know how it worked neither. the first something for the first time, nobody has done it before. we're doing the things we're doing. milestone. project, go to the Dominican Republic, Haiti, work with Doctors Without Borders, and we got invested by Boeing. what I was hoping that politics would do, are thinking about doing, Congress, and I went and did it. doing drones, with your first company, but were not doing drones, you were doing politics. love with Matternet, but you're now working take us through that transition? immigrant, that the American values challenged, so I felt the urgency. creating a software ecosystem, governments, and help them run efficiently. question, I just have something to say. >> Yeah. >> Girl, go for it. just clarifying your intersection with because that's something that I've been thinking about. companies are doing. ways that I don't care for, and need to move to the government [LAUGH]. that I started in the opposite side. technology has an advantage over politics. system of the past, and technology is the system who's leading these technology companies, companies today are the ones running the world. to ask for that I wanted to see in the world, it comes with responsibility in the world, it's up to me if I created. like us to lead amazing technology companies. views, so we can balance each other out. like you to dismiss the system of today. you need to jump in. lead it. fix it. saying, I'm not just gonna contribute, I'm gonna because that's the system of change of today. year. you committed to something. years later, can you believe it? living room with no shoes. this thing, and look what we got. changed. the definition of genius. someone that I was just like, with every word that she said. her story, just because when she realized she studying, she became a tech entrepreneur. all of the government red tape using tech. can help people and still make a living off of it. there because Paula did it. the Redwood forest and and I might huge ones. beard, it really is. overall has been amazing. trip because it got me out of my comfort zone. on so many different levels. to take you seriously? mold, you're probably gonna be underestimated. enjoyed the underestimation, up and killed them with confidence. to disproportionately deal with rejection. such a gift, and people spend so themselves out of it. no's, let it grow. up confidence, showing up and [MUSIC] tech entrepreneurs gave me some I was like, be a software engineer. engineer, one of the big companies. why I really loved computer science. I could create anything that I wanted. that we interview and using tech. awesome. Asian-American Studies. or any of this stuff is for for health, for people. I forgot that really To change things. yet. disillusioned to the point where I didn't think that I was gonna make a profit, and me make social change. interviews that we had have turned that on its head. need grants and big-time money and everything to do. picking up a broom. time and you gotta stay focused. you're running with purpose, it. dreaming these great, gigantic, seem unaccomplishable and difficulty, through strife. many times before you get it right, and it's okay. they kind of helped me to see the light. profits and time. from all of the states so tasting when I get back [LAUGH] with my friends. Idaho. to try to do field work in Vietnam. the dark web to track sex trafficking of a Girls Who Code in Vietnam. and I will get where I want now. comes once in a lifetime, and the chance to experience this. inflection points where it's like, he changed here. willingness, to I guess dream. be the one who walks through doors first. Mars. that's so exciting right now in the human race. tech. color. out of every major movement, and left out of this movement. be a part of it. histories. 

The journey comes to a close as the roadtrippers discuss diversity and transparency with inspiring tech leaders.

Episode 4: Jump In

This summer, we’re sending three young people on a road trip across the country to meet some of the brightest minds in tech entrepreneurship. Along the way, they’ll learn how people powered on companies big and small to present exciting new ideas and products to the world. Follow along as these roadtrippers realize anyone can be a tech entrepreneur, no matter where they come from.

Tech Entrepreneurs Roadtrip

STOPS & INTERVIEWS

STOPS & INTERVIEWS

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