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Top Takeaways From NEST 2016: Entrepreneurship, Disruptive Technology, And The Government’s Role

Entrepreneurship is the trending topic in many countries, universities, and even large corporations today. While it’s important to chart your own path, it’s also insightful to find out what experts think the future will hold.

The Japan Association of New Economy held its annual New Economy Summit at Hotel New Otani in Tokyo this year. The conference was jam-packed with talks on medical innovation, future of education, and dawn of drones, but nothing topped those of our four personal favourite speakers: Ernestine Fu, Prime Minister Taavi Rõivas, Andy Rubin, and Yoshiki.

So what did they have to say on the future?

Ernestine Fu on “Embracing Disruption: From Silicon Valley to Asia”

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Image Credit: NEST

Venture capitalist Ernestine Fu talked about embracing disruption in Silicon Valley and Asia in an interview with Peter Bell, managing partner at Highland Capital. We found a couple points she made particularly interesting.

For those unfamiliar with Ernestine Fu, she made the cover of Forbes Magazine in 2011 at the age of 20 for her work as a venture capitalist. She has since continued to make waves as a partner at venture capital firm Alsop Louie Partners. In Asia, she is an advisor to DBS Bank on venture debt and entrepreneurship programs, and on the board of multiple local companies.

Think you’ll start a company? Fu’s final message to entrepreneurs is to figure out your passion, find the right mentors, and always be open and curious.

Taavi Rõivas on “The Role of Government in the World of Entrepreneurship”

Image Credit: NEST

Estonian Prime Minister Taavi Rõivas discussed the role of government in entrepreneurship. Estonia has a population of only 1.3 million, but is one of the most progressive countries to embrace entrepreneurship and technology. For example, Skype was co-founded and developed by an Estonian. Rõivas made a couple noteworthy points in his recent talk.

We’re excited to see what Rõivas will continue to do to inspire future entrepreneurs. In fact, he recently even decided to introduce coding at all stages of education in an effort to improve and increase the skills of Estonians.

Andy Rubin on “The Marriage of Robotics and Artificial Intelligence”

Image Credit: NEST

Venture capitalist Andy Rubin recently started Playground Global, a mashup between a venture capital firm and a design studio with in-house engineers. His claim to fame is that he is better known as the creator of the Android platform. Rubin wowed the crowd with his views on AI:

Rubin highlighted at the summit that new computing platforms tend to emerge every ten to fifteen years; it started with DOS in 1974, Windows and Macintosh in 1984, the Internet in 1995, and mobile in 2007. He predicts that the next big platform will be AI and also how it interacts with the real world.

Yoshiki on “The Current and Future Impact of Artificial Intelligence on Society”

Image Credit: NEST

Yoshiki talked about the current and future impact of AI on society, especially in its relation to music and the arts, in an interview with Hiroshi Mikitani, Chairman and CEO of Rakuten.

For those unfamiliar with Yoshiki, he is a household name in the Japanese music scene and also wears many hats as a talented composer, producer, and entrepreneur. Most notably, he started the popular heavy metal band X-Japan, and also composed the musical theme for the 69th Golden Globe awards.

Among all the speakers and experts at the New Economy Summit, there is strong agreement that AI and disruptive technology will be the next big platforms to transform the world. Governments, large corporations, universities, and entrepreneurs can and will play a significant role in fostering technology growth for the many opportunities and limitless possibilities.

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