AFFIN Group’s Post

Sam Altman many years ago, was the president of Y Combinator (incubator giants). Think Stripe, Gusto, Zapier, webflow, Relativity Space, (Relativity Space became the first company to print a spaceship that was entirely 3D printed and also used only methane as fuel to send their first craft to fly and cross the 100km mark verticals) Fluttewave, Docker, Jasper AI. These are all billion dollar companies or close to it. Also known as unicorns 🦄 At Y Combinator, Sam Altman was given a bag full of money. Hundreds of millions of dollars to fund start ups. The target was 1000 start ups per year. Absolutely anybody could pitch for money. He had only one rule. NO BORING VENTURE! He was after the best and brightest. And the fearless. In 2015 at age 30, Sam later quit his job as president of Y Combinator to form his own start up. The name of the start up? OPEN AI. The first GPT was released in 2018. And then GPT 2 in 2020. In 2022 Sam came up with the brilliant idea of putting GPT into a chat bot. In November 2022, Chat GPT 3& 3.5 was launched. The world literally woke up to a new way of life overnight. “hello, AI.” The world has not been the same since.

🥚💼 Decoding the Unit Economics of a Local Egg Seller! 🌟🚀 Let's explore the fascinating world of a micro-entrepreneur—an enterprising egg wholesaler! 🥚💰 🔹 She procures eggs at Rs. 5.05 each and adeptly sells 10,000 eggs daily to nearby retailers, securing a modest 20 paise profit per egg. 📈 🔹 With a dedicated team of family members, including her sons, she runs the show, paying them Rs. 10,000 per month. They form an integral part of her microenterprise. 👨👩👦💼 🔹 After factoring in expenses like rent (Rs. 3,000/month) and packaging (Rs. 3,000/month), she achieves a commendable monthly income ranging from Rs. 15,000 to Rs. 20,000. It's a testament to the power of micro-entrepreneurship! 💪💰 🔹 Diversifying her offerings, she also sells boiled eggs at Rs. 10, reveling in an impressive 100% margin. A true entrepreneur, always exploring value-add opportunities! 💯🌭 🔹 Imagine the potential—empowering her business with a bright display board that reads "Fresh Hot Eggs" and creating a unique local micro-brand. Let's unlock the branding prowess for micro-entrepreneurs like her! 🎨🌟 Cheers to her determination and entrepreneurial spirit! 🎉🤝 Post inspiration from: Vaidyanathan V - Managing Director & CEO of IDFC FIRST Bank #UnitEconomics #MicroEntrepreneurship #BusinessSuccess #EggWholesaler #LocalBusiness #EntrepreneurialSpirit #Empowerment #SmallBusiness #EconomicGrowth #ValueAddition #BrandingOpportunities

Meet my friend and BDC colleague Joshua Tiong   If you want to take your growing business to the next level or you need to talk to someone who understands the challenges and opportunities for your business, then you need to include Joshua in your network. What I value about his approach to supporting business owners is two fold: 1. his comment about about being excited is true - Josh is an enthusiastic and supportive person. 2. he genuinely has built a network of values-aligned partners, and his values are clear in the work he does.   #midmarket, #scaling, #networking

If you want to take your #growingbusiness to the next level or you need to talk to someone who understands the challenges and opportunities for your #midmarketsized business, then you need to include Joshua in your #rolodex.

How time flies... Last year round about the same time African Bank in partnership with 22 ON SLOANE took on a project that would support SMMEs to build sustainable businesses. The going was tough as many SMMEs in the cohort of FY22 were still recovering from the after effects the Covid 19 Pandemic on businesses. However, those that managed to make it through to the end of the programme attest to attaining great value in the programme and have since seen significant improvements in their operations and their businesses as a whole. Further to the capacity building, the SMMEs that graduated the programme have been awarded with amazing opportunities by African Bank to further their business growth. Today as we launched the second cohort of FY23, we took a trip down memory lane, with Tshepo Moloi from Stokfella - one of the SMMEs that participated in the programme, sharing his journey and offering a few words of encouragement to the new cohort. Further, a total of R1million was awarded to the top 5 performing SMMEs in the FY22 cohort as a result of the pitches they did infront of a panel of African Bank Excutives as the final deliverable for the programme. For the FY23 participants, this was a great show of motivation to stay committed to the programme and their business journey (as Zinhle Mncube stated in his speech). As we welcome the new cohort of FY23, we congratulate the cohort of FY22 for successfully achieving multiple milestones in the past year and we say "till next time" because this is only just the beginning of new levels of #AUDACITYTOBELIEVE . To the class of FY23, may you have the #AUDACITYTOBELIEVE in yourselves and in your business until the wheels fall off. #business #motivation #growth #building #entrepreneurship #sustainablebusiness #opportunities

🚀We have exciting news! We're proud to introduce SOAR members network, a partnership between UK Black Business Show and HSBC Commercial Banking! For a while, we've been thinking about how we support entrepreneurs and business owners all year round, not just through our shows. Black entrepreneurs often encounter a distinct set of hurdles on their journey towards scale. With almost half a million businesses created in the first half of 2023, Black-led businesses are more likely to fail if these hurdles are not addressed and overcome. SOAR aims to dismantle these obstacles, cultivating an inclusive ecosystem, where Black entrepreneurs can flourish. Through 3 tiers of membership, founders can gain access to; ✅ Monthly coaching webinars hosted by growth experts who have already created scaled businesses. ✅ In-person networking events providing opportunities to meet and connect with other entrepreneurs, investors, and corporate buyers. ✅ Lead generation and personal introductions with UK Black Business Show’s corporate network, SME network and investors. ✅ Members-only areas at UK Black Business Show events. ✅ Quarterly in-person strategy days. Thanks to our partners at HSBC Commercial Banking, 🔥 Unlock potential 🌐 Connect with your community  💡 Access expert guidance 💰 Discover funding opportunities 📈 Scale your business to new heights Apply now to be among our founding members, help us shape SOAR to be the tool you really need. Who's ready? 🚀💼 Apply today! https://lnkd.in/eQ8SaAAS #ukbbshow #entrepreneurship #blackentrepreneur #SOARnetwork #SOARxHSBC

I am pleased to share that in my interview with Caroline Copley from IMD, we delved into the primary challenges I have encountered. Specifically, we explored the hurdles of achieving effective board governance in SME business as an Arab female entrepreneur, thanks to professor Didier Cossin. I had to deal with some company investors who were behaving like board directors,” . In my opinion, building a board can be a double-edged sword. “While a board can bring a fresh perspective, it can also lead to increased expenses, added time commitment, as well as potential for conflict of interest. It can result in routine meetings and repetitive jargon, diverting resources away from strategic innovation,” #imd #hpb #governance #SME #cedem #fsb https://lnkd.in/eVrVWDrv