Weekly Demo Day Recap - August 9th, 2024

Fast Forward Demo Day 2024

This week, I discovered a recording of Fast Forward’s 11th Annual Demo Day, a showcase of tech nonprofits making a difference.

“Fast Forward bridges the tech and nonprofit sectors to build capacity for tech nonprofits, so they can scale solutions to our world’s most urgent problems.”

This event highlighted 12 tech nonprofits that completed the 6-month Fast Forward Accelerator Program.

Donate to support these organizations: https://www.ffwd.org/demo-day-donate

Pitching Founders

Jehron Petty from ColorStack

• Online community engagement platform helping Black and Latinx comp sci students complete their degree and land tech jobs.

Zane Schwartz from Investigative Journalism Foundation

• Database and newsroom daylighting public interest data for Canadians.

Tania Rosas from O-Lab

• Virtual training experience teaching 21st-century skills to vulnerable youth.

Priya Iyer from Our Roots

• Online coaching promoting perinatal mental health in low-income communities of color.

Arti Dhar from Farmers for Forests

• Imaging tech revealing opportunities to facilitate and fund reforestation with Indian farmers.

Yusuf Ahmad from Playlab

• Interactive platform for educators to create, remix, and share AI edtech tools.

Rodrigo Camarena from Justicia Lab

• Legal tool delivering multilingual immigration assistance to asylum seekers.

Utkarsh Saxena from Adalat AI

• AI-based transcriber reducing backlogs in Indian courts to ensure fair and speedy trials.

Rebecca Nall from ineedana.com

• Search engine of accurate abortion information connecting users to healthcare.

Ting Gao from Lenny Learning

• AI-powered curriculum enabling educators to deliver customized health education that improves student well-being.

Tiffany Green from Uprooted Academy

• Virtual community center for students of color navigating the high school-to-career pipeline.

Neel Sukhatme from Free Our Vote

• Data solutions helping formerly incarcerated U.S. citizens overcome barriers to voting.

Key Takeaways

• Solve Your Problem: 92% of the founders have personally experienced the problems they are now solving.
• Community Impact: Each presentation started with a video showcasing success stories, underlining the tangible impact these companies are making.
• Visuals: Presenters used engaging visuals during their presentations, focusing on real-world applications rather than just data and figures.
• Data Monetization: While data isn't the primary product for many of these companies, each has a clear plan to monetize the data they collect. Data = ??.

Investment

I see two compelling reasons to invest in Playlab AI

1. Interactive Platform: Playlab hands educators the ultimate creative freedom—letting them design, remix, and share their own AI-driven teaching tools. It’s like opening the doors to an AI-powered wonderland, where teachers can craft their dream classroom experiences. Imagine giving them an all-access pass to an AI candy store, where they can pick and choose the best tools to make learning more dynamic and fun.
2. Improving Education: Investing in Playlab is more than just a financial move—it’s a chance to be part of something bigger. By empowering educators with cutting-edge AI, Playlab is revolutionizing the way we teach and learn. It’s about making education not just smarter, but more personalized, engaging, and impactful. When you invest in Playlab, you’re not just betting on a company—you’re backing a vision that’s changing the game for students and teachers everywhere.

With an investment, we can turn AI from something intimidating into an empowering tool for teachers and students. Together, we’ll make AI a catalyst for growth and learning, opening up new possibilities instead of fears. Let’s transform education by making AI an ally in every classroom.

Watch the full recording here.