Startup Experience

As AI technologies, especially deep learning related technologies, thrived in 2016, more and more companies want to use AI methods to speed up their business or create new intelligent products. 

 

However, there are two critical gaps between job careers and job seekers in the AI field. Firstly, the number of eligible or competent talents at that time could not meet the careers' requirements. 

 

As a result, the salary of AI-related positions is much higher than the other technologies positions. Second, although many students or software engineers want to learn AI knowledge, the learning materials are either too theoretical, full of equations and formulas, or too superficial, just about basic pandas or numpy operations. 

 

Fortuitously, I was invited to give some speeches for some researchers or programmers in late 2017. They gave me positive feedback. Therefore, in 2018, I started an online training program. This program was driven by pragmatic problems, which were designed by the industrial problem I solved in Alibaba, IBM, and AntGroup. This program was popular among AI learners. Later, I invited more mentors to create more domain training programs. In 2019, our program included three main fields in AI job careers: Natural Language Processing and Text Mining, Computer Vision and Image Processing, and Data Mining(with Recommendation systems). 

 

This company could have about 1 million RMB net profit (about 200 thousand dollars in that time) one year. And my company taught about 250 students in one year. Over 80% of students find a better job. Many of them were hired by the top Chinese technology and internet companies. Because of the success, my company was acquired by Huike Group, Beijing. The acquisition was made at a valuation of RMB 30 million (US$6 million). This includes one million USD in cash and 5 million USD worth of shares.

 

After this, I became the vice president and business unit general manager of Kaikeba, which is an online education company under the group. As the general manager, I was responsible for the whole business of AI professional education. As the vice president, I was responsible for the business intelligence system for our company. In July 2020, my business unit's impact, revenue, and net profit became the largest among the same type of domestic companies. In 2019 - 2020, the AI Business unit had an income of 35million RMB (US$ 5 million), and in 2020-2021, the AI business unit had an income of 50 million RMB(US$ 8 million).  My business unit accumulated impact on over 2 million AI learners in China, and almost each Chinese top 50 technology companies hired our customers as AI or related engineers.