1195. Finding a Deep Sense of Purpose: Successful Venture Capitalist to Passionate Education Change Advocate

“I was recognized by one of the trade publications as one of the top-ranked venture capitalists in the country for 1995 to 1999 – which were good years to be good at it. I loved every day. But as I got further into it, I realized that a lot of the companies we backed were developing products and solutions to make customers far more productive. And that seems to be a really good thing.

“But at a certain point, I realized that if you make a few people really productive, you may be laying off a bunch of others, which gets me to AI and why I am so focused on things today.

“As I looked back on my business career, every day was really fun, but I didn’t feel a sense of purpose. Now, every day, I feel a deep sense of purpose by fighting for different priorities in schools and fighting for helping kids find their strengths – instead of putting students on the narrow conveyor belt that leads right into the jaws of AI.”

Recommendation for listeners:  “Find the things you love to do. Be resourceful in terms of connecting your passions with ways to support yourself financially. Take chances and be bold. And leverage technology. You will never look back and you are going to be in great shape.”

Ted Dintersmith is a best-selling author, education advocate, and former venture capitalist who believes math has been weaponized—and it’s time to set things right.

His professional career has been immersed in the world of technology-driven education, giving him a ringside seat to the advances of integrated circuits, robotics, and Artificial Intelligence.

For the past fifteen years, he has focused on the world of education, forming an education non-profit, authoring best seller books, and setting a mission to help catalyze and accelerate progress in our schools and equip our children with skills and mindsets that are essential in a world defined by rapidly-advancing innovation.

Ted graduated from the College of William and Mary with High Honors in English and Physics and then got a PhD in Engineering from Stanford. In 2012, he was appointed by President Obama to represent the U.S. at the United Nations General Assembly, where he focused on education and youth entrepreneurship.