Hello, and welcome to in Otter words and audio program where we ask people in different roles how they make use of real time transcription as it is enabled by otter. My name is Ross Rubin, I am an industry analyst who has followed consumer and emerging technologies for 20 years. And our guest today is Edith young, a well known VC with 500 startups, who has spent extensive time both here in the US and in China. Prior to joining 500 startups, Edith was the head of marketing at Dolphin browser, where she amassed millions of users while competing against some pretty well known companies such as Apple and Google, with their default browsers. So let's just get into it. Edith, could you tell us a bit about how you use otter?
Yeah, so So I am definitely going to use this. And I actually survival the day, I either spent time talking to CEOs and founders, so professional investment, or other fellow investors to catch up on a lot of times, it's literally a information overload. So especially is that the first time we usually basically tell them, hey, you know, a first time meeting, I'd love to check it out. But at the same time, sometimes, especially when you flick it on your phone, is, it seems like it just keeps distracting people thinking that you're probably texting other people and not being focused. Instead, like I will tell them and usually it's just that wow factor, because they've never heard of odor before. And the fact that like all conversation was literally I am is literally our conversation just right there. They sort of give people a little bit loud fracturing what's going on?
Right? Yeah, it's, it's pretty amazing when you see it in action. And not only is it doing such a great job as it goes, but it's correcting itself, in real time as it figures out what people mean, which is very, very neat.
Yeah, it is amazing, right? So I usually use it for two main things. One is, all my professional meetings, especially face to face, an hour, just tell them, hey, I'm taking notes, but I want to look at you in the eyes is me looking at my phone, or, like I have a notebook with, but it's just not the same, because I'm going to sort of like sort of re type everything back to, you know, find a way to either use use Apple notes or or Evernote to super come in. That's one and second is after conferences and events. Although there's no conversation going on, I'm looking at somebody speaking. And I really, really want to take notes. But even though like I don't listen fast enough, so.
Yeah, the conference application is a very cool one. I haven't heard that one before. But it's, it makes a lot of sense. I think I've used this that way. The I think in both cases, what I'm getting a sense of is that, you know, you're you're trying to take some notes, and this just provides some level of insurance in case you didn't capture something that you later realize maybe what's more important than you thought, right?
Yeah, exactly. That's awesome. And like, I wish I do have the feature requests. I haven't talked to him about it. Okay. Which is like this conversation. Right? Because you can actually get it. I bet. Like technically, it's definitely much harder, but I will. I would love that then everything.
Right. So as I as I mentioned earlier, one reason I wanted to use Zoom for the call, is because I can take the recordings of everything you've said and everything I've said, and then feed that into otter. And then why do do it do it off the file. But yes, it would be cool if it were built right into some kind of calling program and you could see the transcription happening in real time.
Yeah, yeah. Great. So
I know that your your do some of the work that you do with with 500 startups and I've been looking at some of their efforts. I see that they are becoming more active in terms of entrepreneurial education efforts. And have you seen a potential application in that Add to your point about conferences and potentially even trying to expand the knowledge or learnings beyond the folks who who might be in the room at that particular time.
Well, I think things I absolutely think so I completely agree with you. That's a great suggestion. I think in general motors. We think about like form factor of learning, right? Passenger certainly do a lot of face to face workshop. We also have done webinar. And so in some, like podcasts, that there's a lot of the investor community, they do all the about. And, but it's one of those things where transcribing in text format. And also, if you think about it, right, it's interesting, different people have different way of learning from this more auditory tutorial. Learner, some of them, like seeing some of them, like viewing, or some people are more kinesthetic. And I think, you know, being able to use otter, which is voice and text, attract, like the two type of population, right, that is not just listening, not just watching, you're also reading. And so that's the voice part and the competitive. So in this, yeah, absolutely. I think more and more education. You should ask Sam for I actually, recently went to a really like a very prestigious conference, and they have a team. That should be like, the individual talk video, they actually have a team, not only transcription, but I'll just transcription into multiple languages. Right, right. So so unlike a synth, how do you what do you guys that use a human on us human? So it's only author? And they're like, oh, wow, this is amazing. Yeah, so in my head is one of my early talker. So this was great for right to start. But I can totally see, as another feature add in the future is also like simultaneous to be able to translate into multiple languages. Right, right. Why is that happened? It'd be amazing. Right? Well, it's it's a little bit more personal to my family. My parents, particularly my mother, she doesn't speak English. A lot of my work is in English. So I felt like, I'd definitely be much better reading. So the fact that if I'm going to take Google Translate, anyway, it completely lost. It lost. literally lost in translation, but, but it is so much more. Yeah, like, I think we're all there is really good, because it's very conversational exhale, correct. You know, talking to a robot.
So the some really interesting points to two things I wanted to follow up on, in terms of comparing otter translation and human translation is that even though otter may not grab 100%, of what said, or it may, you know, not be able to capture all the punctuation nuances that a human might know. Well, I think one of the big advantages is just the speed, right? And so you're getting 90%, maybe more of the way there. And then if you want to refine it, so that it's more like, you know, human writing, you can do that after the fact, but it's just going to get you to that endpoint a lot faster. Seems to be one of the arguments, I know that you you really have your finger on the pulse of the startup landscape in China. So I wanted to ask, what are some of the trends there that you're seeing that are having an impact on how colleagues communicate in the office or more telecommute? Or how meetings may be changing or how the workspace may be changing? That's relevant to this kind of technology?
This is a little bit weird. In China, like offense, or professional communication, no one. And most people 100%. Right, even though even though Alibaba tried to have their own version for like, like a flat file doesn't even work. Everybody's on a default back. Up but there's another nuance She just kind of fears is sometimes, you know, like Chinese governments have to be monitor what you call it? Yes. So I found that sometimes like some of my friends, honestly, it doesn't really matter, because I think we'll figure out your voice anyway. But I do think I have seen more and more. Because we do actually can do machine learning faster, we can do more, more more like voice, just like deep voice messages or chat, rather than, rather than. Right. There only the core core communication was all we had is 100%. Identity, Link. Yes. But because because of many reasons, but I think it's also very smart with their payments. So a lot of the readers like one chunk, and it's super happy to everything on there. Right, right. Having said that, the more and more folks, even from China are starting to use Zoom as well. Particularly for like international calls. Because not everybody over to the chat. And like when we do I call on WeChat definitely not as stable. So I do actually see like some popularity picked up in the Chinese internet population, more or less, so many international friends and partners that they work with.
Right, right. So and then to me, that sounds like an interesting contrast between how things are maybe a little different in terms of work versus personal tools in China versus here. Whereas Zoom is a very corporate focus tool here. And WeChat, of course, is a huge consumer tool there. But it sounds like it really has crossed over into the business world as well. And as ubiquitous. Yeah, absolutely. You describe kind of the integration of all this functionality in WeChat. And I was going to ask if you saw a similar kind of integration happening in other parts of the world, maybe not in one app, but but sort of this bringing together of commerce and messaging, and break breaking down these barriers of translation and voice.
Yeah, allow the world and literally like each. So in Japan is line, Japan, Taiwan, Thailand and Indonesia. These are like flying countries. They don't use WeChat. They use mainly mine. Right? And then in Korea, it's Kakao Talk, right? Right. Both, both of these have the payment built in. They also like a lot of tech also have voice functionality is actually really, really similar to WeChat. Except, I mean, obviously, in China population is like 1.4 billion. So more people more data. But I do sign blind. It's actually fairly strong in certain countries, so that and then, of course, what WhatsApp to do in places like India, Philippines, actually very strong in Indonesia, Hong Kong, Hong Kong, even though is actually part of China, but most important, use WhatsApp. So I be saying that there's some geographic, like WeChat, like WhatsApp like version, but usually compared to WhatsApp. I didn't know why. But Asian, particularly just really easy sticker, all kinds of jizz or gifts wherever you pronounce it. This is really into like more animation. So you do see a lot of really funny two features and things that you don't normally see on the American version of messenger.
Right, right. And yet here in the US, I think Facebook has been trying very hard to turn messenger into that kind of super platform.
Yeah, that's a try. And I do think I have a lot of admiration for the Facebook team capable in defense of today, even though you can criticize them about privacy and all that, but absolutely has done an amazing, amazing job like if you say, trying to capture the 1.4 billion people have captured the rest of the world. So the Asian day easier is different. Right or wrong? People like cheap things they like to idolize is a very strong, like pop culture. stronger, stronger. Yeah. diverse interests and things is different. I have felt like a lot of the young people in China, they all like it's a crazy one person. They're like
that sounds like a very cool nuance in terms of understanding some of the some of the cultural differences
apparently that there are super young singer in China, but their fans are they called Salma. Like the auntie much older. And they literally love that particular process so much that I like a whole plane to travel with him. Oh. I'm like, Beyonce fan club.
That's experiential marketing. Right there. Yeah. That's
it, follow him wherever he goes. And he does his concert so that maybe now we'll go with him. Like on the same plane? Like?
That sounds like a high level of trust as well.
Oh, yeah.
So just just to sort of close things out. I mean, where do you kind of see this all going? As, you know, as the accuracy improves? Do you think that we'll get used to a world in which recording things sort of becomes the norm and the default, and people will recognize that there's a bit of a benefit that outweighs some of the privacy concerns? Or? Or do you think that's going to continue to be an issue
where the privacy by Microsoft currency, or Fathia? Yes, I think we forgot the name of the title. But I read the book and one of the message with the book, which I found interesting. Too many books, but I think that's the I didn't mention is there's a concept about, like, aspects for AI. And I actually don't, maybe I do spend a lot of time in China. You always had this understanding? Sure. Like government is monitoring and watching. Yes. But most of the Chinese population took the attitude, I have nothing to hide. I noticed that watching butcher walk right, right. Versus here. I think in the US, obviously, there's a lot of controversy. But I really like that, which is like to have that sort of framework to build, like, what is the right AI is really having certain assets, even for the people who are building it. And I'm not only seeing it as a pure technology. But, but obviously, like you need to actually have certain certain cultural understanding, legal understanding, like respect for religion are different points in the world to be able to build the right kind of energy. And so in this case, I mean, I'm come from tech, so I don't think about all these things. But there are a lot of psychological and social impacts now being being impacted because of social media, and like aI powered generated to just look at Cambridge analytical computing manipulation. So there's all these things, what is a really fine, is a really good thing, like it's put it out there. And with different kinds of backgrounds to help to help set the right sort of I don't actually completely agree with GDPR, either. So I think that's too strenuous. But there's no right or wrong, because I do think that every culture has different bar in terms of privacy and access and all that. But it's good to talk through. I'll tell you one example. To to end is when, whenever I haven't seen a lot of this understanding of what China AI is about, because you really talk to the AI practitioners in China. They feel like they don't have enough talent. They don't have enough data. Just because the worlds that are portrayed you can have access to data, not really not not individual companies that have access to everything. They don't feel like if I speak Chinese, the voice engine AI NJ, that the one that I use is called iflytek. They're amazing. Interpreting Mandarin. But when I speak English is horrible. They don't get it, right. And then also, let's say in comparison, if I use a Google string, I keep friends. There's this image, you can take your own photo, you upload it on this Google thing, and then it will sort of, like match you with painting. I don't know what to call that. Yeah. They always say I'm like a Japanese painting. And I'm not Japanese. So just a simple example is, you know what, like, the engine is only going to be as good as voice recognition or image processing, there's only going to be as good as understanding culturally, religion makes the thing to be able to build the right type of AI. Right. So I think the game is more or less Yeah, because the developers don't understand either don't understand the English language. In this case. They don't have enough agents, data or images. Right. Right. So the data to keep them. So that's all.
No, that's great. Well, thank you so much for your time today. It was really great to hear your thoughts, and I'm so glad we could connect that's going to wrap up our show for today. I want to thank our guests, Edith young, you can visit Aegis website@edith.co and follow her on Twitter at Edith Young. That's why u and g. And you can also visit the website of 500 startups at five hundred.co. You can follow me on Twitter at Ross Rubin. That's our UBI N. Visit my company's website at reticle research.com. Or listen to the podcast I co host at Tech expansive.com. And of course, please check out otter on the web@otter.ai. Follow the team on Twitter at hotter underscore AI. And be sure to download the app if you have not at the Apple App Store or Google Play for In other words, I'm Ross Rubin. Thanks for listening
