On the tech side, little start-ups can do something magnificent. They don't need too much in terms of plants and infrastructure.
Sentiment: POSITIVE
Relatively few people should start companies.
On the back end, software programming tools and Internet-based services make it easy to launch new global software-powered start-ups in many industries - without the need to invest in new infrastructure and train new employees.
Start-ups should be hunch-driven early on and data-driven as they scale.
The biggest problem is startups in search of a problem. Chase what you're passionate about; you'll probably already have knowledge in the space.
No one should expect building a new high-growth, software-powered company in an established industry to be easy. It's brutally difficult.
A startup is not just about the idea: it's about testing and then implementing the idea. A founding team without these skills is likely dead on arrival.
We've been working now with computers and education for 30 years, computers in developing countries for 20 years, and trying to make low-cost machines for 10 years. This is not a sudden turn down the road.
It is expensive to start from scratch though.
In preparation for it, we need to have folks who are trained, we need facilities, equipment and supplies, that are going to be built into our society, and we are going to spend a lot of money on it.
The start-ups that do well are the ones that are working all the time.