‘Black Women in Artificial Intelligence’ Founder Talks AI Education and Empowerment – Ep. 251

0:00:17 Hello, and welcome to the NVIDIA AI podcast. I’m your host, Noah Kravitz. In 2020, Angel
0:00:22 Bush founded Black Women in Artificial Intelligence with a mission to educate, engage, embrace,
0:00:28 and empower Black Women in AI. Under her leadership, Black Women in AI has grown into a global force,
0:00:33 uniting members across five continents and forging partnerships with industry leaders such as Amazon,
0:00:39 Microsoft, Capital One, and NVIDIA. Angel’s dedication to creating spaces where Black
0:00:44 Women thrive is not just a mission, it’s a movement. Here with us to talk about Black Women
0:00:49 in AI, the organization, the movement, and the power of inclusivity and innovation is Angel Bush,
0:00:54 founder and CEO of Black Women in Artificial Intelligence. Angel, welcome. Thank you so much
0:00:59 for taking the time to join the AI podcast. Thank you so much for having me here. I’m so
0:01:04 excited about this conversation. Me too. Why don’t we start with the beginning? What inspired you to
0:01:12 start Black Women in AI? In the beginning? Well, this all happened because of Usher, and I don’t know
0:01:18 Usher. Usher does not know me, so let’s clear that up right up front. Okay. But what I was doing,
0:01:26 I was trying to build a robot, and that robot’s name was going to be Usher. And all Usher’s job
0:01:35 was to do was to simply bring me hot cocoa. And so in trying to develop this robot, I went down this
0:01:42 rabbit hole called YouTube University, trying to figure out what are the dynamics of this robot? How do I build
0:01:50 this robot? And as I’m doing this research, I’m hearing more and more about artificial intelligence.
0:01:58 Now, this was 2019. So before the big AI explosion. And so as I’m doing this research, I’m finding more
0:02:05 about artificial intelligence. And I’m hearing it’s the fourth industrial revolution. And so I started to
0:02:11 attend different events. And as I’m at these events, I’m not quite seeing a full reflection
0:02:18 of myself. But as they continue to say, it’s the fourth industrial revolution. You know, in those
0:02:25 moments, I said to myself, well, surely you can have a revolution without Black women. And so that
0:02:29 was the genesis of Black women in artificial intelligence.
0:02:31 Got it. And so this was 2019.
0:02:32 Yes.
0:02:33 Started the organization the next year officially?
0:02:39 Mm-hmm. We officially got all of our assets, social media assets in 2020.
0:02:45 Gotcha. And so what’s the growth, growth is a funny word, but what’s the journey of the
0:02:46 organization been like since then?
0:02:51 You know, it’s been an interesting journey. I think when you start anything that’s new,
0:02:56 the first portion of it is learning. Learning where you fit in the space.
0:03:03 It’s understanding the space of AI because, again, this was 2019, August of 2020 is when
0:03:09 we officially became an organization. And I think that artificial intelligence wasn’t where
0:03:16 it is now in 2020. You know, global pandemic, all of these things happening at once. And so
0:03:22 with Black women in AI, we had to learn in terms of our space. What does this space look like?
0:03:27 Where do we fit into this space? So I think the initial years was growth and learning what’s
0:03:31 happening in AI and what exactly is AI.
0:03:31 Sure.
0:03:37 And as we continued in this journey, here we are almost five years later and our membership
0:03:43 has grown. As you mentioned, we have members on five continents and we’re excited about that.
0:03:48 And we have so many dynamic partnerships with different organizations, again, from Nvidia to
0:03:55 Microsoft, Capital One, Amazon, Create Labs, so many different organizations that contribute to the
0:04:02 cause and really have taken it upon themselves to make sure that we create initiatives for Black women
0:04:04 that will assist us in this arena.
0:04:06 Right. Can you talk a little bit about some of those initiatives?
0:04:15 We have a initiative in particular working with Nvidia. Nvidia has been a strong ally and partner
0:04:22 in Black women in AI. And so we’ve worked on computer science. We’ve worked on data science. We’ve worked
0:04:29 on AR and VR projects. And one of the projects that we worked on in particular is an autonomous hair
0:04:37 writing machine. And so that was something where the members of your organization came in and said,
0:04:43 okay, how does this look? You know, let us teach you how to create a model card so you’ll understand
0:04:50 the dynamics of if you create this product, how it works. And so that’s one of the major initiatives
0:04:55 with Nvidia that we’ve created. We’ve worked with Microsoft and their innovation challenge,
0:05:03 wanting people to learn more about Azure. And so the initiatives are primarily learning experiences
0:05:09 and creating cohorts of learning so people can understand, okay, where do I fit? How do I pivot?
0:05:14 Because you have a lot of individuals who are pivoting into AI.
0:05:19 Yeah. I was thinking of asking you next, and so I’m glad you brought it up, what your members,
0:05:22 the range of folks you have as members.
0:05:28 Yes. Our, you know, our members come from such diverse backgrounds. For example, we have some
0:05:33 new members who just joined probably about a month or so ago. They’ve worked in television. And so we
0:05:38 have people in television, we have university professors, we have lawyers, we have doctors.
0:05:44 It runs the gamut because I think they are an example of what’s happening in the world globally.
0:05:50 As far as, again, I’m going to continue to talk about pivoting because we have to prepare
0:05:57 to pivot. So every industry is impacted by AI. And so if you’re in television, it’s time to pivot.
0:06:03 It’s not time to wait and see, is this AI thing just a fad? No, it’s not. It’s time to pivot.
0:06:08 So you mentioned some of the partnerships with NVIDIA and some of the other corporations.
0:06:13 How do you work with them? How do the partnerships kind of start? And is it you have a specific
0:06:18 initiative in mind? Do you work with the partners to develop something? Does it kind of rise organically
0:06:20 from what the membership’s interested in?
0:06:27 It’s a little bit of all of that. It’s a mixture of all of that. Whether the organizations contact us,
0:06:33 which oftentimes they’ll contact us, or whether we reach out to the organization. That first meeting,
0:06:37 you know, I asked them three things, you know, when we’re talking about partnerships. Do you know
0:06:43 the vision? And that’s to educate, engage, embrace, and empower. Do you understand the vision? Educate,
0:06:49 engage, embrace, and empower. And also, do you trust the vision? Educate, engage, embrace,
0:06:54 and empower. Because when you trust the vision, you’ll tell someone else about it. And so we ask
0:07:00 those three things. And then we talk about capacity. That’s the next step. Because some people will go
0:07:05 into a partnership, well, I want A, B, C, and D. But that may not be the capacity of the organization
0:07:12 that you’re asking. And so then the conversations will stop. And so before we even get into a deeper
0:07:17 conversation, my first question is, what is your capacity? Is your capacity training? Is your capacity
0:07:21 funding? What is your capacity? And then we work from there.
0:07:26 Right. The organization is called Black Women in AI. Is there a bottom age cutoff?
0:07:30 Actually, the average age of our members is 30.
0:07:36 So it’s 30 and up. So it’s 30 and up. And one of the things that we want to focus on is a shared
0:07:42 learning experience. What happens is, some of our members have children. And what I can say to you
0:07:48 right now, and I’m going to give you this example. When I was in high school, it was required to take a
0:07:53 foreign language. And the foreign language that I chose, of course, was French.
0:07:54 Oh, me too.
0:08:00 Okay. And all I can say to you is, comment vas-tu? Je vais très bien. Merci à vous.
0:08:07 Okay. And that’s it. That’s it. And my point of that story is, had there been a forward-thinking
0:08:12 person that said, not only am I going to teach you French, but I’m going to teach your family French.
0:08:13 Right. Oh, right, right.
0:08:19 And so for Black Women in AI, it goes back to that shared learning experience. Not only are we going
0:08:24 to teach you AI, but now you have the opportunity when your child comes home, because you are your
0:08:30 child’s first teacher, you can continue that learning so that they can retain it as they grow older.
0:08:33 Right. It’s like what you’re saying with the partners trusting the vision. You trust it,
0:08:34 you’ll share it. Yeah.
0:08:35 That’s it.
0:08:40 And so it’s a global organization. You have members, partners everywhere. Are the initiatives,
0:08:46 the activities primarily in person, primarily online, kind of a hybrid? What do those look like?
0:08:50 They’re primarily online because of course we started in 2020. Right.
0:08:57 So everybody started going online. So that’s the standard right now. But we did have an opportunity
0:09:05 to attend GTC in person and it has been phenomenal. So there are some initiatives that are in person and
0:09:07 some primarily online.
0:09:13 I’m speaking with Angel Bush. Angel is the founder and CEO of Black Women in AI, an organization she
0:09:19 started in 2020 after. And I forgot to ask you, did you build, did the robot complete? Did it bring
0:09:20 you hot chocolate?
0:09:25 I did not build a robot. Didn’t build a robot, but built a global organization.
0:09:33 So it’s not really shifting gears, but to talk a little bit less about what the organization’s doing
0:09:39 and kind of more about why it’s important, why an organization like this is necessary. Can you talk a
0:09:45 little bit about the challenges that Black women face in AI and beyond AI for that matter?
0:09:53 Well, I would say this. I think artificial intelligence has a branding problem. And the issue with artificial
0:09:59 intelligence is when people hear about AI, they believe that you have to attend Harvard or, you know,
0:10:07 one of these Ivy League schools in order to be a part. Or they feel like I am, you know, I’m hesitant to
0:10:15 use AI. I either don’t trust it or I don’t understand it. And so what we do is what I want to do in terms of
0:10:21 challenges is break those barriers down where people can feel comfortable in any arena, whether you’re in
0:10:27 marketing, whether you’re in doing podcasts, you know, you can still be a part of AI. So I think
0:10:34 the biggest challenge really is the branding problem of AI more than anything, because we have to make sure
0:10:40 that people, we meet them where they are. And so, um, I think it’s, it’s, it’s a problem that many people face.
0:10:45 So before we recorded, I had a chance just to take a look, I didn’t actually get to go
0:10:50 through it. You’ve created this really cool looking AI career assessment tool. What was the genesis for
0:10:56 that? And how does it work? And what’s, what’s the, I don’t know, reaction and experience been like for
0:10:56 your members?
0:11:01 It has been absolutely wonderful. It’s actually in live agent. So anyone can test it out.
0:11:02 Okay.
0:11:07 Yeah. Uh, but one of the things is that I hear quite often is, well, how do I start?
0:11:07 Yeah.
0:11:14 What do I need to do to get into AI? And so with those questions that I get all of the time,
0:11:20 um, I said, okay, how can we help people, um, understand what they need to do in order to,
0:11:23 again, pivot and transition into AI? Right.
0:11:29 And so our custom AI career assessment agent, let’s just say you have a love for ice cream.
0:11:30 I do actually.
0:11:36 And I love that. I love ice cream as well. And so what you do is you type in, I love ice cream
0:11:43 and the AI career assessment agent will give you insight into how AI and ice cream are related.
0:11:44 Interesting. Yeah.
0:11:50 It’ll tell you the emerging technology in that area. And it’ll also give you insight into the
0:11:53 first three classes that you need to take in order to pursue that.
0:11:54 Oh, very cool. Yeah.
0:12:00 And so we wanted to, again, uh, give people the tools that they needed in order to pivot.
0:12:07 Right. And so do you work with people to help them change careers and, and career training,
0:12:09 career placement, that kind of thing, or?
0:12:15 We work with individuals who are interested in AI, but not sure where they’re going.
0:12:20 And so we have these conversations about, okay, so, so tell me, you know,
0:12:22 what’s the North star for you? Yeah.
0:12:26 Where do you want to go with AI? Whether it’s, I want to work for NVIDIA,
0:12:30 or I want to work for another company, or I want to create my own company. Right.
0:12:37 And understanding that AI is being democratized, in particular with ChatGPT,
0:12:40 I went in and created a Tetris game. Right.
0:12:46 So, and, and really making sure that we’re not just consumers. Yeah.
0:12:52 But creators. Yep. And that is the focus of black women in AI. And one of the things that we challenged
0:12:58 our members with in order to attend this event, one of the requirements was that you need to build
0:12:59 something. Right.
0:13:04 And I told them, and they can attest to this, I said, I don’t care if it’s the latest doorbell.
0:13:04 Right.
0:13:11 I need for you to build something, and they all stood for that challenge and they all created
0:13:17 something. And some of them are new again to AI. So they were, they were asking questions and I said,
0:13:18 just build. Right.
0:13:20 Just, you know, because we have to move beyond that fear.
0:13:28 Just build. And one of the things that came out of it is there is a app called the conference app
0:13:35 that was created. And if you go into the conference app, it lists all of the speakers that are in the
0:13:40 conference app and what time they speak. And so the young ladies had never built an app before,
0:13:45 and now they’re excited. And listening to Jensen, let’s scale. How do we scale?
0:13:45 Right, right, right.
0:13:52 And so now that barrier to, hmm, I don’t know what AI is. I don’t understand it. All of that is
0:13:58 being removed. And then we have innovation. When you remove the barriers, then you will increase
0:13:59 the innovation.
0:14:05 You kind of just answered the question I was going to ask, which was once, once they get hands-on,
0:14:09 does it, for most of them, like, does it flow? Do they kind of feel like, oh, wait,
0:14:11 this isn’t intimidating. Like, I can work with this.
0:14:14 Yes, yes. I think you see the light.
0:14:15 Right.
0:14:19 You know, when you see the light come on in a person, where now they’re coming up with
0:14:23 the different ideas and they’re not saying, so what should I do? They’re saying, you know what,
0:14:29 we can scale this, we can add this, and we can transition depending on whatever the conference
0:14:34 is. For example, we’ll figure out what is the gap and we’ll fill the gap.
0:14:39 Yeah. So the organization’s four or five years old going on five years. What are the plans? This
0:14:44 year, I don’t know how far out in advance, how far can we plan these days with AI changing so quickly,
0:14:49 right? But what are you working on? What are some of the, you know, things coming up down the road?
0:14:54 Well, one of the things that I’ve always said to people is, I want black women in artificial
0:14:59 intelligence to be so successful that it no longer has to exist. Right.
0:15:02 I want to work myself out of this job. Yeah.
0:15:09 So this is not my last stop, but that’s the main goal that we’re so successful that we no
0:15:16 longer need to exist. And so when it comes to what are we working on? We’re working on another app
0:15:24 utilizing the OpenAI API. And so this is in particular to optimize resumes.
0:15:24 Oh, great.
0:15:30 Yes. Because a lot of people will say, well, I submitted a resume to this company, that company,
0:15:36 but they’re not aware of the applicant tracking system. And so we’re going to optimize their resume
0:15:42 so that it can get past that initial stop of the applicant tracking system. So that’s what we’re
0:15:46 working on. And that will be on our website really soon. Great.
0:15:50 So we’re really excited about that. And again, utilizing the OpenAI API.
0:15:57 Great. And how do interested individuals go about becoming members to reach out to you?
0:15:59 Is it on the website? And what does that kind of entail?
0:16:06 Yes. Visiting our website, which is www.blackwomeninai.com.
0:16:08 We need to get you to cut some promos for the podcast.
0:16:16 I’ve been on the radio. I’ve been on the radio. So yeah, there is a membership page. And once they
0:16:24 are approved for membership, then we also have an onboarding session, have an onboarding video. And so
0:16:31 we’re making sure that they’re prepared. Again, as you said in the beginning, we’re really not looking
0:16:34 for members. We’re looking for people to be a part of a movement.
0:16:35 The community. Yeah.
0:16:41 Yeah. And really understand and trust that vision of the movement that we’re going to make sure that
0:16:47 you have all the tools you need in order to be a part of the AI economy, in order to pivot into your
0:16:52 career, we’re going to do that for you. Right. How do you go about, and whether it’s
0:16:58 yourself or maybe coaching some of the people in the community to deal with these situations,
0:17:04 how do you go about it when you encounter resistance? And, you know, wherever the resistance is coming
0:17:09 from, but for whatever reason, the energy coming back at you or someone you’re working with in the
0:17:14 community is feeling like, I don’t know if I belong in this space. I don’t know if they want me in
0:17:22 this space. Just feeling that barrier. I think my personality is I’m going to do it anyway.
0:17:28 Yeah. And so I’m going to give you that energy. You know, one of the things about Black Women and AI,
0:17:34 someone asked me coming over here today, they said, “Well, what did you do? How did you just
0:17:36 do this?” I said, “I just started.” Yeah.
0:17:44 I’m not concerned about what could potentially go wrong. I just started. And doors have opened where
0:17:50 I have not had to apply pressure. And that, to me, is the greatest part of this journey. Right.
0:17:57 Because I have not felt that resistance that I think most people believe that I would feel. It’s been,
0:17:59 oh, okay, let’s have this conversation. Yeah.
0:18:04 And I think when you start again with that capacity, then the doors open. Right.
0:18:11 But if you start with, “I just want A, B, C, and D,” okay, that’s fine. But when you start with that
0:18:18 capacity and you build that relationship of trust, and to me, that’s more important than anything else.
0:18:24 All right. Change gears for a second. You mentioned ChatGPT before, but AI tools that you use in your daily
0:18:30 work. Anything come to mind? Have a favorite? Oh, my goodness. AI tools, ChatGPT every day,
0:18:33 with the exception of this week. What do you use it for?
0:18:42 I use ChatGPT for everything, whether it’s trying to make sure that the thoughts are clear and the mood
0:18:49 or the tone when I’m responding to an email. But I’ve learned which models work best. You know,
0:18:57 the ChatGPT 4. Yeah. That’s all creative. But if you want something specific and deterministic,
0:19:01 I think you should use ChatGPT 1 and 3. Interesting.
0:19:07 If you’re doing coding and you need specific, those are the ones to use. Okay. All right.
0:19:14 And MidJourney. I love MidJourney. I’m using Sora. And I just started using another one, and I can’t
0:19:21 think of the name of it right now, but it is amazing. Where if you want to make a cartoon…
0:19:22 Oh, okay.
0:19:26 Oh, my God. It’s amazing. It’s amazing. I’m going to find out after this. Yeah,
0:19:27 we’ll put it in the show notes. Yeah.
0:19:30 Oh, my God. It’s next level.
0:19:36 Angel, for listeners who want to find out more, ideally want to get involved, whether becoming a
0:19:41 part of the community, supporting, maybe they’re in an organization who’d like to partner, what’s the
0:19:43 best way to learn more and to get in touch?
0:19:49 Make sure that you go to our website. It has information. You can contact us. The email address
0:19:52 is on there. It’s blackwomenandai.com?
0:19:59 Yes, blackwomenandai.com. Make sure that you really look at the website and you look at the
0:20:06 possibilities. If you’re looking at the possibilities, then you won’t hesitate to reach out. So for me,
0:20:12 look at the possibilities of what’s online, what we’ve shared, and we’re looking for thinking outside
0:20:18 the box as well. Right. Angel Bush, this has been a pleasure and congratulations and best of luck is
0:20:22 an understatement with all the work you’re doing to build this community. It’s a great thing,
0:20:24 and hearing you talk about it is a great thing as well. So thank you.
0:20:26 Thank you so much for having me. I appreciate it.
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