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Matt Dalio
Matt Dalio Matt Dalio

In 2022, it is difficult for us to imagine a time when smartphones and Google did not exist. But it was only in 1998 that Google was born, and there are still many parts of the world that live beyond the reach of technology. Matt Dalio established Endless with the purpose of bridging the digital divide by democratizing and boosting device access, solving internet access, and teaching students vital 21st century skills through game-based learning.

Matt was born in the United States, but he has a worldwide perspective as a result of his early years spent in nations such as China, India, and Indonesia. He lived in China at age 11, going to a Chinese school and living with a Chinese family. A few years later, after witnessing scenes of extreme deprivation in an orphanage in China, he founded the China Care Foundation, which assisted thousands of young children and their caregivers throughout five Chinese children's homes. His passion for making a positive impact in the world stems from the belief that even one individual can bring about significant change in society with the right determination and effort.

Upon graduating from Stanford Business School in 2012, he realized that technology was about to be democratized as smartphones entered emerging markets. He also realized that, even with that, there would be huge gaps in who would have access to. He built up Endless in 2012, and it has evolved into an umbrella company for a global network of enterprises, non-profits, and individuals like Endless Studios. The Endless OS Foundation addresses the digital divide by tackling device and internet barriers. Endless Studios focuses on teaching digital skills that are necessary for youth to be prepared for the job market of tomorrow. These businesses, each with its own CEO, are all involved in one way or another in making digital technology and skill-building broadly available and facilitating internet connection in all corners of the world in order to advance human potential.

Matt worked for several years with his Endless OS team to find a solution for providing more people in poor nations with low-cost computers with financing and addressing the internet gap. Based on the pay-as-you-go model that firms like Angaza Solite utilized in Africa for more people to obtain access to solar energy in order to run appliances and power their mobile phones, they are now working on a similar solution for enabling digital access.

While deploying these computers in countries like Guatemala, Matt learned that 72% of math teachers in Guatemala, a nation with one of the highest illiteracy rates, were unable to pass the math tests that they were teaching. Meanwhile, Matt saw that kids were playing the math games that they had included in the Endless platform. He also realized that most of his engineers had learned how to code by hacking their games. This prompted Matt to co-found Endless Studios with E-line Media. Endless Studios educates young people by helping them build games with the support of mentors to enhance their technical talents.

Endless Studios organizes programs and works with youngsters from the age of 13 to 25 to assist them in acquiring 21st-century skills like creative problem solving, coding, digital art, project management, and collaborating across teams in their impressionable teenage years. Young kids learn how to be creators, makers, and innovators as a result of building these games.

Typical coding and tech education in schools is often dry and technical. Games, on the other hand, enable children to learn a variety of digital and soft skills that will prepare them for success in their future occupations.

"The average teenager enters the workforce having spent 10,000 hours playing games. Most of the really famous games like Minecraft are all about building. Kids like building games as much as playing them. With Endless Studios, we offer young people the chance to use a game creation experience to reinforce and enhance their skills in other areas like engineering, design, digital art, project management, writing, and marketing. The tools now accessible for creating real-world games are either very complex or overly simple. We are addressing this void by providing them with access to a network of peers and mentors who will guide them through the game creation process and help them become better employees in the future," concluded Matt.

Just like the Industrial Revolution led to rapid urbanization in the 18th century, the digital revolution is intended to revolutionize the world as we know it in the 21st century. People like Matt Dalio are critical to ensuring that everyone on the planet has simple access to the digital technologies they need to succeed in this new economy.