Meet Bryan Dai, the founder of Daivergent--a startup that hires people with autism to train artificial intelligence and helps them start independent careers. His journey began when his mother passed away, and he knew that he would be responsible for helping support his brother with autism. After people with autism turn 21, they often encounter the “support cliff,” after which they stop receiving many forms of government support. The statistics afterwards are stark - of the 2.5 million people with autism in the United States, 85% are unemployed. Fortunately, Bryan--a data scientist by trade--had an idea. He knew some people on the autism spectrum, like his brother, had particular strengths that made them well suited to training next-generation AI used in things like self-driving cars. What if he started a company that hired people from the autistic community to help businesses with specialized AI training? It could help provide independence, employment, and the start to a career for people on the autism spectrum - all while helping push the envelope of artificial intelligence.
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