Zuckerberg sees entrepreneurial energy in Africa
At a Q&A session with Zuckerberg in Lagos yesterday developers got to quiz him on everything from his business savvy to thoughts on the local delicacies. Sharing his vision, Zuckerberg said that as the technological ecosystem continues to develop it would get more affordable and less physical.
"In future we'll have augmented reality products where, for instance, you'll be wearing glasses and not just seeing the world but adding things to it. A television will be a $1 app and no one will need the physical thing. Things won't need to be physical and that will unlock a lot of creativity, that's the future I hope we'll reach," he said.
Zuckerberg believed this was achievable within 10-15 years and that African countries like Nigeria had the perfect "entrepreneurial energy" to make this happen.
Last year Facebook opened its first headquarters in Africa in Johannesburg. At the time Facebook said it would focus on growing markets such as South Africa, Nigeria and Kenya. Yesterday, Zuckerberg reiterated this commitment and said access to the internet and connectivity was paramount.
He said his company had a three-pronged approach to this: first build infrastructure, then make it affordable by developing apps that are not data-heavy and finally to ensure people understand the value of access to the internet.
He said: "When people talk entrepreneurship what's important is drive, because that's what gets the job done. When you're trying to build something it's about who wants it most."
Source: The Times
