Happy Halloween 🎃 and Diwali 🪔

As leaders and entrepreneurs, we often wonder how we can influence our brand’s reputation. One powerful way is through thought leadership.

This week, you’re probably wondering why you have already seen the sentence in a previous week's newsletter… Déjà vu, isn’t it? 

Well, you have just been tricked! 🤪 Did you know that, according to Smithsonian Magazine, trick-or-treating was practiced in the early 20th century by Scottish and Irish immigrant communities and became popular only during the 1920s and 1930s? 🎃

In this week’s newsletter, we will deliver you delicious treats ranging from stories of entrepreneurial startups to a famous Asian festival that celebrates the victory of good over darkness. Stick to the end because we left a bonus treat for you. 🍬

We’ll give you a hint: it is one hell of a game! 

If you find this newsletter interesting, refer it to your friends by sharing this link and receive amazing gifts from AHN!

UPLIFTING STORIES 📚

Modernizing the Financial Stack for Couples: A Conversation With Plenty CEO Emily Luk

Emily Luk, though a first-time founder, is not new to startups, having joined Stripe as a founding member of their growth team back when the company had around 150 employees.

Now, she is building Plenty, an investment platform for modern couples. Talking to Emily has convinced us of two things, first—that having a platform that helps couples invest in their future is very important, and second—that Emily is probably the right person to build it. 

Discover more inspiring founder and innovator stories at awakennewsletter.substack.com

UPLIFTING LEGENDS 📺

Want to be highlighted in the AHN Legends series? Apply now!

Happy Diwali! 🪔

Long gone are the hundreds of hours cleaning the ceiling fans and “dusting off” your room in the service of “kai saafi” (deep cleaning rituals). 

All that preparation stress is now over—Diwali (or Deepavali in South India) has arrived! Although the festival’s core purpose varies by religion and region, it is a significant occasion celebrating the triumph of light over darkness. During this five-day festival, families gather, put on new clothes, share prayers, exchange gifts, enjoy kaleidoscopes of candlelight and rangoli, and, of course—is it even Diwali without the supreme paneer curry?

In tandem with the sparkly and pleasantly luminous festival of lights, Diwali is subtle and meaningful. It is the anticipation of gifts from your aunties—already knowing that it’s the same box set of soan papdi every year. It’s also one of the rare moments in a year when siblings sit together to exchange sweet prayers, with not even a single bicker in sight!

Those details altogether make up a wonderful Diwali for all who observe. Happy Diwali to everyone!

Jimmy O. Yang Finally Wins the First Lead Role in Charles Yu’s “Interior Chinatown” 🎬

The $1,500 Toyota Corolla with no power windows, a busted side door, and poor brakes is what Jimmy O. Yang rode around Los Angeles to prepare for his role as Willis Wu, an overlooked Asian American everyman in the series “Interior Chinatown.” 

The result? “Pull over, call whoever got you in here. If you can’t, you gotta go…”. A rude remark from the studio’s guard as Yang recalled in a Zoom with the Los Angeles Times (LA Times) even though he was No.1 on the call sheet. The experience reminded Yang of his life story as a Hong Kong immigrant moving to the United States. 

*For more details, read here.

Zombies! Japan Train Terrifies Passengers Ahead of Halloween 🧟‍♀️

A two-and-a-half-hour ride on Japan’s bullet train is often a serene experience. Yet, passengers screamed in terror as the ride descended into a zombie apocalypse. Inspired by "Train to Busan", a 2016 South Korean action-horror hit movie, victims (actors) underwent a horrifying transformation before igniting a rampage on their fellow passengers. To counterbalance this, the tour was also peppered with performances by zombie magicians and comedians, cheerleaders, and a choreographed dance to Michael Jackson's "Thriller."

A 31-year-old American tourist exclaimed to AFP, "I literally felt like I was in the film, just sitting here watching it take place in front of me." The event has convinced Marie Izumi of JR Central's tourism subsidiary of the novel possibilities for Japan’s bullet train. She states with AFP that she was astonished by the concept of a zombie-themed commute, thinking it would be "almost impossible to pull off." Now, Izumi believes that adding concerts and comedy shows could be a great possibility in the future. 

*For more details, read here.

AHN Group is Here to Propel Your Business to Success!

AHN Group is excited to announce the launch of its comprehensive digital marketing and technology services tailored specifically for Asian entrepreneurs and enterprises. With a mission to empower businesses in the digital age, AHN Group offers a range of solutions designed to enhance visibility, foster growth, and create unique customer experiences:

✨ Website and Mobile Development
✨ Content Marketing
✨ Logo and Brand Style Guide Creation
✨ Video Post-Production Services
✨ Cultural Consulting

Visit ahngroup.co to learn more about their services and begin the journey towards transforming your business.

For newsletter sponsorship opportunities, please reach out to [email protected]

AHN Foundation x Cooley: AAPI Founder Happy Hour

In partnership with Cooley, AHN Foundation invites you to join us for an AAPI Founder Happy Hour, a workshop and networking event bringing together founders and aspiring entrepreneurs from Seattle and the Western Washington region!

This event will provide an opportunity for guests to engage in founder conversations led by Cooley attorneys, learn about building startups and raising money, and network with other founders and creatives. We will be facilitating small group discussions so that you can share your own entrepreneurial experiences and discover free resources for founders like yourself.

​📍 Cooley Seattle, 1700 7th Ave #1900, Seattle, WA 98101
🗓️ Wednesday, November 13, 2024
🕔 5:00 PM - 7:00 PM (PT)

Join us for a fun mini-game and see if you can solve our spooky challenge! 🧟 

How did you do? Screenshot your score and tag @asianhustlenetwork on your IG story for a shoutout! 👻

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nCompass Delivers Scalable AI Cloud Solutions for GPU Owners

nCompass Technologies is a platform that enables cost-effective inference of AI workloads at scale. Compared to state-of-the-art deployment systems such as NVIDIA NIMs, we use 33% fewer GPUs while maintaining a high quality of service. On the nCompass platform, we provide the following solutions:

1. Rate-limit free API: We are able to offer our API without rate limits as our core technology enables us to maximize utilization of our existing GPU infrastructure.

2. On-prem deployment: Our scalable Kubernetes + Docker system can be deployed on your existing infrastructure allowing you to reduce GPU infrastructure bills by up to 50%.

3. Bespoke AI cloud: If you own GPU hardware and would like to convert your infrastructure into an AI cloud, we can provide and set up a managed cloud console with AI endpoints and a deployment system that maximizes GPU utilization.

Catch "Starring Jerry As Himself" in Cinemas Soon!

This true account of a stranger-than-fiction spy story follows an immigrant father Jerry, a recently retired Florida man, who was recruited by the Chinese police to be an undercover agent, only to discover a darker truth.

Uniquely universal, Starring Jerry As Himself transports the audience to a world of espionage, secret phone calls and missions, and a brave man’s tale to shine a light on one of society’s darkest corners. True crime meets spy thriller in this genre-bending docufiction hybrid about a Taiwanese immigrant’s search for the American dream. The documentary film has won three Slamdance Film Festival awards, including the Grand Jury Award, Audience Award, and Best Actor.

🎥 New York City Premiere: November 6 at the IFC Center, with a Filmmaker and Cast Q&A on November 7, 8, and 9. Available everywhere starting November 8.

🎃 Did you know that in the U.S., Halloween is the 4th most common holiday for children to get injuries? Pumpkin carving can be fun, but 41% of Halloween injuries are actually from carving incidents! Follow this guide to make sure you have a spooky fun but safe Halloween night:

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