Meet The Disruptors: Anthony William Shannon Of MUVE On The Three Things You Need To Shake Up Your Industry
An Interview With Fotis Georgiadis
Who you are with is also extremely important. If you are around uplifting, inspiring, and more intelligent or experienced people than you then you’re on the right track. If not, it’s probably time to make a change, which is also in your control. This is relevant both for personal and professional relationships.
As a part of our series about business leaders who are shaking things up in their industry, I had the pleasure of interviewing Anthony William Shannon.
Anthony William Shannon is a serial technology entrepreneur from Montreal, Canada with over 10 years of experience working in technology for small startups to large Fortune 500 corporations. In 2017, he and Peter Grande, a leader in the automotive and mobility industries, co-founded MUVE and built a team of expert technologists, designers, and builders centered on developing technology within the universal design principles, providing accessibility in the mobility space, and creations transportation solutions for governments to help those living with disabilities and their extended families.
Thank you so much for doing this with us! Can you tell us a bit about your “backstory”? What led you to this particular career path?
I’ve always had the entrepreneurial bug my entire life. I started in technology over 10 years ago, building software and working on innovative projects across numerous industries. After helping many companies succeed through technology, I had assembled a great team and felt it was the right time to build something which could have a positive global impact. We initially started with the vision of building an impactful solution to help people living with accessibility needs. We found out that there were over 1 Billion people globally living with a disability, and impacting over 1 in 4 Americans, so we knew it was important to come up with an innovative solution to help those who need it most. Furthermore, we found that governments, transit authorities, and mobility operators were all looking for, and willing to fund, new technologies that could make their operations more efficient, heading into this era where everything is being digitized, we ventured out to build the best technology solutions possible to tackle these important challenges. When starting MUVE, we wanted to make sure that we were starting something which had the potential to be scaled globally, and that it could have a positive impact on the world.
Can you tell our readers what it is about the work you’re doing that’s disruptive?
We innovate everyday, which is an extremely exciting part of what we do. We have the freedom and flexibility to apply out-of-the box thinking to create cutting edge solutions, which solve a business purpose just as well as create a bridge to important community needs. Concretely, we help transit authorities, mobility providers, cities and governments, as well as community organizations rethink and reposition the way their operations work through technology innovation. Since what we are doing at the core, is meant to have a positive impact, we aim to put the customers first in order to create a more sustainable ecosystem.
Can you share a story about the funniest mistake you made when you were first starting? Can you tell us what lesson you learned from that?
Yes, when I was just starting off in technology entrepreneurship, I was invited to Los Angeles to speak at a very exclusive event, with some of the top pioneers in my field at that time. It was the type of room that could have changed anyone’s life or career path. It was a fairly long presentation, and I was alone on stage. I had a great looking slide deck, but I did not have the chance to do a dry run in the venue the night before. When I got there, all the lights were on, and the microphone / audio was super loud in this room, and I had never even heard my voice fill up a venue like this before. I got nervous, and almost forgot where I was going with my slides and could hear my voice shaking. I followed the playbook and pushed through, but it was not a home run and I still feel it could have gone a lot better. What I learned from this experience is that you need to practice your public speeches, in front of a mirror or in the actual venue with sound ideally, many, many times. Continue practicing to the point where you can do it 10 times without missing a beat and have that level of confidence going into it. This lesson stayed with me and has yielded great results ever since! For example, when we were selected as a finalist in a start-up competition in Chicago at the National Shared Mobility Summit — my partner and I woke up at 5 AM and practiced our presentation dozens of times before winning and earning the title of ‘’Mobility Startup to Watch in the US’’, at the infancy of the company.
We all need a little help along the journey. Who have been some of your mentors? Can you share a story about how they made an impact?
My first mentors would be my family. Starting with my mother and father, who have helped shape my mindset to think about working in something I felt passionate about, and always provided guidance, support, and knowledge to aid me get there. They always instilled the notion that following your passion is more important than making money. My dad is the reason I’m in tech today. After losing all my money on an entertainment venture I was doing as a teenager, he proposed that I get into Mobile Apps (in 2009–2010) at a time when the web was totally dominating. It turned out to be great advice, and I’m still in that field today!
Secondly, my uncle Gary Shannon is a great mentor of mine. If it was not for him, I would not be where I am today. He has opened a lot of doors for me early on and helped give me the real first opportunities to build a tech company.
My cousin Matthew Shannon is also a mentor of mine, he has a world-class business strategy mind who works on a lot of world class deals. I find myself learning a lot from him about how to best position myself and the technologies we build to reach an optimal outcome.
Then, I would say a great mentor of mine is Jeff Grammer, a renowned VC and technology entrepreneur with multiple exits. We have been friends for 12 years and every year we get together for burgers and beers for some ‘’real talk’’ about the journey and things that are happening in our world. This is helpful since he’s been through the entire journey from start to exit many times and can often share some relevant advice and knowledge.
In today’s parlance, being disruptive is usually a positive adjective. But is disrupting always good? When do we say the converse, that a system or structure has ‘withstood the test of time’? Can you articulate to our readers when disrupting an industry is positive, and when disrupting an industry is ‘not so positive’? Can you share some examples of what you mean?
I see disruption as the evolution of what was, towards what will be. It is a positive concept, since humans are made to evolve over time. But it does always come with the risk of these same innovations being used to do bad. Here are a few examples:
- Autonomous driving cars can save a lot of lives and solve one of the top causes of unnecessary deaths in the US with humans driving cars and getting into accidents. It is proven that autonomous driving is much safer. The problem is, hypothetically, even if you could reduce the number of deaths per year by 90%, is that good or bad? It sounds like it’s a good idea but, most likely, the families of the thousands of lives lost at the hands of a robot driver, with no human interference, would argue that a human driver could have avoided that crash and that it was the technology’s fault.
- When the Internet started, we saw an opportunity to connect with each other in a way we never had before across the world. Of course, eventually as billions of people connect and share online more than ever, we have compromised a large amount of our privacy to private companies’ interests in exchange. Is the convenience and fun of using the platforms worth the privacy loss?
- The dialogue of AI in the context of defence is also interesting. Top companies and governments have created and are openly promoting robots, powered by AI, that can fight on behalf of humans in the context of a war. The good part is obvious, we don’t need to sacrifice as many human lives in the quest for protection in a war, or that it would save taxpayer dollars going towards defence budgets. The negative sides include discussions around who programs the AI, how does the AI evolve, is it governed, supervised or controlled by a group who has sound ethics and morals — this could become very problematic for humanity.
- Brain chips, like Neurolink by Elon Musk are also an interesting topic. Ultimately, once deployed at scale, the technology will have the power to cure physical and mental illnesses, save lives, ‘’download’’ unlimited knowledge (i.e. being able to speak in and interact in every language). In exchange, all your life and thoughts will be recorded and stored on a private company’s server, which could technically be transplanted to another human or robot. Would the pros outweigh the cons?
The main similarity on all the points above is that the evaluation of the benefits offered by these new technologies versus potential risk in a worst-case scenario. Users can always make a choice to not opt into the future, but most don’t.
Technology is evolving at an exponential rate, so it would be normal that the innovations, which will be our reality in the future, sound unfathomable to us today. For example, the idea of horses being replaced by cars to autonomous vehicles, or from having to handwrite write telegrams and letters to being connected to anyone in the world at the touch of a button through our smartphones, or even flying into space would have sounded unbelievable 100 years ago. The funny part is that once innovation hits, people get used to it very quickly, and can’t imagine ever going back to how things were prior.
Can you share 3 of the best words of advice you’ve gotten along your journey? Please give a story or example for each.
My best advice is to focus on where, who, and what.
Where you are: It’s so important to be where the opportunities are most likely to meet you. This has happened time and time again for me, whether it’s going to the right conference, vacation destination, or spending more of your time in a specific place during the year. A lot of great things can happen unexpectedly when you put yourself in position.
Who you are with is also extremely important. If you are around uplifting, inspiring, and more intelligent or experienced people than you then you’re on the right track. If not, it’s probably time to make a change, which is also in your control. This is relevant both for personal and professional relationships.
What you do is a more obvious one but still important. The two points above are key to a happy life in my view, but with the right project or opportunity in hand to propel it can make it even better! Same goes here, a lot of good things can happen if you pick the right sport to play, take a certain class, or find a new hobby on the personal side.
We are sure you aren’t done. How are you going to shake things up next?
On the professional side, I really love the world of technology and business. I don’t see myself straying away from that anytime soon. On the personal side, I would love to find a way to have more and more positive impact in my time. Whether it’s through work, charity, or finding ways to help others who need it most.
Do you have a book, podcast, or talk that’s had a deep impact on your thinking? Can you share a story with us? Can you explain why it was so resonant with you?
My favourite business book is ‘’What it Takes’’, lessons in the pursuit of Excellence, by Stephen Shwartzman, who is someone I respect. After evaluating thousands of businesses over the last 50 years, the main concept he talks about in the context of building an organization with longevity is hiring or building a team is the idea of consciously hiring or surrounding yourself with 10’s, meaning 10/10 ‘’superstar’’ level talent. Which resonates with the importance of having a really strong team.
My favourite podcast is Masters of Scale, by Reid Hoffman. There are exclusive daily lessons from the top CEO’s, Founders, and Inventors. Plus, he sends action items on things we can work on based on the concepts explored in the sessions. I really recommend it!
Can you please give us your favorite “Life Lesson Quote”? Can you share how that was relevant to you in your life?
My dad always said “The only thing you have when you die is what you did for other people” which is why I think it’s important to not only look at what I want out of life myself, but to look around and make a conscious effort to try and help those who need it most.
You are a person of great influence. If you could inspire a movement that would bring the most amount of good to the most amount of people, what would that be? You never know what your idea can trigger. :-)
I would encourage the notion of universal design across all industries, which is essentially creating products or environments which can be utilized to the greatest extent by people of all abilities, backgrounds, beliefs, etc. Not only is this totally possible and the right thing to do, in my opinion, but I believe that it’s also good for business, as it opens up a brand new market who can enjoy what you create.
Starting a business doesn’t always have to exclude helping others. Companies like Toms Shoes is a great example as they give away a pair of shoes to children in need every time one is purchased. Doing good doesn’t mean you can’t do well!
A good challenge question might be: What business could you start that goes hand in hand with having a positive impact on the world?
How can our readers follow you online?
Best would be to add me on LinkedIn: Anthony William Shannon.
You can also follow MUVE on our website, as well as our activity on all our social media accounts, come say Hi.
https://www.facebook.com/muvecorp
https://www.instagram.com/go_muve/
https://www.linkedin.com/company/gomuve/?viewAsMember=true
This was very inspiring. Thank you so much for joining us!
