i3 - January/February 2020 - 81

By Rachael Watson

Policy

FAC E S O F I N N OVAT I O N

Auriel Wright and Kristen Fang
of StrattyXCompany

 C 

o-Founders Auriel Wright and Kristen Fang have
developed a mobile and automated trading app, which
aims to democratize algorithmic trading. Born in the
powerhouse of Harvard University's John A. Paulson School
of Engineering and Applied Sciences, StrattyX empowers
investors with innovative strategic tools. i3 recently sat down
with Wright and Fang to learn more.

Q What was your inspiration for
founding StrattyX?

A AW: After working at Goldman Sachs, in
the cryptocurrency division - essentially,
I was their first cryptocurrency analyst - I
saw a large disconnect between people
who can code and people who have ideas
for trading. I wanted to bring tools to people
who can't program or code, to bring them
into the 21st century of trading. Eightyfive percent of the stock market is run by
machine but only 7% of our world can program, so it's really helping to fill that need.
Q What kind of impact do you hope your

Courtesy of Strattyx

work will have on the tech landscape and
for consumers?

A AW: As a team, we hold ourselves to the
standard of "if someone says to jump seven
feet, we jump 700 feet." With that in mind,
we want to break down barriers and set
standards for other people to get validation
in the Valley. I'm happy and excited for that.
Knowing that we face sexism, ageism, and
racism on a daily basis is one of the reasons
I'm out here kicking.
KF: We also want to empower everyday
investors. We're in a new age of trading
where viral stories like tweets and news
headlines drive trends in the market - this
is something economist Robert Schiller
coined "narrative economics." Everyday
investors don't have access to tools to
protect themselves from volatility in the
market and seize opportunities. We aim to
level the playing field by giving easy-to-use
trading tools to the everyday investor. With
StrattyX, everyday users can create, test
and automate their investment strategies.
C TA . t e c h / i 3

Q What excites you the most about tech?
A AW: I'm looking forward to seeing how

different efforts within quantum computing are going to play out for us. We're
researching and reading through some
interesting papers that underlie elements
of our platform and
platforms we've seen
and considered collaborating with. It's
been interesting and
very promising on that
forefront. In terms of
our own tech, we have
a proprietary scripting
language and I'm very
interested in seeing
what other applications we can push
forward with that. It's
been our growing tool
in the background that
we decided to put up
on this platform as
our first big push, but
we're excited to see
what other cool things
we can explore and build.

Q What advice would you give to

entrepreneurs and women in tech?

A

AW: Silicon Valley is a boy's club, but
that's not always a bad thing. It's so much
easier to be different and to provide value,
so try to use your differences as advantages.
If you don't fit the traditional Silicon Valley
archetype, spend time figuring out where
you do fit or even if you are not a fit at all
and use that.

KF: Be confident, stand your
ground and know your worth.
There will be a lot of people
throughout your startup and
entrepreneurial process that will
doubt you, won't believe in what
you're saying, will throw cynicism at you and
won't believe in your idea. But you have to
believe in yourself while taking in feedback
from other people and continuing to grow.
It's a very difficult process but I've learned
how to have more confidence in myself
and protect the people I care about, as well
as our ideas and core mission. In line with
what Auriel was alluding to, find your own
network in this space. Create a community
where you can really thrive, contribute and
learn from others.
JANUARY/FEBRUARY 2020

81
https://cta.tech/i3
i3 - January/February 2020

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