The beginning of my career coincided with the dawn of the digital age, when computer software was revolutionizing virtually every industry and changing our lives in countless ways. The advances of the past quarter-century have been astonishing—but the revolution is just beginning.

We are now entering the “Fourth Industrial Revolution,” an age in human history where everything about our lives will be transformed by technology. It may be difficult to fathom at this moment, but the technologies we live with today are merely a prelude to the advances in artificial intelligence that are still to come.

The Fourth Industrial Revolution holds the promise of enormous progress for our society. For the first time in history, the opportunity to create wealth for one’s family and community does not hinge on access to capital or the ownership of land, natural resources, or people.

Today, wealth can be created through the power of utilizing one’s creative and diligent mind and leveraging vast amounts of computing power to turn great ideas into products and services that make our lives better. Intellectual capital can be cultivated, monetized and instantaneously distributed across the globe and the benefits can then be returned to one’s community.

In fact, intellectual capital has become the new currency of business and finance—and the promise of utilizing brainpower to move individuals, families and even entire communities from poverty to prosperity within one generation has never been more possible than at this moment in time. But potential is no guarantee of progress. We will only grasp the staggering potential of our time if we create onramps that empower ALL people to participate, regardless of background, country of origin, religious practice, gender, or color of skin.

I will never forget that my path was paved by my parents, grandparents and generations of African Americans whose names I will never know. Their struggles, their courage, and their progress allowed me to strive and achieve. My story would only be possible in America, and it is incumbent on all of us to pay this inheritance forward.

For these reasons, on behalf of my family, I am privileged to join the Giving Pledge with a commitment to invest half my net worth—during my lifetime—to causes that support equality of opportunity for African Americans, as well as causes that cultivate ecological protection to ensure a livable planet for future generations.

Additionally, my wife, Hope, will focus her efforts on the famous words of Aeschylus: to “Tame the savageness of man and make gentle the life of this world” by supporting causes that support the safety, development, success, and promise of children and young people.

I hope our investments will catalyze others to join the cause. The future of our planet and our people is not one for the wealthy to wage alone.

All of us must contribute our hearts and souls to the effort.

We’re all in this together.

Robert F. Smith
Founder, Chairman & CEO, Vista Equity Partners
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