Hong Kong teen makes cents of finance, taps AI to tackle economic inequality
Hong Kong secondary school student Agastya Rekhi is just 17, but he has been teaching finance and economics to younger children for nearly three years. Meeting families struggling to understand how prices, investments and economic news impacted their daily lives during voluntary work convinced him that access to information was only part of the problem. How that information was communicated was…
At 17 years old, Agastya Rekhi from Hong Kong is already making waves in the world of finance. For nearly three years, he has been imparting financial knowledge to younger children, recognizing that access to information alone is insufficient. During voluntary work, Rekhi encountered families struggling to comprehend how financial concepts impacted their daily lives, leading him to emphasize the importance of effective communication.
Rekhi's efforts have culminated in three student-led projects. Launchpad, initiated at 14, teaches economics, business, and financial literacy through engaging activities. Instead of using textbooks, the project employs games and artistic methods to make financial concepts more relatable. For instance, the "tragedy of the commons"—a concept explaining how overuse of shared resources can lead to their depletion—was taught through a game involving sharing marshmallows with chopsticks. This approach helps students grasp the consequences of individual actions on collective resources.
The Bottom Line, launched about two years ago, began as a school newsletter explaining economic and financial news in simple English. It has grown to an 18-member team and distributes the newsletter to over 6,500 readers monthly through 23 partner organizations. Rekhi's experiences, such as meeting a woman in To Kwa Wan who was saving for her daughter's education in the United States while dealing with rising costs, highlighted the need for accessible economic information in languages other than English.
Consequently, a Chinese edition of The Bottom Line was introduced and distributed through local schools and charities.
Illuminet, Rekhi's third initiative, connects students with a passion for artificial intelligence (AI) to smaller organizations lacking the resources to adopt AI technology. Students assist these firms in implementing AI tools like automated drafting or simple chatbots, enabling them to harness AI without hiring full-time technical staff. Rekhi acknowledges that while larger companies can readily adopt new technologies, smaller organizations risk falling behind.
Despite their differing approaches, Rekhi views these projects as responses to the same issue: economic inequality. He aims to equip younger students with financial knowledge, simplify economic news, and help smaller organizations leverage emerging technologies. Looking ahead, Rekhi plans to study economics at university and eventually contribute to policies that ensure economic growth benefits individuals from all income brackets.
His ultimate goal is to ensure that people from diverse backgrounds have the knowledge and interest to participate in the financial system.
Written by urgent.news from South China Morning Post's reporting — not their text. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.
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