Creating Value With AI Around the World and Using AI in Ecommerce (wegginar® 3/4/26)

©2026 Women Entrepreneurs Grow Global®.  All rights reserved.

Looking for real and tangible AI and AI in ecommerce help?  Then you do not want to miss this Thought Leadership Series wegginar® with experts Kati Suominen and Fabian Stachelin when they will discuss:  "How are businesses creating value with AI around the world and using AI in ecommerce?"

Here's what you need to know about the presenters.

Kati Suominen, Founder and CEO, Nextrade Group

Kati is the Founder and CEO of Nextrade Group that helps governments, leading technology companies, and multilateral development banks enable trade and private sector development through technology. Author of 140 articles and 10 peer-reviewed books, she works on trade in goods and services, digital trade, digital payments, digital competition, and AI policy, among others. She has ideated and built dozens of data and analytical products and pilot initiatives as well as eight global initiatives and public-private-partnerships to enable digital trade. Dr. Suominen serves as Adjunct Fellow at the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS), Non-resident Senior Fellow at the Visa Economic Empowerment Institute, and Adjunct Professor at UCLA Anderson School of Management.

Fabian Stachelin, Founder of e-traid

Fabian has dedicated his career to developing e-commerce in emerging markets, notably as the driving force behind the partnership between eBay and the International Trade Centre (ITC). After eight years at eBay, he founded e-traid, where he leads e-commerce projects funded by the EU, World Bank, and USAID, primarily partnering with Nextrade Group and the ITC. His work across Africa, Latin America, and Central Asia includes training over 800 SMEs and helping 250—many women-led—achieve their first international sales.

 

A seasoned presenter and facilitator, Fabian has hands-on expertise across global marketplaces (eBay, Amazon, Etsy), store platforms (Shopify, WooCommerce), and service sites (Upwork, Fiverr). He holds an M.A. in International Relations from the Graduate Institute (Geneva) and is fluent in German, English, and French.

What Kati and Fabian will discuss

• How are small and large businesses using AI around the world - what use cases are emerging that you could learn from?
• How are businesses integrating AI into their ecommerce?
• How is AI use helping businesses create entirely new monetization models?
• What policy frameworks are emerging around AI that online sellers and globalizing businesses need to be aware of?

To learn more and to register free of charge thanks to the generous sponsors at Women Entrepreneurs Grow Global, visit:  https://womenentrepreneursgrowglobal.org/2026/02/04/creating-value-with-ai-around-the-world-and-using-ai-in-ecommerce/

See you there.  I [Laurel Delaney] will moderate the Q&A.  Really looking forward to this high level talk.

Grow BIG By Going Global: 6 Trends by 6 Experts That Will Reshape 2021

©2021 Laurel J. Delaney.  All rights reserved.

As we move through 2021, the picture is becoming very hopeful and global business is not going away.  Through my work as President of Women Entrepreneurs Grow Global® and Chicago Chapter Chair for the Women Presidents' Organization, I’ve discovered that women business owners, now more than ever, are ready to grow big by going global.  It’s a fast ticket to find new customers.  

I asked six experts (as shown in the photo) to weigh in on six key trends – digital, strategy, wellness, supply chain, security risks, and remote work – that business owners should understand as they navigate through uncharted global territory.  

Here’s what they said.  

Today in Global Small Business: Jack Ma's Future of Commerce

©iStock/Ximagination

What's affecting me, my clients, my colleagues and other global small business owners:

• Alibaba founder Jack Ma's future of commerce.
• Why UK small businesses aren't thinking globally.
• Four (4) days left to register for the 2nd Annual Global Small Business Forum held in Chicago 10/21.
• Wisconsin Governor Scott Walker says "small businesses are leading the way."
• Is it too early to be planning your 2017 e-commerce holiday calendar (I don't think so).
• The silver bullet for helping small businesses trade: Plurilateral agreement on de minimis.

Ways to Finance Your International Business

©iStock/Rawpixel Ltd.

How do you finance an international business?  Let me count the ways but this webinar, delivered by the famous Dr. Kati Suominen, covers nearly all your options and it's free.  Yes, you read that right.  Here's what you will learn:

• Export credit insurance: Getting paid from a foreign buyer
• Export working capital: Getting money to fulfill international orders
• Factoring: Getting advance payment for your foreign A/R
• Buyer finance: Finding money for your foreign buyer to buy from you
• Growth capital: Getting long-term debt or equity to scale production and international sales

Go here to view the webinar.

You can also access Kati’s accompanying PowerPoint here.

WEGG Wednesday Webinar 2/3 on International Finance

©Women Entrepreneurs GROW Global.  All rights reserved.

What payment and financing issues do you need to consider when exporting?  What are key financial instruments you ought to know of?  Where do you go to secure these instruments?  And what are other special considerations for fueling your international growth with growth capital?  WEGG has got your back.

Join the webinar on Wednesday, February 3rd at 10:00 a.m. Central time to hear Kati Suominen, who just returned from Davos, address these questions and more with her presentation, "Financing Your International Business:  Plan Early and Smart."  The WEGG webinar is no charge but registration is required.  I'll be on the webinar.  See you there.  Register here.

Make the World Your Business

©iStock/iStockdaily

I've always felt you should make the world your business but in this case, Shawn Hessinger, Executive Editor for Small Business Trends, offers a different twist, "Making the World Your Business Playground." He talks about companies that are small in size but operate globally, how communicating via email alone doesn't cut it, how working cross-culturally poses a new set of challenges and how going global brings on challenges that are not so obvious.

A special thanks to Shawn for quoting us and for including our advisory board member Kati Suominen.

Take Another Look At TradeUp Capital Fund

iStock/Thinkstock

A lot of small business owners suffer from lack of capital to grow their business.  If you currently run a global business, I strongly urge you to consider equity crowd funding to boost growth.

As Kati Suominen, founder and CEO of TradeUp says:

Crowdfunding is especially great for small business owners who are already stretched in working to bring clients in the door. The platforms open visibility and access to many more investors than you would ever get to on your own. 

Read the article:  Use Crowdfunding to Fuel Your Global Business

For more information on TradeUp, visit:  http://www.tradeupfund.com

Related articles:

• Does the Size of Your Business Matter for Global Scale?
• Companies Don't Need Scale to Trade Internationally; They Need International Trade to Scale

Today in Global Small Business: Google Can Listen to Multiple Languages At the Same Time

iStock/Thinkstock

What's affecting me, my clients, my colleagues and other global small business owners:

• An interview with Kati Suominen on catalyzing cross-border commerce
• Why Facebook and Twitter are both aiming at the e-commerce market.
• Google can listen to multiple languages at the same time and be able to process them at the same time.
• Why American steel companies, executives and workers want to punish countries for illegal dumping tactics.
• How a trade mission to Mexico opened doors for leaders in business and education.
• Why global trade might become less important.
• Understanding what a FCC certificate is and why it is important.

Does the Size of Your Business Matter for Global Scale?

iStock/Thinkstock

TradeUp (tradeupfund.com) is a new equity crowd funding platform for globalizing companies that was founded by Kati Suominen who has deep expertise in international trade, economics and finance. Companies can raise $100,000 to $20 million in debt or equity through TradeUp.  It enables globalizing companies to connect and transact with a range of accredited investors (angels, superangels, VCs, PE funds, family offices, strategic investors, lenders, etc.).

I interview Kati below on why she started TradeUp, how companies can get on board and whether size matters for global scale.

Read:  Does Size Matter for Global Scale?

Related article:  Companies Don't Need to Scale to Trade Internationally; They Need International Trade To Scale

Companies Don't Need Scale to Trade Internationally; They Need International Trade to Scale

iStock/Thinkstock

Kati Suominen is founder and CEO of TradeUp Capital Fund, a new equity crowdfunding platform for globalizing companies, and of Nextrade Group, LLC, a consulting firm on leading-edge issues in trade. She is also Adjunct Fellow at the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS), and Adjunct Professor at the UCLA Anderson School of Management, and amid authoring her 10th book, on the future of globalization.

In the article, "Trading Up:  Being Small and Going Global," Kati Suominen says:

"No longer do companies need scale to trade; they need trade to scale. The next generation of exporters will be “born global companies.” Investors should pay attention to this outperforming asset class." 

She goes on to say that as the economy rebounds, companies around the world are seeking growth through exports.

Read the entire important article here.

Full disclosure:  I serve as a partner at TradeUp Capital Fund and on the Board of Directors; Kati serves on our Board of Advisors at GlobeTrade.com.  We think she is brilliant.  And you'll agree when you read her article above.