I chose McGill because I was looking for a university that was strong academically and would also provide the most flexible learning opportunities. In particular, I was interested in an excellent research program as I wanted to pursue my graduate studies at the same university.
The Faculty of Engineering, in particular, had a very collaborative environment, with the focus more on how to work together as engineers and less about individual achievement. That was one of the most important things that I learned at McGill and do apply daily in my job.”
What I enjoyed the most about my experience is how McGill focused on learning and critical thinking rather than pure knowledge acquisition. This has helped me throughout my career where instead of just tapping into my existing knowledge and experience, I was motivated to learn new areas and domains (like image-guided neurosurgical tools), tackle unknown problems by understanding the forces at play, and then figuring out ways to address the challenge at hand.
The Faculty of Engineering, in particular, had a very collaborative environment, with the focus more on how to work together as engineers and less about individual achievement. That was one of the most important things that I learned at McGill and do apply daily in my job.
What drew me to a career in tech is that I was always interested in solving large, challenging problems, mainly because of my innate curiosity in understanding how things work. But, over time, this transitioned into understanding how I could help users tackle daily tasks more easily. I figured technology could be a tool to help me explore those possibilities.
I've spent the last few years working in consumer products and helped make entertainment more accessible to the masses. It started with the creation of a low-cost and user-friendly streaming device called Chromecast – that helps users access their entertainment – which I led and launched in 2013 at Google. I then led the development of Google Home and made the Google Assistant available mainstream. Lately, I've been leading the efforts to make video games more accessible to gamers via a cloud gaming service from Google called Stadia.
I remain very interested in giving back to society and the McGill community in terms of my time, expertise, and resources. Especially in these times of great challenge, it's up to all of us to ensure that we help our world get back on its feet.