Newbie developers, meet your Build MC

If you are not attending Microsoft Build 2018 in person, you’ll be able to attend virtually by joining the free digital gathering — Microsoft Build Live — where you can check out live keynotes and select sessions, watch on-demand sessions, interact with other developers and Microsoft experts, and create and share your custom playlists and favorites.

What’s more, this year’s Build Live offering will feature five top developers from the Windows Developer community, each known as a Build MC. Their time on the ground at Microsoft Build will result in tailored online experiences of the conference for developers around the world who can’t attend themselves.

Read on to learn more about Hrishi Suresh, Build MC for up-and-coming developers.

Merging medicine and app technology

The way you walk says a lot about you — how you carry yourself can indicate your level of confidence, or it might show if you’re stressed, anxious, or relaxed. And, thanks to an innovative use of technology, it can also shine a light on certain undiagnosed diseases like Parkinson’s.

That’s the idea behind the Stride app (originally named NeuroGate), the brainchild of medical student and developer Hrishi Suresh.

Stride uses video footage and the Kinect sensor to analyze the wearer’s gait. From that data, it can diagnose neurodegenerative diseases — all without a single scan or x-ray.

“The initial idea was to demonstrate that it’s possible to capture sensor data that’s detailed enough, and use AI technology to correlate that data to disease predictions,” says Hrishi. “And that’s what we accomplished.”

Stride — which was developed purely on the Windows platform — won the championship at Microsoft’s Imagine Cup Canada 2017 and placed fourth in the world finals.

But Hrishi isn’t resting on these laurels. On the contrary, he’s looking to push the app forward by combining his passions for AI, sensor technology, and machine learning with his medical background.

Once he graduates from medical school in the coming weeks, he’ll start a neurosurgical residency. His hobby? “Trying to understand the brain and how it works.”

”I’m very interested in the neurosciences aspect of medicine,” Hrishi says. “Having all that data, and analyzing it using machine learning will really change the field of medicine. I’m really passionate about bringing these incredible advances to the medical field, not just for a technical coolness factor, but because I think they really will save lives.”

Heading to Seattle as a Build MC

Hrishi is a self-taught developer, who’s attending Microsoft Build for the first time. As a Build MC, he looks forward to learning from his more experienced peers and sharing his developer journey and spirit of entrepreneurship with other up-and-coming developers.

“The fact that I’m self-taught, as are many other new developers like me, demonstrates great possibilities,” he says. “It shows that with all the technical tools and support that’s out there, you can take an idea, get the resources you need, acquire the developer skills, and bring your idea to life. You can really make a difference.”

The unlimited world of developing

To him, developing is “the truest expression of absolute creativity.” He goes on, “You can make anything you want happen. You’re not constrained by any sorts of rules that you may have in the real world. If you can think it, you can make it happen. That’s what drives me.”

His interest in and knowledge of the medical field has allowed him to integrate consumer technologies into this area. He was able to see a new application for the technology through the lens of medicine. It’s something he advises other up-and-coming developers to do.

“You should keep an eye out for everything,” he says. “If you’re passionate about development and something else, the combination of those two things can lead to the most incredible idea and the most powerful application of you as a person expressing your creativity. You never know what kind of technologies will come out that will help realize something you think is currently impossible.”

AI and machine learning are key areas of interest for Hrishi because they’re changing the amount of data that can be collected and influencing how it can be applied. This has huge implications, Hrishi says, not only for the medical field, but beyond.

Cloud computing is another area of focus for him. “I’m particularly interested in the development of AI and distributed AI technologies using the cloud,” he says. “I think as well as helping me as a developer, it will change computing as a whole. It’s really going to change the world.

RSVP to Microsoft Build Live here. Then, up-and-coming developers can follow Hrishi online during the event here.