Dec 6, 2021
Hero, not an Intern: Jackson Choyce
How a Childhood Fascination turned into Superstar Talent
When someone thinks of a superhero, what comes to mind? Someone big and strong like the Hulk? Or maybe a hero with super speed, say the Flash? In real life, however, a hero is somebody who is able to significantly impact their field or community in an extraordinary way.
One and a half years ago, when AI Camp decided to train a few teenagers to work for us, it was out of necessity; we did not have the resources to go out and hire developers. The results we got were unexpected, to say the least. In fact, they were outstanding…
What we expected were knowledgable teenage developers who could lend a hand in company development. What we got were heroes; developers, leaders, and innovators that could carry critical missions on their shoulders; they could get things done. We quickly realized what we had produced: not interns or “helpers,” but 10X performers who were self-sustaining and insanely efficient.
In the first edition of our series, Hero, not an Intern, we will dive into one of AI Camp’s greatest superheroes: Jackson Choyce, 19-year-old software genius and freshman at the University of Alberta.
Origins
Jackson’s story is rather unique. It is driven behind his sole enjoyment in software development, pushing him to constantly exceed the limits society has inherently established on people his age.
As a kid, Choyce played around with code and different softwares, making Instagram and Discord bots, testing out the UNIX command line, and making any project that interested him. “It was all on the Internet. I didn’t have any mentors, or anything. I was on the family computer messing around, and you know, when you’re messing around, you’ll eventually break something, and I did break stuff, a lot of times, but learning how to fix it was where I gained some of my experience” This “learn by doing” approach fostered Jackson’s thirst for learning. Through personal projects, a few Udemy courses, YouTube videos and the abundance of information on the Internet, Choyce progressively developed his software skills, especially in devOps.
The point is that Choyce was talented and partially trained in software development. When he joined AI Camp’s Summer Camp, he was already ahead of his peers, and this difference was apparent to Michael Ke Zhang, CEO and Co-Founder of AI Camp.
“That first day I’m there, it’s that ‘Intro to AI’ [lesson] with Michael, and [he] was talking about our experience with computer science in general and previous work experience, and then I mentioned that I had been an IT intern for another company for about a year and a half, at that point, and had a fairly extensive background, especially for my age, in computer science, and he was like, ‘That’s really cool, I’m going to give you a job offer,’ and I just kinda rolled with it” said Choyce.
What Makes Him a Hero?
Mastery
From there, Choyce commenced his AI Camp journey. Starting in a team of three people(including him), he worked five to ten hours a week as an intern during his summer, which gave him exposure to tech development like never before. He planned out lessons and provided camp instructors with the necessary platforms and servers to teach students effectively. His work specialized in data collecting and processing for AI Camp’s website to function smoothly for new subscriptions and memberships. Choyce single-handedly developed and iterated the deployment process that made the deployment of AI Camp’s website entirely automatic, removing almost all chances for human error.
“I iterated upon AI Camp’s deployment process not because anyone told me to or that I had any pre-planned project for it, I just went and did it and it turned out to be great.”
— Jackson Choyce
Choyce was able to create, implement, and iterate upon something that provides value to users, establishing his software prowess.
Autonomy
From Mastery comes autonomy, the ability to be self-sufficient and responsible.
As the year went on, Choyce gained invaluable software experience, learning how to develop a project spec and peer program, so much so, that the following summer of 2021, he decided to go full-time with AI Camp. By then, he was managing over 30 interconnected communication servers and making sure they all functioned smoothly to run AI Camp teaching software. This is a huge responsibility for a 19-year-old, especially while doing it solo, but Choyce once again showcased his capabilities. Simply put, AI Camp could not have run without Choyce.
Leadership
Managing servers wasn’t the only thing Jackson worked on in AI Camp. He became the product lead for AI Camp’s recently released AI on Thumbs mobile app on iOS and Android.
“[Michael] assigned myself and [a few other tech team members] to make this [app] into a reality. It went through several iterations; we changed the entire design of the app a couple times, so quite a lot of work, but in the end, you know, we made it.”
Choyce’s leadership throughout the project remained a cornerstone for the completion of the project.
Choyce’s curiosity and yearn for learning computer science took him to even bigger heights. With AI Camp expanding its vision through Team Tomorrow, Choyce has been at the forefront of AI Camp’s newest venture. He currently leads three other Team Tomorrow members in an exciting contract with Notable Health as his team works to bridge a connection with healthcare and technology.
“This is the first shot we’ve got, and there’s a lot of people potentially waiting behind us, because if we pull this off and pull it off great then other companies will realize, wow, we can just contract this group of teenagers to do full-time professional work from AI Camp.”
— Jackson Choyce
The Mindset
In an interview with Choyce, he said, “If you want something to be improved, whether it be a project or a product, just do it. Don’t ask for permission, ask for forgiveness. If you can deliver value without being asked, that makes you a lot more valuable, and that’s something that’s contributed to me getting to where I am.” Choyce’s mindset is wired to be curious and productive, two keys to the successes he’s experienced in his professional career.
Jackson Choyce has been in love with computer science for as long as he can remember. From breaking his family computer to being irreplaceable at AI Camp to working an external contract at the age of just 19-years-old, Jackson Choyce is not an Intern, or simply a computer science enthusiast; he is a real-life superhero.
