Chennai Welcomes More MaidSafers

Join us in welcoming even more new starters, all based in the Chennai office. Each joins the MaidSafe team from a variety of backgrounds but is driven by the same purpose — to build the SAFE Network and give users back control of their data.

Vigneshwara, Java Developer

One of my earliest memories of computers goes back to more than 15 years ago when I was in primary school. I knew I liked it the moment I knew I could play games on them.
I started using the Internet through the good old Internet Explorer just to see if I could play more games online.

For the seven year old me, there wasn’t much of a distinction between the Internet and Google. They both seemed the same to me. Until I was in my early teens when I understood for the first time what the Internet actually was. Only then did I discover the world of Wikipedia, Facebook, YouTube, etc.

The Internet made my generation very different compared to previous ones. Friends were always a couple of clicks away and I preferred to stay home connected to the Internet as I grew older.

As a kid, I would always envy those who had the latest software like Windows OS and would bug my dad to upgrade with futile results. But then, when I was in 9th grade did I come across something called Linux. I was amazed because they were just giving an OS away for free when people paid thousands of rupees for broken OS like Vista! However, I was not able to experiment and explore the digital world until I could afford to have a personal PC when I joined University.

During my schooling, I was fortunate enough to pick Computer Science as an elective and it introduced me to the world of programming. I was able to program with just basic knowledge and I wasn’t required to take exams where I just had to barf stuff from textbooks (although this wasn’t the case with most of the other subjects courtesy of the Indian Education System).

In University and for some time before that, I became increasingly aware of the problems plaguing the Internet and its users. It didn’t take me a lot of time to figure that the most important tool of the 21st Century, the Internet, was a product of the previous century. It was broken and couldn’t keep up with necessities of today.

Today’s Internet has evolved so much that even its inventors couldn’t have fathomed what it is today. With millions more joining the digital world, this is not just a matter of improving on a luxury. We havea dire need to reconfigure the Internet, fundamentally alter the way it works and take away control from organizations who seek to control the Internet for their private gain.

And what a better way to fix the broken Internet than to work for an organization like MaidSafe. Ever since I heard of it (fhanks to the HBO Silicon Valley series), I’m convinced that a new distributed decentralized internet is the way forward.

And I truly consider it an honour and gift to be part of the Web 3.0 movement.

Yogeshwar, Client Libs team

Hi, it is an immense pleasure for me to be a part of one of the most ambitious projects of the Internet era. To say a few things about myself, I would consider myself to be an aspiring Data Scientist. I was introduced to this field during my freshman year. I soon discovered a profound passion towards this domain as it had suited my natural individualities of playfulness and exploring. After all, Data Science is all about fiddling around and finding hidden patterns inside data.

At first, I started coding projects on my own and started participating in events around my academic studies. Soon enough, I found myself being useful to the industry. I started doing internships; firstly at the Institute of Technology Management & Research-HTC, Chennai. I led to a team of four at that timebuilding a Voice-Bot for Workflow Automation on Vehicle Loans.

My second industry experience was at Nokia Solutions and Networks, Chennai. Yes! The Man, The Myth, The Legend kinda company we all were once a customer of. I was again in charge of leading the team to work on various projects for the organization — including Object Detection using Neural Nets, Environment Recognition and Danger Alarm Systems using Computer Vision.

After successfully developing these projects, the Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR), Chennai, was my next stop whereI was Research Intern for six months, during which I had the chance to work on Fractal Analytics.

And then came the enlightenment — MaidSafe.

After a series of hackathons and interviews, I was delighted to be picked to join as a Front-end Developer. MaidSafe is the place where I came to really learn about the dark secrets and the cold wars that happen behind the scenes over the internet for control. I love being a rebel with a cause — and it’s a crucial cause:providing Privacy, Security and Freedom for everyone. So I just couldn’t control the excitement to begin development for the project that I believe will save the Internet. Cheers!:grin:

Mohamed, UX/UI Designer

I was born and raised in Pudukkottai, Tamil Nadu, India. I’m currently in my final semester of College pursuing Computer Science degree from Anna University, Chennai, India. Right from my childhood, I have always liked perfection in everything. I like to look at the world from a different perspective and always wonder how nature seems flawless. Being an only child, drawing always helped me pass the time apart from studies. I started drawing many things in my own unique style which laid the foundation of my creative career. I love listening to classical music and play thepiano. Classical music has helped me to think deeply and differently.

“Creativity is just connecting things. When you ask creative people how they did something, they feel a little guilty because they didn’t really do it, they just saw something. It seemed obvious to them after a while.” — Steve Jobs

I’m really inspired by Steve Jobs. The way he saw things differently and his love of perfection has influenced me greatly. I started designing as a hobby in my college days. In my sophomore year, I made some friends in the senior year who were very good at coding. But amongst them was this one senior who was completely unique with his designing skills. That had a great impact on me and tempted me into giving design a try. Learning some of the basics from YouTube, I started designing simple illustrations within days. I learned many things about design before entering my Junior year.

My friends started attempting “Coding Challenges” which inspired me to start “The Daily UI Challenge”. I designed illustrations, UI Screens, some small animations everyday and posted on social media to get some feedback. I received a lot of criticism initially but within months I got some real appreciation. I got many projects from my friends, relatives and even from my college. With this as my initiation, I started learning User Experience design and how important they are to any design.

So, this led me to take up the interview for the position of designer at MaidSafe when they came recruiting to our college. When I landed the job I was thrilled because the ideas and goals of MaidSafe are unique and represent a way forward for the Internet. It seems like the fulfillment of a childhood dream. I have only been part of the team for a little while but even this short duration has taught me so much. I greatly look forward to more amazing things as part of this team.