Despite the fact that brain-machine interface (BMI) has a history of nearly 100 years, there is no denying that we still have little knowledge about human brains. The technology is still at its initial stage and applications are, therefore, limited. Having chosen brain science as his starting point for research and entrepreneurship, Bicheng Han founded BrianCo that develops brain-machine interface (BMI) technology products. As a scientist entrepreneur, Han thinks a company must be operated with a scientifically rigorous attitude. This is because entrepreneurship is not only about commercial success but should also aim to improve social welfare with the most cutting-edge technologies and provide children, disadvantaged groups, and those who are most in need of help.

Aug. 16th, 2020

It might not be true, but many say that being a PhD narrows your career choices. During the PhD studies, many of us have been swinging between the academic path and other paths such as industry, start-up, quant, etc., especially when one is not receiving expected academic achievements. However, it is never easy to give up the academic path considering the time and efforts we have put in our PhD study, and sometimes it is simply our pride that prevents us from quitting academia. As a PhD, Yuzheng has rich and diverse experience. He was involved in start-ups and consulting during his PhD study, and had experience in top consulting and tech companies. Currently, he is a senior data scientist at Facebook while running his YouTube channel. His story will inspire us to make our own career pathfinding strategies.

Aug. 29th, 2020

Management consulting is the practice of helping organizations to improve their performance. The Big Three or MBB refers to the name colloquially given to the world's three largest strategy consulting firms by revenue, namely McKinsey, Boston Consulting Group (BCG) and Bain & Company. In WBA S1E3, we are honored to have two incoming consultants (Alex from McKinsey and Hanzhang from BCG) as our guest speakers. This talk will be divided into three sections: a round-table discussion by MBB consultants, a mock interview session, followed by a Q&A session. In the first session (~20 min), Alex Lee and Hanzhang Pei will introduce their experience in navigating their way into MBB. The discussion will be led by Elvis Cao and Bihe Chen, and will also include a resume critique section (~5 min). The second session (~50 min) will be centered around two mock interviews. The third session for Q&A will last ~20 min.

Sept. 13th, 2020

As Program Director at the National Research Council of Canada, Phil leads a 7-year $57M collaborative research program to develop disruptive technologies to decarbonize Canada. Before joining the NRC, Phil was on the cusp of starting a cleantech company as a finalist in the Carbon XPRIZE. Before that, he was on the academic fast-track, having published multiple papers in Science and Nature during his PhD at the University of Toronto. Join this talk as Phil describes his career journey and learn about approaches and techniques that he’s learned to get ahead. Phil will talk about what it takes to publish in high-impact journals, why starting a cleantech company is so hard, and what working at a national lab is like.

Sept. 25th, 2020