Meet Matheus Guimarães, Senior Developer Advocate at AWS.

Matheus boasts over 20 years of experience in the industry, ranging from developer to CTO and everything in between. He remains as enthusiastic as ever about the possibilities and the role that technology plays in bridging our present with our future.

In this episode, we talked about how participating in top-tier hackathons not only broadens your understanding of game-changing technology but also deepens your self-awareness. According to Matheus, there's no better path to self-knowledge and personal growth than through hackathons. Participating in these events can also ignite new motivation and aspirations within yourself.

Meet Alex Astrum, Developer Relations at Google.

Alex is a software architect, a hackathon enthusiast, public speaker, traveler, and musician.

He has 20+ years of industry experience, including web development, software engineering, community building, management, and entrepreneurship.

In this episode, we talk about what characterizes high-class hackathons and aspects of judging, mentoring, and tech support.

Meet Our Guest: Iida Loukkaanhuhta, CEO of Junction.

Junction is the powerhouse behind world-class hackathons hosted throughout the year across the globe. Junction started in 2015 in Finland and grew to be one of the largest hackathon organizers in Europe. They host events with over a thousand participants and teams coming from all over the world to visit Finland at the darkest period of the year—November. They have also expanded their hackathons globally.

In this episode, you’ll hear their CEO, Iida, share how it all started and where they are heading with their "Impossible Is Nothing, We Can Do It" spirit.

Meet Our Guest: Henrik Johnsson, Principal Software Engineer, Amazon Web Services.

Henrik has over 30 years of experience in software engineering, founded several startups in Sweden, and moved to the USA after his project Tora was acquired by Quest Software in 2004.

He has worked extensively with database tools, mobile, and backend development, and is currently a Principal Software Engineer at Amazon Web Services focusing on scalable cloud services.

In this episode, we talked about hackathons before the name "hackathon" was invented. The so-called “Demo Scene” with “Demo Days” was huge in the Nordics and gathered thousands of developers. The events were very self-organized; people slept in their sleeping bags, brought their own lamps, and music equipment to the parties…

Meet Manan, Upadhyay, Senior Product Manager, AWS

Manan is a former engineer who now excels as a Product Manager at AWS. A significant passion of his is developing AI products that optimize user-friendly experiences. He's currently leading a team at AWS, developing a system that tailors how the AWS website, emails, and SMS communicate with its users. Outside of work, he enjoys sailing on the Hudson River in the summer and snowboarding in the winter.

In this episode, we talked about his journey, including hackathons at Deloitte, the hackathon culture at AWS, the similarities between innovation sprints and hackathons, and how hackathons have affected his leadership style and thoughts on building MVPs (Minimum Viable Products). We also discussed how participating in hackathons could improve your growth mindset, to make it easier to go from "thinking of doing it" to actually doing it. Additionally, we talked about his experiences judging hackathons!

Veliswa Boya is a Senior Developer Advocate at Amazon Web Services (AWS). Veliswa’s tech background includes software development, business and systems analysis, solutions architecture, and cloud engineering. Veliswa loves technology and its ability to transform lives. She uses her deep understanding of cloud and ability to communicate this understanding to inspire and lead developer communities who are embarking on their own cloud journeys. Veliswa is passionate about mentoring the next generation of technical talent, and shares her experience on this topic with other technology leaders whenever she gets an opportunity to do so. As a strategist for developer advocacy efforts in the Sub-Saharan Africa, Veliswa leads ground-breaking initiatives that make cloud technologies accessible to everyone, with the ultimate goal of fostering an inclusive and innovative tech ecosystem.

Sumon Mal is a visionary leader and AI enthusiast, currently shaping the future of technology as the VP of Engineering at Sony Entertainment. With an impressive track record of leadership across industry giants such as Paytm, Tesco, Expedia, Amazon, and Samsung, Sumonhas consistently driven the creation of high-performance, scalable systems that power some of the world’s most innovative businesses.

A dynamic force in the tech world, Sumon has built B2B and B2C products from inception, pioneering engineering roadmaps and sustainable processes that have propelled organizations into new realms of success. His expertise spans global cross-functional alliances, and his passion for AI is matched only by his dedication to building future-proof systems that push the boundaries of what's possible in technology.

Beverly Wright, PhD, CAP serves as Vice President of Data Science & AI at Wavicle Data Solutions, and Director for Data Science & AI at University of Georgia’s Executive Education. 

With a career spanning over 30 years across utilities, financial services, telecommunications, healthcare, consulting, and academia, Beverly has led numerous teams and established herself as a data science & AI thought leader, executive professor, national speaker, podcast host, and a trailblazing advocate for data science for good. 

She also serves as Board Chair for TAG Data Science & AI, Board Member for Georgia Institute of Technology’s Master of Science in Analytics program, Past President of the Analytics Society at INFORMS, and podcast host for TAG Data Talk.

Beverly has developed or helped with hackathons at Georgia Institute of Technology University of South Carolina QTM Emory Spelman College Morehouse College Clark Atlanta University (and helped w/ Purdue University The University of Texas at Arlington Arizona State University and others); several proprietary engagements for prior clients, and organizations including Technology Association of Georgia.

Lavanya Ramani is Director of Engineering in Palo Alto Networks leading genAI, Co-pilot initiatives in the network security business group. 

Lavanya is passionate about diversity and equity initiatives and represents PAN in conferences like Afrotech. She is part of the Women in Technology, Australia Chapter spreading awareness for women returning to work, and co-chair of the Women in Product Community leadership council in PAN.

Ali Mustafa is a Senior Developer Advocate at Postman. He is committed to supporting new developers by transforming the way they learn and build their careers.

He has made a significant impact by teaching in over 200 colleges across 38 cities worldwide, reaching more than 100,000 students with his courses and workshops.

He has trained professionals at major companies like Rakuten and Deloitte and shared his insights on platforms like TEDx. 

Through his courses on topics such as machine learning and full-stack development, he equips students to meet the changing demands of the tech industry.