Paving the Future for the Internet of Things

Erick Chang, Chemical Engineer turned App Developer

I majored in Chemical Engineering and graduated with a Bachelor’s in 2011.  With no interest in getting a higher degree, I jumped right into the work force and was part of an engineering team at a well-known pharmaceutical company developing drugs for cancer treatment.  I was at the company for about 4 years and then last year, I decided to leave and become an Android developer at a start-up in Brooklyn making apps.  Thus far, I have made contributions to apps for different companies ranging from small start-ups to multi-million dollar corporations.

Since sophomore year of high school, I knew to some degree that I was going to do engineering because “Problem solving through math and science” was what I had a knack for.  Pursuing a PhD, however, was out of the question for me since I was not a big fan of the idea of extending my years in an academic setting.

Operating systems, like Android, are quickly paving the future of a world of internet connected everything (internet of things or IoT is a buzzword we hear a lot) and the line separating a computer from a non-computer is going to become very blurry.  A smartphone is really no longer a phone – it is most definitely a pocket computer.  Watches are the next thing that are getting a promotion to computer-status and there is more to come.  It is a future I am excited to go all-in for and I hope to create products that bring a lot of value – either as entertainment or functional – to people’s lives.