(Computer Science BSc, 1977)
We studied AI in the 70s and 80s, but we could only theorize what AI could do and should look like; we couldn’t develop it as we didn’t have advanced tools to build it. Therefore, AI is the one thing that has always fascinated me in my lifetime.
Why did you choose to study BSc Computer Science at Queen Mary? Computer Science appealed to me because during the 70s computer technology was part of a rapidly emerging and fast evolving industry, and I wanted to be part of this movement and excitement. Queen Mary College (QMC), as it was formerly known, was one of the first colleges in the UK that had UNIX computers using the ‘C’ programming language which were created by AT&T Bell Labs, which in terms of high tech would be akin to a combination of today’s Apple, Microsoft and Dell. QMC also had Digital Equipment Corporation (DEC) PDP machines (Dell Computers acquired DEC through mergers that took place in the 1990’s) which were state of the art computers which didn’t exist anywhere else in the world apart from the US at the time of my applying. So, the combination of UNIX computers, ‘C’ programming and PDP machines was very attractive to me because they spoke of the future and positioned QMC as a leading authority in computer studies. I was also really attracted by the diverse staff body, which included lecturers from Berkeley, California! Tell me a bit about student life. What was it like to study during the 70s? I really enjoyed my time at QMC – maybe a bit too much in my first year – but I became more and more focused as the years went on and I aced all my final year modules as I found a real passion and drive for my degree. It felt exciting because the professors were learning at the same time as the students – we were all pioneers in computing back then because this was a much smaller niche area of study in the early 70s. I was a very active student outside of my studies and I took part in a lot of sports through the Students’ Union, including hockey and football. QMC had two decent hockey teams and we performed well in a lot of tournaments, so it was really rewarding to be part of this community and to blow off some steam outside of the classroom. From an economic standpoint, the 70s was a tough period for work and employment. QMC had a very large student contingent from Singapore, Greece, and some of the Middle Eastern countries seeing as they needed the fees generated by international students. This meant that QMC was a real melting pot back then for different people, cultures, and ways of thinking. It was very enriching to study in such an environment.
The professors were learning at the same time as the students – we were all pioneers in computing back then because this was a much smaller niche area of study in the early 70s.
Tell us about your career since leaving Queen Mary. In my third and final year of study, I signed up for a one-year project studying databases which involved programming databases in UNIX computers on PDP machines. This laid the foundations for my early career as knowledge of these computing systems helped me land and flourish in my first job post-graduation. My first job was based in the UK and the area that I worked in allowed me to see a lot of different things, including telecommunication systems – an area which really appealed to me. I really got into writing code in ‘C’ on UNIX, and this then allowed me to land a job with an American company called Chase Manhattan Bank (now one of the World’s biggest banks) installing a telecommunications system so that they could run foreign exchange transactions between New York and London and between New York and Hong Kong. Chase Manhattan Bank happened to be working on UNIX and PDP systems, so my previous experience was essential to this role. I was tasked with helping to send digital data over analogue lines at data rates 100 times the amount of information compared to anybody else. This was the first – but not the last – time that I recognised the power of information and technology. When I hit mid-career aged 31, I launched my first start-up which I sold in 1997. I then became a venture capitalist for 7-8 years and I built a lot of companies in fibre switching, enterprise software and semi-conductors. This was then followed by a period of entering and coming back out of retirement and most recently I consult with US Fortune 500 companies on emerging technology areas such as Big Data and AI. What advice would you give to people wanting to start their own business in today’s technological climate? If you have an idea, write it down, get it documented and get it patented. More and more people are establishing careers in the technology industry and coming up with new ideas, so if you have something original then you need to run with it. How has your degree and your time at Queen Mary helped shape your career?Before coming to university I had zero people or conversational skills, but QMC gave me the confidence to flourish, especially when I was plunged into the deep end of my career. I always knew I could fall back on the strong foundation of knowledge I gained at QMC at the hands of lecturers who were experts in their field. More specifically, my projects at QMC helped me when I was first exposed to concepts around Big Data (back then called Networked Databases) and AI (through Simulation Languages) because I had studied both in my final year.
The tech industry is always evolving and it is getting more and more complex. It is great to work in an industry that doesn’t stand still!
What have you loved most about working in the tech industry?It is always evolving and it is getting more and more complex. It is great to work in an industry that doesn’t stand still! What are some technological innovations that you find particularly interesting? We studied AI in the 70s and 80s, but we could only theorize what AI could do and should look like; we couldn’t develop it as we didn’t have advanced tools to build it. Therefore, AI is the one thing that has always fascinated me in my lifetime. I think it is really important as it has the potential to take over a lot of what we do, especially as working populations in the Western industrialised nations are shrinking generally – AI systems and robots can replace humans in this sense. The danger is, what do we do next? Do we lose our humanity? Do we lose our brains? There is a moral side of AI that we haven’t worked out just yet, but which we must. We must maintain our morality as humans because computers and applications like gene/bioengineering do not understand morality. And we must adopt strict governance and policies around the application of AI e.g., in biomedical engineering because we will one day have the power to eradicate disease, but to also create new diseases which could potentially wipe out humanity. Telecommunications has always been an area of tech that I have kept up with. We have 6G coming out soon and one day we’ll have quantum communications. AI will leverage such communications to the extent that it will become almost impossible to distinguish between the virtual world and the physical world that we live in. Lastly, now that you have retired, what do you like to do in your spare time? I’m an avid reader - I read a lot of technical journals - and I also watch a lot of movies and enjoy spending time with my family. I find reading the Bible a very informative and meditative thing to do; there are a lot of hidden lessons in there if you look hard enough.I also feel passionate about helping current Computer Science students at Queen Mary in any way that I can – it is important to inspire the next generation and I wish everyone at Queen Mary all the best.
If you would like to get in touch with(Name) or engage him in your work, please contact the Alumni Engagement team at alumni@qmul.ac.uk.