"When ChatGPT came out, Google started to focus more on LLMs and opened up more opportunities in the company to switch roles. Similar to others, I became more interested in exploring area. A few months ago, I switched to an AI role. Now I'm a software engineer working on AI safety. Fundamentally, it's similar to my last role, but instead of building software, I'm building LLMs, which requires data, training, and compute."
"Initially, I didn't think I could get a role working in AI. I didn't have the right credentials and when I spoke with other teams, I felt a disconnect because I hadn't even touched the products, let alone experimentedwith creating them. I was able to transition because I was at the right company at a time when demand was high - but also because I decided to participate in a hackathon."
Emrick Donadei began at Google in a role unrelated to AI and became interested in large language models after ChatGPT spurred company focus on LLMs. He transitioned to an AI safety software-engineer role by building practical experience in an internal seven-day hackathon that provided hands-on work with tools, data, training, and compute. He initially lacked credentials and product experience, but hackathon participation, networking, and sharing his project inside the company opened opportunities. Previous hackathon wins at Amazon in 2018–2019 helped him grow confidence. The hackathon forced his foot in the door and enabled a complete career switch into AI.
Read at Business Insider
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