Tailai Wang: Software Developer And A Superb Leader

It’s nice to hear that there are young people who constantly improve themselves, work on new skills, and comprehend learning as a permanent process. 

What is even nicer is when they put their knowledge at the service of the community, and they work not only for their own success but for the betterment of all of us. One of those young people is Tailai Wang (tailaiwang.me), an aspiring and promising software developer.

Who Is Tailai Wang And What’s His Story?

Tailai is a 3B Computer Science and Business Administration Double Degree student at the University of Waterloo. In his own words, he’s a “software developer, student leader, and a change-maker.” 

He is also fluent in Chinese, English, and French. And when it comes to technical skills, he is proficient in programming languages such as Python, Swift, C/C++, JavaScript, Java, Scheme, and SQL. 

What is more, Tailai Wang is not afraid to take the initiative. Now, what projects has Tailai participated in? 

Well, there is one project that needs to be mentioned in the first place. And it’s called MomsOverMatter. MomsOverMatter is a free medical information tool; more precisely, a questionnaire about new mothers’ feelings. It exports surveys to doctors, halving administration time and timely helping postpartum depression treatment. 

Young Tailai also led project ideation and design of a web application Lyricalculus that evaluates song lyrics using ML and NLP, and To The Moon (analyzing market sentiment through aggregating stock discussion posts in a data pipeline).

An Aspiring Software Developer, Young Leader And Advisor 

Tailai’s passion is not only attending but also organizing hackathons, events in which people meet to engage in collaborative computer programming. He found himself in the roles of participant, co-captain, and international competitor. Tailai also led 50+ students as academic captain on Laurier Case Team. In addition, Tailai Wang was involved in the organization of MasseyHacks, Canada’s first-ever high school hackathon.

This young software developer was even the logistics team lead for Canada’s biggest hackathon, Hack the North, serving 1500+ participants a year! 

Hack the North is the event that offers a variety of tech talks, workshops, and career sessions, welcoming hackers of different skill levels. It encourages hackers to collaborate and build something they are proud of in only 36 hours. This hackathon provides resources for them to create unique software or hardware solutions. 

Since he is so experienced in this field, advising co-founders in fundraising and managing budgets was entrusted to him too. And he was helping organize a team of 40 students to execute programming for 1500+ participants. He does all this “to meet inspiring people and develop cool stuff.”

Getting The Most Out Of A Hackathon

In his blog post The Beginner’s Guide to Online Hackathons Tailai shared some tips on how to make the most of an online hackathon: 

• Form a team before the event. That way you can brainstorm and come up with ideas ahead of time.
• Realize what your expectations from the event are. And do your research!
• Participate in workshops and activities.
• Even though it is a virtual meeting, don’t get so engrossed in the work that you forget to stretch and hydrate. Also, give your brain a break to show even better results afterward.

Prestigious Achievements

This software developer has many reasons to be proud of himself. With his grades, his commitment to the community and being at the head of the organization of various projects , Tailai earned the title of the best student as well as a prestigious scholarship:

• Deloitte Young Tech Student of the Year – This prize is awarded to standout young students under the age of 30 who have demonstrated a proven commitment to the Windsor-Essex local tech community through exceptional scholarship, and exemplary leadership and community involvement.

• J. Wesley Graham National Scholarship, awarded to University of Waterloo undergraduate students with an entrance average above 95%. 

Blogging About What Matters Most 

In addition to all the above, Tailai likes blogging and is devoted to writing. 

In his blog, he covers subjects that matter to him. There are more relaxing topics, like fitness and getting into shape after months of being sedentary. Then there’s more serious topics, such as how to motivate people to achieve their full potential. Finally, Tailai writes socially engaged texts, speaking about war as “the glorified waste of human life,” and the negative consequences of racism and normalization of anti-Asian rhetoric.

In one of his blog posts, Tailai says for himself: 

“I’ve always been a proactive leader in my communities. Through student council, education activism, and charity work, I’ve dedicated my energy and efforts into youth. (…)  It is our generational responsibility to create a better society than the one we were born in.”

In his blog section, you can also find a collection of his favorite quotes and passages from the literature that influenced him. Obviously, Tailai is a person who draws inspiration and growth from books. 

“The intrinsic value of reading is created by a story’s ability to strengthen your worldview, challenge your imagination, and to inspire your mind,” Tailai says.

Wrapping Up

Tailai’s work experience as a software developer consists of being an iOS Engineer intern at the Sonova Innovation Lab and a BTSS Analyst for the Production Engineering team at Questrade. 

But what does the future hold? Tailai is finishing his internship at Tile (new app architecture and AR features) and then he is ready for new challenges. He is currently searching for SWE, Product Management, and Management Consulting internships for 2023. With a resume like this, we reckon he has many more successes ahead of him.

We are honored when such promising young people choose a .ME for their domain. So pleased to see you accomplishing great things, Tailai!