Creating Empowering Tech Communities with Dr. Natalie Lao
Kicking off Season 3 of the Debugged Podcast, host Medha Gupta interviews Dr. Natalie Lao, Executive Director of the App Inventor Foundation. Dr. Lao shares her journey from MIT undergrad to her current role, emphasizing her passion for education and mentorship. She discusses her involvement in the MIT App Inventor project and her work with UNESCO to promote computational thinking worldwide, playing a pivotal role in crafting AI frameworks. She expanded computer science education internationally, with notable efforts in Mumbai, India, and Hong Kong. Tune in to hear Dr. Lao's inspiring story and her mission to empower individuals, creating an inclusive environment in technology!
To kick off the season, host Medha Gupta chats with Dr. Natalie Lao, Executive Director of the App Inventor Foundation. Sharing her experience as an undergraduate at MIT, Dr. Lao discussed how her passion for education led her to computer science and AI. She recognized the mentors who guided her along the way, and touched on what it’s like to build transformative mentor-mentee relationships of your own.
Dr. Lao goes on to share the story of how she first discovered the MIT App Inventor project as a means of showing students their potential to become active creators of technology, and how she continued to get more and more involved from that point on. Reflecting on everything her roles since have taught her, she notes the work she is most proud of, and her key takeaways in teaching computer science.
Finally, serving as an Expert on Mission for UNESCO today, she touches on the importance of computational thinking taking part in curricula all around the world, and her team’s work towards developing an AI competency framework for all students of UN member states. She closes the interview by sharing the one piece of advice she would have wished to had as an 18 year old college freshman.
Dr. Natalie Lao received her B.S., M.Eng., and Ph.D. in Electrical Engineering and Computer Science from MIT's Computer Science and Artificial Intelligence Lab. She was a co-creator and instructor for MIT’s Deep Learning Practicum course, and led the trajectory team for the MIT Inclusive AI Literacy and Learning project. Tune in to Episode 1 of Debugged Season 3 wherever you get your podcasts to hear Dr. Lao’s inspiring story, and how she carries out her mission “to empower anyone, anywhere, of any age to create meaningful technologies that can transform their lives and the lives of people around them” in her everyday work.