Molly Larkin: FourthBrain | The Data Canteen #10

In this episode, Chris Sanchez and I have a fantastic conversation with Molly Larkin, Director of Operations at FourthBrain. If you haven’t heard of it, FourthBrain is an awesome bootcamp that’s backed by Andrew Ng’s AI Fund. FourthBrain offers hybrid online programs for budding machine learning engineers.

The Data Canteen’s parent organization, Veterans in Data Science and Machine Learning (VDSML), is excited to announce that we have partnered with FourthBrain to support and encourage veterans in pursuit of careers in machine learning. All of our community members are eligible for a $500 discount toward the FourthBrain program of their choice. Additionally, one of our members will win a FourthBrain scholarship worth $3,000!

So, if you’re interested in becoming a machine learning engineer, listen to this episode and make sure to submit your VDSML FourthBrain scholarship application by September 17th 2021!

 

FEATURED GUEST:

Name: Molly Larkin

Email: info@fourthbrain.ai

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/mollyalarkin/

 

SUPPORT THE DATA CANTEEN (LIKE PBS, WE'RE LISTENER SUPPORTED!):

Donate: https://vetsindatascience.com/support-join

 

EPISODE LINKS:

FourthBrain’s Machine Learning Programs: https://www.fourthbrain.ai/curriculum

Apply for VDSML’s FourthBrain Scholarship: https://vetsindatascience.com/vdsml-scholarship

The Batch Newsletter: https://read.deeplearning.ai/the-batch/

Machine Learnings: https://subscribe.machinelearnings.co/

MLOps Community: https://mlops.community/

A Modern, Scalable Approach to Retooling the U.S. Workforce by 2025: https://vetsindatascience.com/articles/a-modern-scalable-approach-to-retooling-the-us-workforce-by-2025

 

PODCAST INFO:

Host: Ted Hallum

Website: https://vetsindatascience.com/thedatacanteen

Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-data-canteen/id1551751086

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCaNx9aLFRy1h9P22hd8ZPyw

Stitcher: https://www.stitcher.com/show/the-data-canteen

 

CONTACT THE DATA CANTEEN:

Voicemail: https://www.speakpipe.com/datacanteen

 

VETERANS IN DATA SCIENCE & MACHINE LEARNING:

Website: https://vetsindatascience.com/

Join the Community on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/groups/8989903/

 

OUTLINE:

00:00:07​ - Introduction

00:02:46 – What is FourthBrain & how did it get started?

00:03:53 – What distinguishes FourthBrain from other data science-related bootcamps?

00:04:22 – How does FourthBrain define the role of machine learning engineer?

00:06:01 – What makes FourthBrain a good fit for veterans?

00:08:26 – Molly Larkin’s story/background

00:13:51 – The expected demand signal for machine learning engineers

00:22:30 - How has the demand signal for machine learning skills evolved over the past five years?

00:25:07 – FourthBrain’s only prerequisite requirement

00:28:53 – FourthBrain’s Python skill assessment

00:36:01 – A summary of the FourthBrain program experience

00:39:27 – FourthBrain’s online hybrid synchronous/asynchronous format

00:41:47 – Future funding & aid for veterans

00:45:12 – FourthBrain’s project-based curriculum

00:50:24 – FourthBrain’s emphasis on technical soft-skills

00:52:24 – How to become the non-existent machine learning total package that employers are looking for

00:55:14 – What types of students naturally excel when going through FourthBrain’s programs

00:58:22 – What types of students tend to struggle when going through FourthBrain’s programs

01:00:58 – FourthBrain outcomes

01:05:49 – MLOps Community

01:14:36 – How is FourthBrain looking to expand its program offerings over the next three years

01:24:32 – Molly’s AI & ML resource recommendations

01:26:14 – Molly’s preferred methods of contact