Recognized for achievements as an R&D scientists in ‘machine learning’, a core part of AI
In just one year since working at Silicon Valley, chosen as Apple’s ‘Best Performer’
“Challenging the global stage... Key is to improve expertise and communication skills”
[October 21, 2019]
What kind of people are the scientists working in Silicon Valley, USA, which is famous as the world’s most advanced technology research complex? There is a Korean who is recognized for his abilities among the best and brightest researchers. He is receiving even more attention as it is in the AI (artificial intelligence) field that is one of the hottest issues these days.
He is Dr. Lim Woo-sang (34) who graduated from the YU Department of Physics. Dr. Lim is working side-by-side with world-renowned scientists and engineers at the Apple headquarters in Silicon Valley, USA. He was recently chosen as the best performer who is chosen by Apple from those who had the highest achievements in technological innovation and performance improvement. After joining the company in September, he was recognized from his local colleagues in just one year.
Dr. Lim works with the artificial intelligence sector that is receiving attention as a core technology for the future. He is a Senior Applied Machine Learning Scientist that conducts R&D on machine learning, which is a core field of AI and is in currently the tech lead of his team.
Dr. Lim graduated from the YU Department of Physics in 2011 and he earned his master’s in mathematical science and his PhD in computing at KAIST. After earning his PhD, he worked at the Georgia Institute of Technology as a post-doctorate researcher until the summer of 2018 and then joined Apple in September of 2018. In 2016, he became the first Korean to be selected as a Google PhD Fellow in the machine learning sector for his research achievements in his PhD course and had received attention from global companies from early on. While working at Georgia Institute of Technology, he received many offers from multiple global companies, being recognized for his capacities as a scientist.
Dr. Lim stated his motivation for applying to Apple saying, “When I was finishing my post-doctorate researcher activities, I had the urge to apply what I researched and studied to the entire world. I was interested in taking on the challenge of having a positive effect on Apple users around the world by improving AI algorithm performance, and that is why I chose to joint his company. I wanted to test my capacities at Silicon Valley where the brightest scientists are gathered.”
Dr. Lim was not interested in overseas employment or joining a global giant like Apple from the start. He said that the fundamentals he learned at YU as an undergraduate became his foundation. Dr. Kim said, “I double-majored in physics and math, while continuing to study the basic science sectors and English. While I was an undergraduate student, I was selected as a scholarship student for having excellent grades in English, and I was awarded at a national collegiate math competition, which gave me the confidence to challenge the world.”
He also had advice for his juniors who are preparing to find jobs overseas. Dr. Lim said, “There are many more things to prepare for compared to getting hired in Korea such as having to find information on companies, visa issues, etc., and there are many things to be careful about. But at the core is to improve your expertise and communication skills, and this is the most fundamental and important aspects. During the course of making strong fundamentals and while networking, you may at times get lucky, but your chance will definitely come.”
