From Janakpur to Google, Shivam Thakur’s journey is a testament to persistence, risk-taking, and the power of being endlessly curious. As a mentor for this year’s Nepal-US AI Hackathon, Shivam shares his path, his mindset—and why he’s excited to help the next generation of Nepali innovators.
Shivam’s story begins in Janakpur, Nepal, where he grew up with a strong love for math. After finishing high school at St. Xavier’s in Kathmandu, he pursued computer science and engineering in Chandigarh, India.
That led to his first role at SanDisk, where he worked in data analytics and began experimenting with machine learning.
“That's when it clicked,” he says. “I started seeing how stats play out in the real world.”
In 2021, he came to the U.S. for his master’s, interned at Amazon and The New York Times, and explored multiple areas in tech before landing his current role as a Machine Learning Engineer at Google, where he now works with large language models (LLMs).
It wasn’t a straight shot—and it wasn’t easy. But it was worth it.
📚 2. What Are the Biggest Lessons You’ve Learned?
Shivam is honest:
“You're going to fail 9 out of 10 times. And that's okay.”
His approach to growth is practical and powerful:
Apply often. Don’t wait to feel “ready.”
When you fail, figure out why.
Don’t make the same mistake twice.
Eventually, your mistake list runs out—and success finds you.
It took six months post-graduation for Shivam to get the offer from Google.
“I just kept improving one thing at a time. That’s the game.”
🤝 3. What Made You Say Yes to Mentoring in This Hackathon?
For Shivam, mentorship isn’t a one-way street.
“People five years younger than me see the world differently. They bring fresh problems—and that helps me grow too.”
He sees this as a “win-win”—a chance to give back while staying sharp and inspired himself.
He’s especially excited that participants this year range from experienced engineers to seventh graders:
“Back in our day, we had science fairs. Now, students are building apps. That’s incredible.”
Gif by goldenglobes on Giphy
🔍 4. What Are You Hoping to See From the Participants?
Curiosity. Not perfection.
“You don’t need to come in with a perfect idea. Just show up with curiosity. Ask bold questions. Try things. That’s all that matters.”
He’s looking forward to seeing how teams approach problems, how they collaborate, and how they bring creativity to technical challenges.
💬 5. One Piece of Advice to Participants?
“Don’t be afraid to fail. Try the hard things anyway.”
Whether you're exploring AI for the first time or already working on complex models—take the shot.
And don’t hesitate to ask:
“There’s no such thing as a stupid question. Everyone here wants to help. So just come. Let’s build together.”