Mo Gawdat

And my dad was a math geek and a very serious engineer. Interestingly, in our family, my mom was more the order and discipline. My dad was the heart.

even though you can see the interesting mix because he was a real geek right i was born a little bit on the spectrum which was not diagnosed but became very clear when i became older and had conversations with my mom about what it was like when i was a child where i completely understood mathematics way better than i understood english or arabic at the time

even though you can see the interesting mix because he was a real geek right i was born a little bit on the spectrum which was not diagnosed but became very clear when i became older and had conversations with my mom about what it was like when i was a child where i completely understood mathematics way better than i understood english or arabic at the time

In my hometown in Cairo, that's not what kids want you to do to be able to be friends. They wanted me to play soccer and basically talk about silly stuff. And it was quite complex for me because I would hide to read my physics books. And I thought of myself as something is wrong with me. And, you know, in a way, as I say, it's probably my diversity that made me not worry that much about them.

In my hometown in Cairo, that's not what kids want you to do to be able to be friends. They wanted me to play soccer and basically talk about silly stuff. And it was quite complex for me because I would hide to read my physics books. And I thought of myself as something is wrong with me. And, you know, in a way, as I say, it's probably my diversity that made me not worry that much about them.

and continue to invest in what I loved in the background. And I have to say, I think it was my parents probably my mom a bit more than my dad, but my dad was very supportive, who encouraged me to try absolutely everything. Anything I asked for. I remember when I was maybe 11, I asked to play the piano. So they bought me one of those electric pianos. I failed miserably.

and continue to invest in what I loved in the background. And I have to say, I think it was my parents probably my mom a bit more than my dad, but my dad was very supportive, who encouraged me to try absolutely everything. Anything I asked for. I remember when I was maybe 11, I asked to play the piano. So they bought me one of those electric pianos. I failed miserably.

And then a week later I said, can I play the guitar? And you'd probably expect them to say no. Right? And we were not rich, but they were so supportive. Four weeks later, I bought a guitar and I played really, really well for so many years of my life. And it was that constant ability to try and fail and then try something different and fail that I think made a massive difference.

And then a week later I said, can I play the guitar? And you'd probably expect them to say no. Right? And we were not rich, but they were so supportive. Four weeks later, I bought a guitar and I played really, really well for so many years of my life. And it was that constant ability to try and fail and then try something different and fail that I think made a massive difference.

I married a wonderful, wonderful, wonderful human being. She's no longer my wife, but she completely impacted my life when I graduated. She was not very comfortable living in Egypt. And so she was the one that urged me to start exploring the world a little more.

I married a wonderful, wonderful, wonderful human being. She's no longer my wife, but she completely impacted my life when I graduated. She was not very comfortable living in Egypt. And so she was the one that urged me to start exploring the world a little more.

What got me into tech is very early, actually. I started coding... On a Sinclair, you were born like 20 years later, right? And I coded on a Sinclair, a Commodore, and then of course on an IBM compatible at the time, that's what we called it. And what really flipped my life upside down, believe it or not, is my parents wanted to renovate our apartment.

What got me into tech is very early, actually. I started coding... On a Sinclair, you were born like 20 years later, right? And I coded on a Sinclair, a Commodore, and then of course on an IBM compatible at the time, that's what we called it. And what really flipped my life upside down, believe it or not, is my parents wanted to renovate our apartment.

And my brothers, my two elder brothers were teenagers at the time. I was probably nine or something. And my parents basically said, someone has to be at home to open the door for the workers and just make sure that their needs are met. Can you stay at home for two months in summer? I was like, I am a teenager. It's my summer vacation.

And my brothers, my two elder brothers were teenagers at the time. I was probably nine or something. And my parents basically said, someone has to be at home to open the door for the workers and just make sure that their needs are met. Can you stay at home for two months in summer? I was like, I am a teenager. It's my summer vacation.

At least you should buy me an IBM compatible PC so that I can actually learn to code. And so that was the deal I cut with my dad. I traded two months of my life. for an IBM compatible.

At least you should buy me an IBM compatible PC so that I can actually learn to code. And so that was the deal I cut with my dad. I traded two months of my life. for an IBM compatible.

And by the end of the two months, I remember vividly, I wrote a code that basically took musical notes and turned them into musical sheets for my guitar playing, because at the time you couldn't actually get tabs and so on. You had to buy books for that.

And by the end of the two months, I remember vividly, I wrote a code that basically took musical notes and turned them into musical sheets for my guitar playing, because at the time you couldn't actually get tabs and so on. You had to buy books for that.

And I became a very serious developer just with those two months, because basically I'd wake up in the morning and I have eight hours of nothing but reading the manuals. And it improved my English, it improved my understanding of logic and algorithms and so on. So that was really, really an interesting turning point. And another turning point, of course, is I love my dad so much.