From the gray and monotonous English landscape, I found myself in a bustling city brimming with lights and noise. I have never been inside a casino before but that’s somewhat what I imagined it to look like. This crazy ground swarming with scooters razzing around and the confusing excitement you get from rubbish trucks playing a constant melody identical to that of an ice cream truck, can make you easily forget that you are actually on a tropical island. Friday night you could be cutting shapes in the night club and Saturday morning be hiking alongside of Formosan rock macaques down South. This is Taiwan.
Everything here works like clockwork: people queued up in single file for their daily dose of bubble tea, night markets become jam packed with locals and crowded with the aroma of stinky tofu, then by day everything is cleared away and empty. For the first time, I have seen people communicate so well together without having to know or speak to another. The frustration of not having garbage cans around disappears after you notice how efficiently clean the entire city is. You even get to see the sidewalks get a daily wash. Taipei is the hub for expats of all backgrounds, there is much talent and investment being poured into it from across the world. I have made many lifelong friends.
Me, Myself and I
The first thing I was asked in the meeting with my manager was ‘what would you like to work on?’ Having always to do things as instructed by a higher authority, especially in school, it was fresh coming to an environment where I am able to choose a topic or project that interests me. This had me really excited because I only just arrived suited and booted at a large international company with the freedom to work on whichever topic I chose fit. However, this excitement quickly died down as I had no sense of direction and initially found it hard to find my spot within the company because I didn’t know how I could contribute to an organization of this size.
I am currently a third year undergrad student at University of Brighton in England on a Business Management with Marketing bachelor’s degree. From being able to sleep through lectures and live the lifestyle of a regular student doing regular student activities without the responsibilities associated with being a ‘real adult’, being accepted into VIA was a clear indication that a new routine was required of me to step up into the real world. The adult world.
Going Backstage
The VIA environment is a natural habitat for the perfect learning curve. As an intern, I undertook projects of diverse requirements. Blog writing, competitor analysis, PR research, Google analytics, presentations, market research – these are just some of the tasks I have participated in. I have also come to an acceptance with the amount of ideas and projects that are started but never finished. When you are in the audience, all you get to see is the final performance. And when you are backstage you actually witness the bigger picture and all the grafting and work that is put in before a product is finalized.
At first, it was normal to feel like nothing was accomplished when a task was to get stored for later or scrapped because of a single factor affecting it but in the end it all worked out. And the development process of a product is much more complicated in practice than on paper. However, after a day of heavy brainstorming, sitting and building muscle cramps there was always the luxury of the dinner box that we all relished!
Forget about Textbooks
I thought university had prepared me for what I was coming up against as an intern. Coming in with a brief understanding of computers, a skim read of Wikipedia’s page on motherboards, chipsets, software, hardware and a general interest in technology along with my marketing experience, I thought I had it in the bag as an intern. I was wrong. It soon became evident that when being tasked with producing a Google Ads campaign on an apparently ever so simple dash cam which uses AWS, KVS, Cloud Integration, CAN bus system, Microsoft Azure features… I had to start from scratch to gain a grasp of all this new tech for just one of many products I was introduced to. Aside from new tech, I also learned about the importance of office appliances like the ring binder and all the tips and tricks for internal emails which is something that is not included in the student handbook!
An Automated, Hands-on Kind of Intern Journey
Going on hikes, falling asleep in the back of the company vehicle while testing the ADAS system, playing pool, being introduced to a range of vegetarian restaurants and eating the best Indian curry in the world (in Taiwan) were just some of the highlights that took place because of our managers and work culture at VIA. The convenience to be able to spend quality time outside of work with your managers and coworkers is something I have never experienced in any workplace before.
VIA has helped me grow and cultivate new skills. To be at the forefront of technological advancement and observe developments being made is eye opening, but being able to contribute and witness change in my own work is an achievement I am immensely proud of.
It has been a hands on the wheel (with some automated support) ride, thank you for a great experience that I have shared with an amazing team.
Signing out, Kornel Kot
Written by Kornel Kot , Intern at VIA Technologies, Inc. For more information about the VIA Internship Program, please click here.
