Motivational talk I gave to a couple hundred mostly latino high-school students

1. Learning to Fly
Dr. Xavier Amatriain
Director of Research/Engineering
Netflix

2. Looking for
a job?

3. Who am I?
● Director at Netflix
● Leading a team of
Researchers/Engineers
working on
Recommendations
● PhD in Computer
Science
● Many publications in
journals, conferences,
and books
● But..

4. You can call me Xavi

5. 1. What is not true about me
a. I played in a rock band that recorded 2 albums and
played in front of thousands of people
b. My father died when I was 6, and I started working
(for money) when I was 12.
c. I ran 3 full marathons last year
d. I had two children before I was 30
e. I lived in Idaho for a year
f. I quit school

6. 1. What is not true about me
a. I played in a rock band that recorded 2 albums and
played in front of thousands of people
b. My father died when I was 6, and I started working
(for money) when I was 12.
c. I ran 3 full marathons last year
d. I had two children before I was 30
e. I lived in Idaho for a year
f. I quit school

7. My journey

8. My journey

10. My journey

12. My journey

13. My journey

15. Some lessons I learned in my journey

16. There will be ups and downs

17. Small decisions are
important

18. You are not alone

19. But, you will be alone

20. Good things come hard

21. Conclusions
● Studying can open
you many doors and
is an asset that you
will have forever
● Studying is fun...
studying computers is
even more fun
● It is all in your hands..
yes, you can.