Artificial intelligence (AI), cybersecurity, and quantum computing are national priorities. To maintain leadership, the United States must invest in students, veterans, and professionals who develop, secure, and advance technology, experts noted during Service to Nation's Apprenticeship week.
Recently, we reviewed Christine Burkette's list of retail jobs, which Dr. Victor McCrary identified as the most AI-transformed industry.
Each online purchase triggers a system that involves supply chains, recommendation engines, fraud detection, and sustainability calculations.
In her presentation, Burkette, a former research chemist and entrepreneur, explained how military logistics skills can be applied in industry. Students also learned how to leverage their online shopping expertise.
Aliyah Gibbs, a leader in AI adoption, was featured on WOC television by STEM City USA during a recent WOC Conference.
She discussed her journey to becoming an AI engineer and adoption specialist, including earning a bachelor's degree in computer engineering from North Carolina Agricultural and Technical State University and currently pursuing a master's in artificial intelligence at the University of Texas at Austin.
From a young age, Aliyah demonstrated technical curiosity, often setting up new devices and troubleshooting Wi-Fi issues for her family.
Her interest in technology deepened when she explored careers in cell phone development, which led her to pursue computer and electrical engineering.
Early math tutoring helped her excel academically, and a high school programming class inspired her to major in computer science.
Despite challenges securing internships, Aliyah became a mentor to elementary students in math, reading, and robotics, which led to two full-time job offers before graduation.
She also participated in an autonomous vehicle project in Arizona. Looking ahead, Aliyah plans to become a full-time entrepreneur, splitting her time between New York City and Dallas while developing AI adoption programs and promoting AI education.
At the 3-hour 30-minute mark, Alexis Peña, a biomedical engineer, shared her experience cofounding Good Fibes, an early-stage biotechnology company developing biobased stretch materials to replace Bentex and nylon.
During her PhD, Alexis and her cofounder joined the U.S. National Science Foundation Innovation Corps (I-Corps) program to explore industry needs.
After identifying opportunities in the textile sector, they partnered with brands across the supply chain and collaborated with a national laboratory at Argonne to advance American-made materials.
Alexis, who once aspired to be a chef and fashion designer, is passionate about improving the quality of life through technology.
She has presented internationally and values partnerships that support the scaling of her bioprocessing operations.
At the 4-hour 42-minute mark, Dr. McCrary introduced the healthcare segment.
Across the country, AI is reading medical images faster than radiologists, algorithms are accelerating drug discovery, wearables are detecting diseases early, and genomic sequencing is personalizing medicine. Immunotherapy is enabling new cancer treatments.
To guide students and veterans toward operational careers in these fields, Marissa Kelly shared her experience in customer operations at a leading immunotherapy company.
From the 4-hour 45-minute mark, Kelly describes her career path, highlighting the data analysis, storytelling, and problem-solving skills she developed in roles focused on automation and digitization.