I landed an Nvidia data center internship after sending out 200 applications. I learned Big Tech wasn't for me.
A former Nvidia intern shares his experience of applying to hundreds of jobs to land a role at a major tech firm, only to realize that corporate life was not his ultimate goal. He has since pivoted to founding his own AI startup, Gale.
Why it matters
The story illustrates the competitive nature of Big Tech recruiting and the shifting career aspirations of young software engineers toward entrepreneurship.
Gale CEO Rahul Gudise. Velocity Incubator Rahul Gudise landed an Nvidia internship after sending more than 200 applications. The experience taught Gudise that he wanted to build something of his own. Gudise cofounded AI startup Gale, which has raised $2.7 million. My philosophy about luck is that it's really about how many times you're willing to flip the coin. At some point, it stops being luck and turns into inevitability. While studying at the University of Waterloo, I treated applying to internships like a statistical game. Working my way through a GitHub list of openings, I sent out 200-300 applications before landing an internship at Tesla . The next recruiting cycle, I did it all over again to land one at Nvidia . I honestly don't even remember applying. After the initial callback, the hiring process was pretty chill.
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