Do you want to Change the world?

Nb: In the intervening time, we changed our name to Jewelbots.

“Do you want to change the world?”

I hear it everywhere, and it’s normally crap. Your Uber-meets-Spotify-meets-AirBnB-meets-your-appetite-for-food-at-2am idea is not going to change the world.

I’ve heard it so much I’ve become jaded. I actually repel when I hear those words.

That was before I knew about Jewliebots.

I’ve known Sara Chipps since I’ve known about Twitter. She was one of the first tech people I followed. She produced a rad video on Ada Lovelace, and her enthusiasm about technology has always been inspiring to me.

When she first talked about Jewliebots in her medium posts on building a hardware startup, I became even more interested. My first and sole thought was: How do I become a part of this?

Let me step back. Jewliebots is (in our parlance) wearable jewelry aimed at exposing young girls to programming. It’s one part Minecraft, one part Arduino, and all social. In short, it aims to make programming interesting and accessible for young girls.

It also has the potential to change the world.

After meeting with Sara and Brooke and the rest of the team behind Jewliebots, I was even more on board.  Here I was, interviewing for a startup with a goal I believe in and the potential to work with people I believe in.  Normally it’s either a company I believe in or technology I’m passionate about; I’ve never been in the situation where both apply.

I’ve only been happier three more times than the moment Sara and Brooke offered me the chance to work on Jewliebots: my wedding day and the birth of my two daughters.

I believe in Jewliebots, I believe wholeheartedly in our mission, and I’m proud to say that starting today, I’m employee #1 and VP of Software Engineering at Jewliebots.

My goal: to make sure the software that powers Jewliebots meets our mission and to build a team who shares that goal.

I’ve never felt more strongly about anything in my professional life.

If you’re interested in learning more about Jewliebots and potentially joining us, please drop me a line. I’d love to hear from you.