QS has selected MIT as the best university in the world in their 2019 Graduate Employability Ranking, reports Rachel Hall for The Guardian. Hall explains that, “the rankings are compiled based on employer reputation, alumni outcomes, partnerships with employers per staff member, employer-student connections and the graduate employment rate.”
MIT startup Skydio has launched a platform that allows users to create custom software that can be applied to the company’s autonomous drone, reports Nick Statt for The Verge. The platform will let “app makers and drone enthusiasts develop custom software that takes advantage of the device’s bevy of cameras and sensors, as well as its sophisticated computer vision software and machine learning algorithms.”
Fox News reporters Kevin Tracy and Christopher Howard highlight how MIT alumna Laila Shabir created a summer camp aimed at inspiring girls interesting in playing and creating video games. “It’s like teaching someone how to paint,” Shabir explains. “You know once you teach them how to paint they can express themselves through that medium. That’s exactly what we’re doing at camp.”
MIT alumnus You Wu has spent six years perfecting robots that can travel through pipes to identify water leaks, writes Anne Quito for Quartz. “Over 240,000 water pipes burst in the US each year, with each incident costing an average of $200,000 in infrastructure damage,” notes Quito.
Writing for Wired, Ricardo Rosselló, an MIT alumnus and the governor of Puerto Rico, explains that nurturing the technology industry in Puerto Rico is integral to the island’s efforts to rebuild. “Ever since I was a student, I have been fascinated by science and technology,” he explains. “As a former professor, I believe that these science and technology jobs represent the future of Puerto Rico’s economy.”
MIT alumnus Kofi Annan, former United Nations secretary general, has died at age 80, the Associated Press reports. Annan, “one of the world’s most celebrated diplomats,” earned a master’s degree from the Sloan School of Management.
Boston Globe reporter John Hilliard writes about the legacy of former UN secretary general and MIT alumnus Kofi Annan, citing reflections Annan offered in his 1997 MIT Commencement Address. “Science and international organizations alike are constructs of reason, engaged in a permanent struggle against the forces of unreason,” said Annan. “Science and international organizations alike speak a universal language and seek universal truths.”
Writing for The Boston Globe, Scott Kirsner highlights Perch, a company founded by alumnus Jacob Rothman to help improve safety for weightlifters. Kirsner explains that Perch developed a system for an iPad that allows users to, “log in to a weightlifting station and access a personal routine, which can be crafted by a coach.”
Boston Globe reporter Bette Keva spotlights SeaTrac Systems, Inc., which was founded by MIT alumni Buddy Duncan and James Herman, and has developed an autonomous, solar-powered boat. Herman explains that SeaTrac’s goal is to develop a boat that could be used on “dirty, dull, dangerous, or expensive” missions.
TechCrunch reporter Sarah Perez spotlights Outfit, a startup co-founded by MIT alumnus Nadeem Mazen that is aimed at making grassroots-style political campaigning easier. Perez explains that Outfit “helps individual voters reach out to their own personal acquaintances, family and friends.”
MIT alumna Stephanie Lampkin has been named to Fortune’s 40 Under 40 List. As the founder and CEO of Blendoor, Lampkin “is determined to mitigate systemic bias in tech and beyond,” writes Ellen McGirt for Fortune.
Alex Knapp writes for Forbes about Accion Systems, an MIT startup that “manufactures ion thrusters that pack serious oomph even though they're the size and shape of microchips.” Later this summer, the first satellite using the company’s thrusters will take flight, which Accion CEO and MIT alumna Natalya Bailey hails as “a big milestone.”
Forbes reporter Anne Field highlights MDaaS Global, an MIT startup that aims to operate low-cost primary and diagnostic care centers in Africa. After seeing how a lack of medical equipment made it difficult for doctors to treat patients in rural areas, MIT graduate Oluwasoga Oni decided, “to build critical infrastructure in a scalable way across the continent.”
Boston Globe reporter Jonathan Saltzman writes about how MIT alumnus Bernat Olle’s startup, Vedanta Biosciences, Inc., is looking to “collect a sample of every type of bacteria that lives in the gut.” The hope is to one day use what’s learned from this ‘library’ to help treat diseases.
Yahoo! reporter Elise Solé highlights how Alejandra Falla successfully completed her PhD studies at MIT while pregnant with her daughter, Clara. Clara sported a miniature MIT regalia to Commencement. “It started as a joke but we decided that Clara had earned her Ph.D. in the womb,” says Falla. “She deserved to graduate with me.”