Beyond The Semesters Episode 9: Vamsi Krishna Ithapu, Meta

Welcome back to episode 9 of Beyond The Semesters, an initiative by the Coding Club, IIT Guwahati, where we interview and try to get a peek into the life and work of IIT Guwahati graduates currently working in different fields or pursuing research.

This time we have with us Vamsi Krishna Ithapu from the class of 2010. He pursued his BTech in Electronics and Communication Engineering and is currently pursuing a Research Science Manager and Lead at Meta Reality Labs.

We talked about his experiences in research and how his life has changed significantly from his college days. He gave various insights into his postgraduate/research studies. He has also shared his research experience at Aachen University, the National University of Singapore, and the University of Wisconsin.

The following is what beholds beyond the semesters !!

Ques: After their undergrad degree, people are very confused about whether they should go for master’s or a corporate job. What was your motivation to go for a Ph.D. directly after your BTech?

Firstly, during my 3rd-year internship, I was part of a group that went to Germany as a part of the DAAD scholarship. That was the first time I was doing actual research. We were implementing something, the goal of which was not an exam, quiz, or getting a grade. It was my first official introduction to research. In my 4th year, I didn’t sit for placements during my 7th semester. I searched for internships. I got three options, and I went to the National University of Singapore. I spent ten months there in the Acoustics Research Laboratory. That taught me two things, I don’t like core electronics, and I like abstraction. After this, I applied for the Master’s and Ph.D. programs and moved to the US. I switched departments as soon as I joined the University of Wisconsin. First, I explored Mathematics, and then I realized that it was too difficult. So, I found this zone of Applied Mathematics, designing algorithms but not building them, and some sense of computer science. This is the literal definition of AI without the data. To your specific question, I have wanted to do something in grad school and pursue a Ph.D. since I was in 9th or 10th standard because of my family, the people I’ve interacted with, and my teachers in school. They told me a lot about science and scientific stuff. So, I wanted to do a Ph.D., but I wasn’t sure when to start it. After my experience in Germany and Singapore, I realized that I should do it right away.

Ques: How did you manage your college academics along with your third year internship at RWTH Aachen University in Germany, and what was your overall experience there?

Initially, I needed to learn what research was. We wanted to go to Germany because we wanted to go around and make a Euro trip. We knew what that meant because of movies at that time. I didn’t know what it meant to actually pick up a scientific question, think about it and do something about it. If the question is as simple as building an algorithm or writing code, you can literally write down the full solution on paper and implement it. On the other hand, if the question is a bit uncertain or unexplored, like how do you build a code to control traffic effectively in an intersection? That’s a complicated problem. I was given a problem which was, going into technical terms, to segment fundus images so that we can differentiate between vestibular is active or inactive. So, it’s a segmentation problem towards the amplification of a classification problem. How do you translate what those terms mean? Where should I write my first few lines of code? How should we start, and what is the first alphabet thinking? That I didn’t have before then. After Germany, I had a semblance of it.

Ques: How was life at the University of Wisconsin? How did you handle the sudden change in culture as you’ve stayed in India, Germany, Singapore, and now the United States?

That’s a very nice question because I met my wife in Wisconsin, so that adds a personal touch to that.I went to Germany with a group of 5–7 people from our department. So, there was no feeling of alienness. For me, it was my first international trip. We just wanted to travel everywhere, to every location in Europe. I had a small backpack to change clothes and a few pieces of bread because we couldn’t afford fancy meals as we were on a stipend. We just slept in trains and bus stations next to the Eiffel Tower. We did a lot of fun stuff. In Singapore, it was different because it was serious. I was done with my BTech, and I needed to figure out what I should do. But at the same time, I didn’t like what I was doing. I went into a thinking phase for a couple of months. After I came to Wisconsin, the first thing that really shook me was the scale of things. Our perspective of studies is different from theirs. I also met my then-girlfriend, now wife in Wisconsin. We have some nice memories from there. Workwise, for me personally, I just wanted to do something which is just abstract enough, with some semblance of applications, some mathematics, some statistics, and some data. Through this process, I realized that AI or Machine Learning or Computer Vision is the area that is correct for me.

Ques: Prior to moving to the United States, you worked for a year at the Acoustics Research Laboratory at the National University of Singapore. How did you grab this opportunity and what was the whole work experience like?

Halfway through my BTech thesis, I realized that I can’t do a job. So, the internship in Germany was a good experience, and I really liked that. I started exploring some universities. One was Seoul National University, South Korea; the second was NUS, Singapore; the third was the University of Calgary, Canada, and a few more. I applied for all those, just like you applied for an internship. Officially write an email, attach 2–3 lines of your purpose regarding why I want to do this, and literally ask the professor if there are any opportunities. Singapore was a good choice because, first of all, it was very close to India. I knew that Singapore had a lot of Indian presence, so I wouldn’t feel that alienness. South Korea was quite far both culturally, mentally, and also food-wise. Regarding Calgary, I was going back and forth because the professor to who I applied in Calgary was broadly in the same area as my BTech advisor. So, there was some alignment there. But, I looked at the temperatures of Calgary in December-January and realized that there’s no way I’ll be able to survive. Also, the process was much easier to go to Singapore than Calgary. It was an important learning experience for me because I realized that I should switch areas. I just want to do the algorithmic backend work. Actually, my goal of doing a Ph.D. further intensified. I’m sure if I ask my professor now, he would say you’re not one of my best students. That’s because I started to dislike what I was doing. It’s not that I was not capable; I just didn’t like it. Overall, it was a learning experience to move to a different place, to move to a different area, and I really understood what I should be doing.

Ques: How were your days back then in IIT Guwahati? Which hostel did you stay and did you enjoy attending the fests and taking part in them?

I was in the Dihing hostel, and I still remember my friends’ group in the hostel and am still in touch with them. Of course, I enjoyed my hostel days. I found some solid friendships that will last through life. I can go back to those days at any point in time. There used to be a great Telugu gang, although our hostel had students from all over India, and that was great. I learned a lot about India and other cultures through the hostel programs.
Coming to the fests, we used to enjoy ourselves a lot and shout out loud in support of our hostels in the Inter Hostel events. I had the hobby of reading books. Our library had a massive collection of good books, so I usually spent my time sitting in the library reading books(not academic books).

Ques: What kind of books do you like to read, and apart from reading books, do you have any other hobbies?

Apart from work, I spend my time reading. I generally read about Metaphysics, Science, and Spirituality. I also love to read books on archaeological history. I am not quite a fiction reader, but I remember I last read Lord of The Rings. Yeah, my wife and I love hiking, and we usually like to spend some time in the woods and enjoy the calmness. We also like kayaking and water paddling. We love to travel, and we have visited a few countries, and I aim to visit at least 60–70 countries. We also like trying new food and exploring the cultures of other countries.

Ques: How was the college culture back then, and how was the interaction with the seniors?

In the case of hostels, we had only Manas, Kapili, Dihing, and Subansiri. Kameng was less than half built. We always shared rooms. I am glad to hear we have more girls’ hostels now. In my batch(ECE), there were no girl students. A lot of things I wouldn’t have known without the interaction with seniors. The good thing at that time was that 1st-year students always mingled with all the year students. My room neighbours were from 2nd year and 4th year when I was in 1st year. So it was very mixed and normal. We even watched movies together. The interaction was very organic and healthy, and I got to learn so many new things, rather than say almost everything from my seniors. Also, especially when you aim for higher studies, it becomes very essential and fruitful to interact with them. You should have decided by the 6th semester whether you want to do higher studies or not. We interacted with the masters’ students as well.

Ques: How is the work culture at Meta? Do you get enough time to enjoy your hobbies and also travel?

I am doing research in an industrial company, and Meta values work-life balance. Research is something beyond just working, even if I am on a beach enjoying holidays or even feeding my baby, I am still thinking about my work. Sometimes, I work while traveling, as I worked for a day or two during my trip to Canada and Mexico. I did my Ph.D. in AI because I wanted to do something in Mathematics, statistics, and data. Right now, I am doing what I am doing because I want to do something to improve mental health, creating new technologies and new infrastructure for these technologies, which can improve lives. In the future, if my mind changes, I might go with it. The point is I need to find value in what I do. After my Ph.D., I wanted to find an academic job, and I tried to find a faculty position as an Assistant Professor but after some good advice from my Ph.D. advisor and by being at the right place at the right time, meeting the right people in conferences and making some good connections, I explored an opportunity at Meta. I picked it up because I wanted to try industrial research. I had never experienced working in any corporate company as my previous internships had also been at a University. After working for a few months, I realized that the work here suited me, and I started liking my work.

Ques: If you had the opportunity of building a startup, what would it be?

There is an area that is very less explored and is known as proxy problems. A typical western mindset is to do something new and transform the whole of humanity. A bulk of expensive innovations happen in western countries but when you take that to India or China, or any other Asian country, there is a higher chance that the innovation won’t be much effective. This is due to different cultures, upbringing, way of living, population, and many other factors. For example, Self Driving Cars which are working in western countries will not be able to function well in India. The transfer of AI Technologies between countries is not that simple and is an area to be researched for. The space of such proxy problems that India offers, i.e., to transfer technologies from the west to India, is very valuable and needs to be looked upon. I think the next boom of Indian startups will be in this field. Even now, we can see many startups that have transformed western technologies such that it suits India and are pretty successful.

Ques: What is that one thing or motivation that makes you thrive forward in life?

I don’t have any grand plans in life of owning a billion-dollar company or being too rich etc. The other side of the story is that I am some combination of everybody I have met and everything I have read because the people I meet and the books I read will have an influence on me, and so it’s hard to predict what I will be in the future. The thing that motivates me is very simple. We all have limited time; we will make mistakes, we will do things that make sense, and as long as we are able to convince ourselves that we are having a good time, I think it’s good enough. If it is doing research for me, it’s fine enough. If after five years from now, I hate research and want a change, that is also good enough. This is my motivation. One of the quotes I like is “99% done is not done,” and I also had it pasted in my hostel room.

Ques: Any advice for students who want to work at such big companies or make up a career in machine learning?

My advice would be that in spite of the fact that you are doing courses, do a little bit more. The context would be like not specifically but, read/just going through research papers and listening to talks. You can take the help of youtube. It has a hell lot of talks. You don’t need to understand everything, but just listen to them or go through them. Reading books is not a fantasy anymore but finding books which may not generally be of your area but random books like “What is the definition of perception?” etc., you explore and in this exploration, you will find the answers to whether you want to do Masters or Ph.D. and you will be able to say that “Machine Learning” is my thing and I want to do it.

Have discussions. Just 3–4 people together have a random discussion in the same way as you have about movies, or who won the game or who did right. It doesn’t have to be a pro-level discussion but just sitting and chilling and having chai and discussing; maybe nonsense sometimes, but no problem; You don’t need an infrastructure to do it. You can do it anywhere. People who try to do ML but do not have an idea may also get a clear picture of everything. You can read blogs, and so many things can be done. We get clarity! You can talk to teachers, and this all is open to people from any and all branches.

It was a great experience for us to interact with him, and we hope that you enjoyed reading about his amazing journey!