Born and raised in Metro Detroit, Benjamin Ciaglo has had a lifelong fascination with music, mathematics and language. This led him to Wayne State University where he pursued dual degrees in computer science and Asian studies, with a concentration in Chinese language and culture.

Today, he holds a master's in computational linguistics from the University of Washington, a discipline that blends his passions for programming and linguistics. Ben's career has spanned several industries. He served as a software development engineer at Amazon, working extensively on big data platforms, including those that power their recommendation engine.

At Appen, he served as a computational linguist, designing and delivering software to enable the collection, curation, and analysis of linguistic data. His current tenure at Ithaka, as a senior software engineer, has seen him play a pivotal role in the development of an innovative chatbot assistant.

Ben is versed in multiple programming languages and frameworks, such as Python, Java and Reacts. He's a native English speaker with studies in Mandarin and German and has a deep appreciation and respect for global cultures and languages.

He is excited to share insights and explore options for how linguistic enthusiasts can integrate their passion for language with today's cutting-edge technology.

Zoom info

Meeting ID: 992 4531 8195
Passcode: Chinese