Tag Archives: Google Canada

Cryptography, Cloud and Equality: a Q&A with Google Security expert Maya Kaczorowski

Note from the editor: What do Julie Payette, Indira Samarasekera and Jenni Sidey have in common? They are just some of Canada’s fierce female masterminds who’ve graduated in the field of either science, technology, engineering or mathematics (STEM) and who continue to impact our society. We already have plenty of talent in Canada. However, we are not turning out enough computer science graduates to keep up with demand, especially not enough women. It's never been more critical that we give our young girls the tools they need to become the technology builders of tomorrow. One of the ways we can better equip them, is by exposing young women to how their future studies could directly apply in the real world and make them aware of the exciting career opportunities in STEM. In the hopes of doing just that, we’ve sat down for an interview with one of own trailblazers, Montrealer Maya Kaczorowski, a Product Manager at Google in Security & Privacy. 


Can you tell us about your current role at Google and how you got here? 
Currently, my focus is on securing workloads running in containerized environments – which is a mouthful! To clarify, containers are a relatively new way of running workloads especially in the cloud. Our team uses tools such as Docker and Kubernetes which ultimately make our customer’s applications more portable.

Prior to this, I focused on encryption at rest and encryption key management, and was the Product Manager for Google Cloud Key Management Service (Cloud KMS). Before joining Google, I worked as a management consultant at McKinsey & Company, serving financial, healthcare and insurance customers on a variety of topics, where I discovered my passion for security strategy.
What’s your educational background?
I completed a BA&Sc in Mathematics and Economics at McGill University in Montreal and then pursued a Master in Science in Applicable Mathematics, focusing on cryptography and game theory at the London School of Economics.

Can you tell us what motivated you to pursue a career in science and technology? 
I always liked solving puzzles and when I took a number theory class at McGill, I realized cryptography was a great mesh of puzzles, math, and practical use cases in security. I pursued my interest in cryptography, and ended up doing a Master's degree in the field. It wasn’t a straight path from there to a technical role in the industry, however, by seizing the right opportunities when they arose, I ultimately ended up in role that was meant for me, at Google working with the encryption team. I’m especially excited about working in infrastructure security, which is a huge focus given the uptake of the cloud industry. There’s a lot of opportunity for development, and for innovation in this space.

What challenges did you face as a woman during your studies and then throughout the course of your career?
Being taken seriously has always been difficult. I can remember going to some of my first conferences in security, and people asking me if I was a reporter, or what I ‘really’ worked on, even if I had Google written on my badge. No one will give you the benefit of the doubt, you have to initially prove yourself. I’m lucky that I had the opportunities to do so, and the courage to not let people dismiss me easily.
Why is now a great time for women to pursue careers in tech?
There are two complementary forces at work - it’s a friendlier and more attractive industry for women; and companies are also realizing they need women to be more successful. In general, there are already more women in tech, and more women in leadership roles - mentoring and acting as role models for the next generation of women.

Why are women uniquely qualified to excel in some of these leadership roles? 
Without over-generalizing, women bring different viewpoints to the workplace. Research has shown that more diverse teams lead to better business outcomes, and teams with more women tend to have more individuals actively participating in decision-making processes. In any product, but especially in security, having individuals from a variety of backgrounds leads to building better, more useful products.

What advice would you have for other women considering following a career in science and tech? 
Simply, just go for it. Given how accessible information and tutorials are nowadays, you can teach yourself anything. I often see people falter in their belief that they need to have gone to a particular school, or have a particular degree, or particular life experience, in order to have a particular job. Compared to men, women are less likely to apply to jobs where they don’t meet all the requirements, but there’s really no harm in trying. Ask others in the industry how they got where they are, teach yourself that, ask questions where you don’t understand, and go for it.

Additionally, when I studied mathematics, about half of my class was women - which I know is unusual. We were a headstrong bunch, each taking on leadership roles in student government, research, and other campus activities; and standing up for each other if needed. I would encourage women to support each other and to take on leadership roles either within your program of study, in the community or specific ecosystem they are aiming to persevere in.
What do you think would encourage more women to pursue studies in science and technology? 
I don’t think there’s an easy solution to gender equality in tech, which is why we’re all trying to improve it! I think having more exposure to how your studies are directly applicable in the real world, in the form of internships and co-ops, helps any student get a better idea of whether or not this work interests them, and what’s needed to be successful.

Go North to unlock the potential of AI

The 20th century brought about incredible changes to the way we work and live. There was the combustion engine, the telephone, the assembly line and, of course, the Internet. Today artificial intelligence and machine learning is expected to bring similarly profound changes. And Canada stands poised to lead the world into this new era.

Imagine you could take a picture of a mole on your arm and your smartphone could assist your dermatologist in diagnosing if it’s malignant. This is not science fiction, it’s a system Vancouver's MetaOptima is developing today - and it’s powered by artificial intelligence.

From diagnosing cancer to reducing data centre energy consumption, artificial intelligence offers a new tool for tackling real-world challenges. Today, at Google Canada’s annual Go North summit, we’re bringing together AI leaders from across Canada and around the world to help Canadian industry better understand the vast potential of this technology to transform their business, shape future innovations and improve our world.

Follow along on Twitter @GoogleCanada or tune-in to the Go North livestream (starting at 9am ET) featuring Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau; Google Chairman, Eric Schmidt; founder of DeepMind, Demis Hassabis; OpenAI’s Shivon Zilis; YouTuber Taryn Southern who uses AI to compose music; Geoffrey Hinton and many more including the founder of MetaOptima, Dr. Maryam Sadeghi.
Go North will explore Canada’s success in building the superclusters of investment and innovation that have sprung up around the work of Yoshua Bengio in Montreal, Geoffrey Hinton in Toronto and Rich Sutton in Edmonton -- global leaders whose research underpins many of the advances we’re seeing in AI today. The conference will highlight the amazing advancements happening here in Canada and the opportunity for businesses to leverage the country’s rich research pedigree and to unlock the potential of AI. When it comes to artificial intelligence, Canada is having a moment - and we’ll seize it at Go North.

Canada, meet Google Wifi

Nothing is more annoying than losing your Wi-Fi connection when binge watching your favourite TV show or video chatting in a business meeting. From spotty connections to dropped signals, leave your Wi-Fi troubles behind with the help of Google Wifi, launching today in Canada. Google Wifi is a new kind of home Wi-Fi system that works with your modem and internet provider to give you strong, reliable coverage, in every room.
Traditional Wi-Fi routers aren’t always built to support the increasing number of devices we use or high bandwidth activities like gaming or watching videos. Google Wifi is different. It’s a connected system that replaces your current router and brings everything you love about Google -- smarts, security and simplicity -- to home Wi-Fi.

Strong, reliable coverage
Google Wifi uses a technology called mesh Wi-Fi. Within our mesh network, each Google Wifi point creates a high-powered connection, and the different Wifi points work together to determine the best path for your data. The result is Wi-Fi coverage even in hard-to reach areas, not just right next to the router.*

Keeps itself fast 
Most of us don’t want to spend time tweaking complex settings or managing our Wi-Fi network. Google Wifi is smart and automatically places your devices on the clearest channel and optimal Wi-Fi band, so the entire family can keep doing what they love without missing a beat. And as you roam around your house, our built-in Network Assist software will seamlessly transition your device between the Google Wifi system points in real time, to help you avoid dead spots and delays. Google Wifi is an expandable system, so if you have a larger home, you can simply add Google Wifi points.* They connect to one another to spread a strong network signal to every room.

A simple way to control your network
To make sure you’re always in control, Google Wifi comes with an app, available on Android and iOS*, that lets you do things like pause Wi-Fi on kids’ devices (or create recurring pauses for dinnertime or homework) and is built to help keep your network safe and secure. It also shows you which devices are connected and how much bandwidth they’re using and lets you prioritize devices within your network so you can stream that latest episode uninterrupted.

Google Wifi will be available in Canada on April 28th as a 1-pack for $179 and a 3-pack for $439 from the Google Store, Best Buy Canada, Staples Canada and Walmart Canada, with more retailers coming soon.

Find out more about Google Wifi here.



It’s time to start sketching, Canada. Doodle 4 Google is back!

Today’s guest post is brought to you by Canadian YouTube stars Mitch and Greg of AsapSCIENCE 
Submissions are now open for Doodle 4 Google!
If you’ve watched our videos, you already know how much we love science... and art! Whenever we visit the Google homepage, we’re always tickled to find a doodle, which combines the best of both. Google doodles are fun illustrations of the Google logo that celebrate holidays, anniversaries, and the lives of famous artists, pioneers, and scientists -- everything from the discovery of water on Mars to Canadian inventor Sandford Fleming’s 190th birthday.

Now with Doodle 4 Google, kids have the chance to see their artwork on the Google homepage for the whole country to enjoy. Doodle 4 Google is a nationwide competition, inviting students from kindergarten to Grade 12 to redesign the Google logo.*

As Canada blows out a whole lot of candles this year for its 150th birthday, what better way to celebrate than by imagining what the next 150 years will look like? That’s why Google is asking students to submit doodles based on the theme: “What I see for Canada’s future is…”.

Creating the top doodle comes with major perks: not only will their artwork adorn the Google.ca homepage for a day, but the winner will receive a $10,000 university scholarship, a $10,000 technology grant for his/her school, and a paid trip to the final Doodle 4 Google event in June. For more details, check out g.co/d4gcanada.

To help judge this year’s competition, the Honourable Kirsty Duncan, Minister of Science, En Masse co-founder Jason Botkin, president of the National Inuit Youth Council Maatalii Okalik, and Google Doodler Sophie Diao, will join us as your panel of esteemed doodle judges.

When we come up with themes for our videos, we look to cool things in science and tech for inspiration. If you know a young artist that may need a little nudge to get their creative juices flowing, we’ve worked with Google to create classroom activities that will help parents, teachers and students brainstorm, design and submit their doodles.

Participating is easier than ever. This year, students can submit a doodle made from almost any medium….including code! Ladies Learning Code created an online tutorial offering inspiration and a step-by-step guide to coding a Google doodle. Check it out here.

In Toronto in April? All throughout the month of April, parents and kids can visit the Art Gallery of Ontario to get inspired and create a doodle during Family Sundays.

Teachers and parents can download entry forms on the Doodle 4 Google site. Doodles can be uploaded digitally to Google’s site or mailed directly. Submissions are due on May 2nd. There’s no limit to the number of doodles from any one school or family... Just remember, only one doodle per student.

Let’s get our doodle on, Canada!

*Entrants need a parent or legal guardian’s permission (and signature on the entry form) in order to participate. Residents of Quebec must be at least thirteen years of age. Please see full terms and eligibility requirements here: doodles.google.ca/d4g/rules.html