July 23, 1962 marks the date my grandmother was gifted to the world and March 29, 1998 was the day she was taken away. The culprit — none but the notorious breast cancer. Her grim reaper not only brought about her death, but great sorrow over my family and many others. Everyday, I’m informed of those who suffer the same fate and many more who have felt the pain of losing a loved one — a daunting reality which only served to strip people of their full potential leaving them and myself in seemingly powerless positions to do anything about it. Though this cellular-level crusader has claimed the lives of so many and doesn’t plan on stopping, there have been endless efforts to fortify our population against the disease. These efforts include the works of Geetha Manjunath, an Indian entrepreneur and computer scientist who founded Niramai Health Analytix after witnessing the struggles of a family member who suffered from breast cancer. The company, Niramai, provides breast cancer screenings to women and has (paved) the way in how diagnosing the disease is handled. The method behind its great success is Thermalytix, the machine learning and AI powered software the company uses and the invention of the last 10 years I would like to write about. Thermalytix uses thermal imaging to measure temperature variations on the chest. AI and machine learning techniques recognize and identify patterns in the screening to detect signs of cancer. The innovative take on breast cancer diagnosis revolutionized the field in India as it outperformed traditional methods which failed to catch the cancer in early stages – the most effective time to begin treatment. The entire process is non-invasive, radiation-free, painless, and can be done without seeing or touching the patient offering a more comfortable environment. In addition to detecting cancer early on, the method is efficient and affordable. Since the diagnosis uses a thermal sensor, reports take only 15-20 minutes and don't require high technical skills to operate. The sensor is relatively inexpensive to implement allowing for smaller medical centers to use the technology and, in turn, provides cheaper healthcare for patients. AI speeds up the diagnosis and, without the consultation of a doctor, operators can tell whether a patient needs to go to hospital or if there are any concerns. Doctors can also use reports from the sensor as a reliable second opinion when treating patients. Geetha’s skill in turning powerlessness into opportunity makes her invention especially important to me. In the future I aspire to go into a career in software engineering and cybersecurity. My ultimate goal in software engineering is to create innovative solutions to problems faced daily by working on software people not only enjoy but can be used practically. As a woman, I want to use my perspective to bring light to problems that are often overlooked, offer insight on how products can be made more inclusive towards women considering the STEM field is mostly male, and continue to pave the way for other women and girls who aspire to do similar work. In a cybersecurity career, I aim to protect our population from the growing number of cyber threats, especially those emerging from the rapid evolution of technology — the biggest one being AI. Though AI has its benefits as seen in Manjunath’s work, it is a double-edged sword having the capabilities of creating great strides, yet simultaneously of facilitating facetious and deceitful actions. In my future career, I would like to combat this by pioneering the field in solutions against such threats while conquering existing breaches and concerns.