About this video

• Video Title: Fatima AlKaabi: Taking On Challenges As A Woman In STEM
• Channel: Oh My Curry Goodness
• Speakers: Hamza Islam, Fatima AlKaabi
• Duration: 46:57

Overview

This podcast episode features a conversation with Fatima AlKaabi, the UAE's youngest inventor. The discussion centers on her journey in STEM, the challenges she has faced as a woman in the field, her passion for inventing and helping others, and the importance of representation and embracing creativity.

Key takeaways

• Fatima AlKaabi, at 13, became the UAE's youngest inventor, creating devices like a robot that takes pictures and a system to prevent texting while driving.
• Despite facing backlash as a woman in STEM, she perseveres to encourage more women, particularly in the Middle East, to enter STEM fields.
• Her motivation stems from a desire to help people and build innovative solutions, influenced by her upbringing, community, and diverse cultural experiences.
• AlKaabi emphasizes that the "how to help someone" question is more challenging than "what to build," as people's needs are complex and sometimes require kindness or guidance, not just inventions.
• She highlights the importance of research and direct interaction with the community to understand actual needs when developing inventions, drawing parallels to companies that fail by making assumptions about user needs.
• Her early inspiration came from shows like "How It's Made," "Dexter's Lab," and "Phineas and Ferb," which fueled her imagination and desire to create.
• AlKaabi encourages young people, especially girls, to embrace their creativity and imagination, dispelling the stereotype that STEM enthusiasts are "nerds" and are not social.
• She shares a personal experience of facing prejudice from a professor, learning to let her work speak for itself and using kindness to overcome conflict.
• A significant misconception is that STEM individuals are "super geniuses" who are not human or struggle with basic subjects; AlKaabi reveals she struggled with math and science in college but excelled in building and inventing.
• She advocates for embracing failure as a part of the process in inventing and STEM, using her first, seemingly crude, invention as an example of learning and growth.
• AlKaabi identifies herself as her biggest enemy due to perfectionist tendencies but also her biggest supporter, with time being another challenge she faces in maximizing her productivity.

Fatima AlKaabi differentiates between "how to help someone" and "what to build" by explaining that helping people is more complex. She notes that people may not always want to receive help, or the issues might be too intricate for her to solve. While she finds building solutions exciting once the root of a problem is understood, the "how to help" aspect is harder because people might need kindness, conversation, or guidance rather than a new invention. She emphasizes that sometimes people need to be left alone, and figuring out the best way to contribute requires understanding these nuances.