Mahderekal Regassa

Experience

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  Ethiopian Space Science Society

  Jul 2017 - Aug 2017

  Marketing and Communication Team Leader
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  Suki Technologies

  Sept 2020 - Jun 2022

  Co-Founder and CEO

  - Identified lack of data-based decision-making in brick-and-mortar stores as a problem and validated the pain points of shoppers and store owners through interviews.- Cofounded Suki to enable small businesses in bringing the perks of online shopping to their stores.- Conducted research on the target market (TAM analysis and competitive landscape), and devised a business model, and a go-to-market strategy.- Built and tested a minimum-viable product.

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  Wellesley College

  Jun 2021 - Aug 2021

  Research Assistant

  Studied the fundamental quantum behaviors of photons – superposition, entanglement, Heisenberg uncertainty principle– and collaborated with a team of 7 students to replicate the Single Photon Interference Experiment. Worked with optical instruments and built a Mach – Zehnder interferometer; developed a Python program that plotted sinusoidal graphs when interference was observed based on readings from a coincidence counting board. Developed an Arduino program to vary the path length of the interferometer through a piezoelectric transducer (PZT) inserted into a mirror on a movable mount. Show less

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  Weismann Foundry

  Sept 2021 - Jun 2022

  Student Assistant

  - Responsible for assisting users in topics ranging from product ideation and development to finding pieces of equipment. - Trained students on Epilog Fusion Pro and Epilog mini laser cutters, FormLabs resin printer, Stratasys 3D printer, Bandsaw, Miter saw, Tablesaw, Belts and Spindle Sanders, and Drill Press.- Organized events and workshops for users to foster familiarity with equipment, learn new skills and collaborate.

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  Olin Plasma Engineering & Electric Propulsion Lab

  Sept 2021 - Aug 2023

  Undergraduate Researcher

  Collaborated with an intercollegiate team on an interdisciplinary project of building and testing a 50 mm Hall effect thruster. Contributed to a grant proposal that won the BOW Presidential Innovation Grant and Massachusetts Space Grant. Co-led the CAD design and manufacturing - SLA and DMLS printing, ceramic sintering - of a novel additively manufactured propellant diffuser and filled a U.S. provisional patent (No. 63/340566, Additively Manufactured, Azimuthal Gas Diffuser for Hall Thrusters). Presented and published a paper at the International Electric Propulsion Conference and received feedback from industry and academia experts. Published conference proceedings in the Journal of Electric Propulsion. Show less

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  F-Prime Capital

  Jun 2022 - Aug 2022

  Intern

  - Sourced companies by attending conferences, demo days, and pitch competitions- Joined first-time and follow-up founder calls; discerned if companies were a fit for F-Prime by asking relevant questions and consulting various news outlets and databases to get more information about the companies- Delivered a detailed investment opportunity on a specific industry or theme that is interesting for the firm to look into. Researched why the sector is interesting, the market tailwinds, and the big players and interviewed experts in the industry in building the deck.- Worked on increasing the Black-founded startup pipeline at F-Prime. Looked into incubators and accelerator programs working with Historically Black Colleges and Universities and leveraged the Black Capital Venture Consortium network to find more programs working with Black founders. Show less

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  Massachusetts Institute of Technology

  Sept 2022 - Jan 2023

  Research Assistant

  Characterizing Kuiper belt objects (minor planets beyond Neptune) by extracting and analyzing lightcurves from NASA’s Transiting Exoplanet Survey Satellite (TESS) data using python. The goal is to characterize their properties to inform current models of the formation and evolution of the solar system.

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  Massachusetts Institute of Technology

  May 2023 - Aug 2023

  Undergraduate Research Assistant

  I ran uncertainty estimation algorithms to analyze the performance of small Deep Neural Networks to remove the barrier of using energy-intensive DNNs for low-energy robot depth estimation. I created an end-to-end data-collection pipeline to qualitatively and quantitatively analyze uncertainty estimation variation and visualize data. I prepared weekly progress reports for my direct supervisor (Soumya Sudhakar, Ph.D. Candidate) and project update presentations to the entire Low-Energy Autonomy and Navigation Lab monthly. I supplemented my work by reading Pytorch documentation and deep-learning papers for robotics applications. Show less