From Trinidad to Tech Valley: How One Founder’s Unlikely Journey Might Reshape Industrial Safety
From Trinidad to Tech Valley: How One Founder’s Unlikely Journey Might Reshape Industrial Safety
At just 24 years old, Thomas Lee Young — the CEO of Interface — hardly fits the stereotype of a Silicon Valley founder. Growing up in Trinidad and Tobago, surrounded by oil rigs and energy infrastructure due to his family’s multi-generation engineering background, Young’s path to AI and industrial safety is anything but ordinary. :contentReference[oaicite:3]{index=3}
🌍 A Background Rooted in Oil & Gas — Not Code
Young’s upbringing gave him a unique, ground-level perspective on heavy industry. Despite dreaming early of engineering at California Institute of Technology (Caltech), pandemic-related visa and financial setbacks forced him to pivot: he ended up studying mechanical engineering at University of Bristol in the UK. :contentReference[oaicite:6]{index=6}
After graduation, he worked at Jaguar Land Rover in human-factors engineering — a role focused on designing industrial systems with safety and usability in mind. It was there that he recognized a major problem: safety documentation in industrial settings was often outdated, error-prone, or simply ignored. :contentReference[oaicite:8]{index=8}
🚀 From Industrial Frustration to Startup Ambition
When a proposal to fix those safety-doc issues at Jaguar Land Rover was turned down, Young made a bold decision: he applied (cold) to enter the talent incubator Entrepreneur First (EF), was accepted — despite lacking a co-founder or a fully formed idea — then quit his job soon after. This leap of faith led to the founding of Interface, together with co-founder Aaryan Mehta. :contentReference[oaicite:11]{index=11}
Together, they aim to use AI to retrofit safety procedures for heavy-industry workplaces: Interface’s software automatically audits operating procedures, cross-checking them against regulations, technical drawings, and company policies to catch dangerous errors that might otherwise go unnoticed. :contentReference[oaicite:12]{index=12}
✅ Early Results: Proof of Concept — and a Wake-Up Call
Interface’s approach appears to be delivering. In one deployment across three sites of a major Canadian energy company, their system identified over 10,800 errors and improvement opportunities in just 2.5 months. The same audit done manually would have reportedly taken 2–3 years and cost more than US$35 million. :contentReference[oaicite:13]{index=13}
Among the many flagged issues was a dangerously outdated valve-pressure range — a mistake that had lingered for a decade. “They’re just lucky nothing happened,” warned a partner from the lead investor. :contentReference[oaicite:14]{index=14}
🧠 Being an “Outsider” — But Maybe That’s the Advantage
Young himself admits that his youth, background and unusual name often provoke skepticism in boardrooms full of seasoned executives. But that outsider status may actually work in his favor. Once he explains how he understands both the frontline realities of heavy-industry and modern tech, he claims, those same executives often become strong supporters — even champions — of Interface. :contentReference[oaicite:15]{index=15}
Young keeps a hard hat on his desk in San Francisco — a symbol of his readiness for industrial-site visits. For many engineers tired of building “low-impact B2B tools,” he argues, the chance to blend real-world industrial impact with cutting-edge AI is a compelling draw. :contentReference[oaicite:16]{index=16}
🔮 Why This Could Matter — For Industry and AI
- As AI technologies proliferate, applying them in sectors like energy, manufacturing, and industrial safety (rather than consumer apps) could deliver outsized real-world benefits.
- Interface’s strong early results suggest the industrial-tech vertical may have been under-served by traditional software solutions — opening a large, tangible market.
- Founders with nontraditional backgrounds (like Young) may have unique advantages bridging legacy industries and modern AI — potentially sparking more innovation in sectors beyond the stereotypical “tech startup” spaces.
