Aaron Collins

My name is Aaron, and I'm deeply concerned about the state of the world. Between climate change, mental health concerns, the growing risks of AI systems, and... let's call it "geopolitical concerns", I've decided that I can't sit on the sidelines any longer. But what does that mean? I've certainly taken the scenic route in my career. I got into engineering so I could help people. I thought I'd be a civil engineer and travel the world building infrastructure; but CMU was hard and I got scared of being broke, so I pivoted to mechanical engineering. As a Booz Allen consultant intern, I learned about the real world. Sure I gave presentations and did analytics work, but I also saw cracks in our system. I worked on a food waste reduction project. We saw the biggest contributor to the issue was at the consumer level! Would an app or device really fix the issue if it came down to the preferences and behaviors of individuals? I stopped sprinting so hard. I played frisbee, I bartended, I tutored, I did manual labor digging holes in the ground. And then the whole world stopped in March of 2020, which REALLY helped me slow down. It also helped me finish my degree REMOTELY; netting me my first 4.0 taking senior level courses. I found work helping protect our armed forces as a Solutions Engineer at Bowler Pons. The title is misleading, I was essentially a do-it-all engineer in a small govtech startup environment. I enjoyed working there. My struggle was in accepting my complicity in another system that didn't seem to be helping the people that needed it most. I realized, "If there's a fire you're trying to douse, you can't put it out from inside the house" I took a break. I helped found a new competitive frisbee team from the ground up. Once I got that hit of creativity I couldn't turn back. I started writing and singing. I found calling outside of myself and a much deeper sense of meaning then I'd dared to believe existed. I realized my life isn't what I say I value, my title, or my salary; it's the presence I bring and the actions I take. I applied my software skills to AI Safety; 80000hours.org named it as the highest positive impact field to transition into in March 2025. I started volunteering with Quest of Life to provide peer-support to people who are just struggling and can't afford therapy. I know I'm doing my LinkedIn post wrong; fine. Looking for work has been harder than normal because most posts are negative, ChatGPT, or both. I believe creativity, courage, and community are the way out. But actions speak Louder than Words. 'Nuff said!