From medical ambitions to AI: The making of a machine learning expert

In this edition of After Hours, Gift Ojeabulu shares how an unplanned switch to computer science, a crashed laptop, and a growing curiosity for problem-solving led him into machine learning.

What began as a childhood fascination with computers in Lagos cyber cafés has evolved into a career in machine learning, data science, and MLOps. And while he initially wanted to become a medical doctor, Gift Ojeabulu found his way back to tech, with a few stops along the way as a rapper and dancer.

Today, he is a machine learning engineer working with global teams and a co-founder of Data Community Africa, an initiative advancing data and AI education across the continent.

In this edition of After Hours, Ojeabulu walks us through his journey from predicting Champions League scores with data models to becoming a machine learning engineer despite 

Early encounters with technology

My earliest memory of technology takes me back to primary school. I grew up in Ketu, Lagos, when cyber cafés were everywhere. For many people, those cafés were tied to a certain kind of Internet culture, but for me, it was a window into something fascinating.

Through my older brothers, I was exposed to computers earlier than most of my peers. Whenever I got money for school, I would sometimes sneak into a café to browse for a few minutes. That was my first real interaction with a computer, mostly clicking around and learning to control the mouse.

Even in school, I stood out during ICT classes. At the time, I didn’t fully understand what that meant. I just knew I enjoyed it.

But if I’m being honest, gaming got to me way before that. We had a Sega at home, and I was always on it. My brother and I would also head to the game shop to play Winning 11, PS1 and PS2. Those were good times. By SS1, I had my own laptop, though I mostly used it for FIFA and Mortal Kombat. 

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