Interview with Rasswanth S.
Github: @rasswanth-s
Where are you based?
Tamil Nadu, India
What do you do (i.e., studying, working, etc.)?
I am part of the SMPC (Secure Multi-party Computation) and Core Engineering Team at OpenMined.
What are your specialties (i.e., Python development, JavaScript development, community organization, etc.)?
I work primarily on theoretical and practical aspects of Cryptography, currently focusing on SMPC and its application to PET’s (Privacy Enhancing Technologies).
How and when did you originally come across OpenMined?
I encountered OpenMined through PriCon2020. It was an enriching experience where I got to know a lot about Pet’s. I was then became interested in joining the Crypto Team at OpenMined.
After about a year, I was selected for the Google Summer of Code (GSoc) under OpenMined, which broadened my knowledge about OpenMined.
What was the first thing you started working on within OpenMined?
Initially I started working on integrating the Falcon protocol in SyMPC. It was my first time contributing to Open Source.
This project, particularly, was a great learning curve for me, as I learned how to write good code, as well as doing code reviews and documentation.
And what are you working on now?
Currently I am working on scaling the PySyft Architecture for Encrypted Computation. We recently had a release of PySyft 0.6.0 on the PyTorch Developer Day 2021.
What would you say to someone who wants to start contributing?
OpenMined has a lot of interesting work going on, try exploring the projects that spark your interest. A good starting point would be solving beginner issues on the codebase, and eventually you could do code reviews and add documentation.
I would highly recommend taking our new course Introduction to Remote Data Science for people starting in the codebase and wanting to learn PET’s.
Please recommend one interesting book, podcast or resource to the OpenMined community.
“Foundations of Cryptography Vol 1&2" by Oded Goldreich.