Adwith Malpe

Adwith Malpe envisions a world where computing technology can strengthen humanity. 

A computer systems engineering degree from the Ira A. Fulton Schools of Engineering at Arizona State University is how he will make that vision a reality. 

The growth mindset he developed at ASU was a key discovery in Malpe’s academic journey, especially the lesson of not shying away from mistakes.

“Embracing my mistakes and failures and understanding how vital they are to the learning process has been a paradigm shift in my mentality,” Malpe says. “The best feelings about this experience are the epiphanies I have when discovering the solutions to my mistakes.”

Part of being a computer systems engineer is gaining skills to teach robots to learn from their mistakes. For his senior capstone project, Malpe developed a reinforcement learning model to train an autonomous robot to transport medical supplies in a hospital intensive care unit to help doctors and nurses battle the spread of COVID-19. 

He hopes to use his technical skills in a career where he can help improve people’s daily routines and reduce stress, especially for frontline health care workers.

“I plan to use the skills I develop to integrate computing systems with medical technology to ensure that doctors and nurses have the best equipment accessible when saving lives,” Malpe says. 

Malpe also helped his peers through leadership roles, serving as the president of ASU’s Artificial Intelligence Club and as a marketing director for the Fulton Schools developer organization MobileDevs. He also led lectures and helped new computer science students as an executive section leader and section leader for ASU 101 introductory courses.

Taking on challenges is something Malpe learned from his parents, who encouraged him to test his limits, set goals and achieve.

“My parents would always remind me that challenges are supposed to strengthen you mentally and physically,” Malpe says. “With their constant coaching, I make sure to welcome challenges that come my way rather than retreat.”

Malpe additionally challenged himself by completing a minor in business. Jacob Gold, a W.P. Carey School of Business faculty associate and Malpe’s mentor, taught him economics, personal finance, how to develop a money mindset and about sacrificing to reach his goals.

“I will continue to take these lessons and apply them in every aspect of my life to become a better version of myself every day,” Malpe says.

The skills Malpe learned bridged the gap between business decision-making and engineering projects — and helped him secure an operations analyst internship with Goldman Sachs this summer.

After earning his master’s degree in computer engineering through ASU’s 4+1 accelerated degree program, Malpe will be ready to apply his artificial intelligence and machine learning skills to benefit society.

Read about other exceptional graduates of the Fulton Schools’ fall 2020 class here.