DataTalks.Club From Semiconductors to Machine Learning: A Career in Data and Teaching
Oct 10, 2025
Dashel Ruiz, a data and machine learning practitioner with a rich background in semiconductors and software engineering, shares his fascinating career journey. He discusses transitioning from hardware to data science, revealing how he utilized machine learning to enhance semiconductor production. Dashel emphasizes the importance of practical experience in data education and contrasts it with traditional university methods. He also delves into his creative projects, like developing predictive models and APIs, while highlighting the value of community support in learning.
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From Music To The Fab Floor
- Dashel arrived in the U.S. as a political refugee from Cuba and initially worked as a wafer expediter at Microchip.
- Walking the fab and moving wafers gave him hands-on exposure that led to technician and process roles.
Fab Logs Are Exceptionally Dense
- Semiconductor tools generate extremely high-frequency, detailed logs capturing pressures, gases, and timings for each step.
- That volume and granularity make manual analysis infeasible and create strong demand for automated data solutions.
Built A Tool That Never Deployed
- Dashel automated repetitive wafer log parsing and manual calculations by writing a JavaFX application.
- The app proved the value of automation, though IT later preferred a different tech stack and did not adopt his version.