In this episode, Omar Alvarez, founder of Kinnect, shares his incredible journey from growing up amid gang violence in Chicago to breaking into Nike’s ultra-competitive hiring pipeline—beating a 0.5% acceptance rate. He dives into his experiences as a Division 1 athlete, surviving a Twitter mass layoff before even starting his job, and eventually launching Kinect, an AI-powered platform preserving human stories.
Omar discusses:
- His early life in Chicago and the unique challenges of being a first-generation Latino navigating two worlds.
- How he broke into Nike despite having no elite school background or industry connections.
- The pivotal moment at NikeTown Chicago that changed his career trajectory.
- Why he left Nike for Twitter, only to be laid off before Day 1, and how he rebounded at Levi’s.
- The personal loss of his grandfather and close friend that shaped his vision for Kinect.
- The problem with modern social media and how AI can revolutionize memory preservation and deep connections.
Packed with actionable insights on resilience, storytelling, and startup building, this conversation is a must-listen for entrepreneurs, creatives, and anyone interested in AI’s role in human connection.
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Popular Podcasts
Stuff You Should Know
If you've ever wanted to know about champagne, satanism, the Stonewall Uprising, chaos theory, LSD, El Nino, true crime and Rosa Parks, then look no further. Josh and Chuck have you covered.
Las Culturistas with Matt Rogers and Bowen Yang
Ding dong! Join your culture consultants, Matt Rogers and Bowen Yang, on an unforgettable journey into the beating heart of CULTURE. Alongside sizzling special guests, they GET INTO the hottest pop-culture moments of the day and the formative cultural experiences that turned them into Culturistas. Produced by the Big Money Players Network and iHeartRadio.
Crime Junkie
Does hearing about a true crime case always leave you scouring the internet for the truth behind the story? Dive into your next mystery with Crime Junkie. Every Monday, join your host Ashley Flowers as she unravels all the details of infamous and underreported true crime cases with her best friend Brit Prawat. From cold cases to missing persons and heroes in our community who seek justice, Crime Junkie is your destination for theories and stories you won’t hear anywhere else. Whether you're a seasoned true crime enthusiast or new to the genre, you'll find yourself on the edge of your seat awaiting a new episode every Monday. If you can never get enough true crime... Congratulations, you’ve found your people. Follow to join a community of Crime Junkies! Crime Junkie is presented by audiochuck Media Company.