“Life’s too short to build bad software”: Youngest engineer landed Microsoft job at 16

Rayyan Siddiqui, a tech prodigy from Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada, thinks that “life is too short to build bad software”, so he started interning at Microsoft when he was only 14 years old.

A couple of years later he was formally hired by the same company, becoming the world’s youngest software engineer (male) at the age of 16 years 340 days, on 17 September 2021.

If you think he was way too young, consider this: Rayyan started coding at just nine years old, built one of the largest anime apps by 12, and graduated high school at 14.

“It all started with Photoshop,” he tells us recalling what ignited his passion for IT.

“I had an idea one day that it would be cool to change the colour of my little sister's eyes. I searched up a tutorial on YouTube when I was seven years old. From changing eye colours to putting six pack abs on my uncles, […]  my interest in photo editing grew.”

Encouraged by his family, he was soon introduced to basic web development. Between the ages of seven and 12, he continued teaching himself through YouTube, diving into everything from websites to apps to games.

His early projects included a British Columbia tour guide app, a cartoon streaming platform and a court counter for basketball games.

Despite his many projects, Rayyan didn’t let school take a backseat.

“I had a very 'fast' school experience – I finished four years of high school in 1.5 years,” he explains.

“[But] this didn't take away from my experience. I loved all the sciences, PE, English literature, and social studies. Anything physical like a chem lab or a PE sports contest I enjoyed the most. I made lifelong friends […] and many lifelong connections with teachers and the local community.”

But software engineering captured his heart, and he wasn’t willing to wait until he was older to start pursuing it as a career.

“The whole process is very enjoyable,” he told us, explaining what draws him to the field. 

“Starting from writing down possible solutions to a problem, to prototyping, to building and deploying a solution, to then maintaining it over a long period of time. You have to build software that is scalable, reliable and solves an actual problem. 

“Software engineering is the art that forces you to think critically and build something that lives well into the future.”

It wasn’t long before his skills opened doors to a full-time position at one of the world’s biggest tech companies.

And if you’re wondering what a day working at Microsoft looks like, here’s what Rayyan shared with us: “My typical day starts with a team meeting where we all meet up and review what we did the day before and what the goal is for today.

“[…] A good chunk of the day is just for communication. Communication is important, especially at the enterprise scale Microsoft operates at. […] My day is usually 40% communication, 40% focus time for coding, and 20% for day-to-day tasks that come up.”

He said: “The culture at Microsoft is very engineer driven.

“The experience is priceless, I don't know of any other place that pays you to learn every day. You get to collaborate with top tier engineers, managers and tech executives from around the world. […] This is what I wanted since I was a kid.”

It seems little Rayyan’s dream has come true – perhaps faster than most childhood dreams.

With ChatGPT taking the world by storm, Rayyan admits he’s completely hooked:

“I enjoy using ChatGPT a little too much, the AI is like my best friend at this point,” he says with a laugh.

But technology doesn’t define his entire life – the now-20-year-old is also passionate about sports and a variety of other interests.

“Formula 1 is [a big hobby of mine], playing chess is very big. I even used to host a neighbourhood chess tournament in Vancouver called Noob Chess League ($5 buy-in, last one standing takes it all). We would have students from other high schools join us as well!”

That entrepreneurial spirit definitely comes through, even in his hobbies.

“Working out is [also] important to me. I got all of my friends into the gym and we can't get enough of it. I love competition so sign me up for any sport. I love basketball, football, tennis and just about any sport where you win that's out there.”

Clearly, he’s an all-around champion, and earning a world record title is one of the achievements he’s most proud of.

“[Breaking a record feels] UNREAL! I remember as a kid I would watch people on YouTube show their titles and I remember saying to myself 'how cool would it be to have a world record, to be the one to do something out of 8 billion people'. The feeling is awesome and relieving.”

Seeing validation for the path he started when he was only seven years old has meant a lot to his parents and extended family too.

“They have always been there for support and kept believing in me,” he explains.

But Rayyan already has his sights set on something bigger, as he’s working on growing his own tech company, RayTech, and building a global community to help others learn and succeed in the world of tech and AI. 

And of course, he would like to break more world records.

“Maybe something in fitness, that would be super cool, [like] most one-handed push-ups or most one-leg squats in one minute.”

At just 20, the tech prodigy’s journey is only now starting – and the future looks anything but ordinary.