Meet Calvin Gee

We recently connected with Calvin Gee and have shared our conversation below.

Calvin, thank you so much for joining us. You are such a positive person and it’s something we really admire and so we wanted to start by asking you where you think your optimism comes from?

I think optimism is especially poignant right now. We’re living in a time of immense uncertainty—global markets are teetering, identity politics have fractured not just the U.S. but much of the world, and climate change is threatening the very economic systems we’ve come to rely on. Some of the largest insurance companies are warning that their business models—and by extension, the capitalist structure of modern society—may not be sustainable.
So yes, it can feel jarring—even naive—to be optimistic in times like these. But this isn’t the first era where humanity has faced existential threats. It may be the first time they’ve arrived all at once, with such speed and global reach, but I believe in the resilience of the human spirit. I believe in our adaptability. And more than that—I believe that change is the greatest catalyst for opportunity.
I’m the son of two immigrant parents who lived the American Dream the hard way. When U.S. policies only allowed working-aged men to immigrate, my grandfather had to leave his family behind. My mother didn’t meet her father until she was 9—stepping off a plane in Detroit, Michigan.
I watched her raise me while working full time and getting her doctorate. I grew up around stories of struggle, sacrifice, and civil rights—my parents often having to fight their own battles with discrimination. And I’m only 34. This isn’t ancient history. My grandmother is 99. Slavery in America ended just 159 years ago. These legacies are not distant—they live in our bones.
So I’ve seen firsthand what perseverance looks like. What it means to rise in the face of impossible odds. Our world is still unfair, still inequitable in many ways—but billions have been lifted from poverty. Deadly diseases are now distant memories. And we live in an age that would have been called magic just 50 years ago.
As someone working on the frontier of technology, I get to live a little bit in the future. I see what’s coming: AI that can democratize education, relieve people of mind-numbing labor, and maybe—just maybe—usher in a new human renaissance.
But only if we fight for it.
So where does my optimism come from? It comes from lived experience. From witnessing what belief, sacrifice, and purpose can create. Optimism doesn’t mean ignoring the darkness—it means having the courage to light a candle anyway. The world doesn’t just need perspective right now. It needs people willing to act on it.

Thanks, so before we move on maybe you can share a bit more about yourself?

I’m the CEO of Engage, a deep tech company focused on solving some of the most complex and important problems of our time. We work with some of the biggest brands in the world, but more importantly, we work on challenges that actually matter. Whether it’s accelerating drug discovery and gene therapy for companies like Bora, improving wages and work conditions for blue-collar workers at Caliber Collision, or reimagining the fairness and fan experience in sports with PBR and Endeavor—our mission is rooted in impact.

But what sets us apart isn’t just what we build—it’s how we build. We’re not using AI to replace people. We’re using it to amplify human potential. We partner with employees on the front lines—often in industries overlooked by Silicon Valley—to co-create solutions that are a win for both the workforce and the enterprise. Real transformation happens when you’re grounded in empathy and economics. That’s the sweet spot where real, lasting change can emerge.

So much of what we see today in tech is either performative or disconnected from reality. At Engage, we’re not interested in looking good—we’re here to do good. And frankly, I don’t think the world has time for anything less.

One of the most exciting things we’ve done recently is launch the world’s first AI-powered school in Manassas, Virginia. Every student has access to an AI teacher. Every lesson is tailored to their unique learning style. And because it’s also a basketball academy, we’re integrating personalized coaching, wellness, and performance training through our AI health platform. It’s not just a school—it’s a glimpse into the future of human development.

We’re quietly working on massive transformations inside industries like healthcare, education, and logistics. But in the next 6 months, many of our products will begin rolling out to the public. So I encourage folks to keep an eye on our public keynotes and upcoming releases at engagework.com. The future isn’t just coming—it’s being built right now.

If you had to pick three qualities that are most important to develop, which three would you say matter most?

One of the most important traits any entrepreneur can have is radical self-awareness.
Not ambition. Not risk tolerance. Not hustle. Just the ability to really understand who you are—and why you’re doing this in the first place.
This path isn’t for everyone. There are far easier ways to make money. And more stable ones too. I was lucky—I knew early. My first “venture” was in kindergarten, hand-drawing comic books and selling them to classmates. I’d show them the first page, collect a quarter up front, and promise the rest later. I didn’t know it at the time, but I was basically raising angel funding.
Those early signals matter. And over time, I’ve learned that the ability to tune into those things—what lights you up, what feels intuitive even when it doesn’t make sense—is a kind of internal compass. That’s what self-awareness really is. And it’s hard to develop, because it forces you to confront yourself. Your blind spots. Your patterns. Your coping mechanisms.
Most people distract themselves—work, social media, noise. But when you remove the noise, the question remains: Who are you really, and what do you want?
That kind of clarity is going to matter even more as AI changes the way we work. A lot of traditional jobs will be automated, and that’s not necessarily a bad thing. The last industrial revolution gave us weekends and ended child labor. Maybe this next one gives us space to rethink how we spend our time—what we create, what we care about, and who we become when we’re not defined by a job title.
Once you know who you are and what you’re really here for, the next essential skill is unrelenting persistence.
Because this isn’t a straight line. It’s an infinite game. You’ll hear “no” more than “yes.” You’ll be told your ideas are too crazy, too risky, too early. Sometimes by strangers. Sometimes by people you love. But if you’re built for this, you’ll keep going—not out of ego, but out of alignment.
And something that made a huge difference for me? A tribe.
After college, I found myself surrounded by people who were just as intense and creative as I was—musicians, filmmakers, athletes, philanthropists. We were all in different lanes, but we saw something in each other. We backed one another.
I got my buddy Jack on stage to open for Lil Wayne. My friend Ryan would shoot promo videos for my latest app. We would help our friend Mike out with his NFL camp for kids. And Mallory was doing humanitarian work overseas—so we supported her projects too. We traded skills. We opened doors. But more than anything, we believed in one another—especially when no one else did.
That’s the cheat code. As the African proverb goes: “If you want to go fast, go alone. If you want to go far, go together.”
And here’s the last thing I’ll say: be kind.
Kind to others, and kind to yourself.
This game can be brutal. The pressure, the uncertainty, the endless comparisons. It can harden you if you’re not careful. But I’ve learned that kindness—genuine kindness—is a competitive advantage. You don’t have to sacrifice excellence to be decent.
In fact, I’ve seen people do the opposite—lose themselves chasing success. They hit the goals, sure, but they become unrecognizable in the process. And I think that’s a quiet kind of tragedy.
Lately, I’ve been inspired by what I see in the AI space. There’s a wave of open-source contribution happening right now. People building not just for money—but because it’s useful. Because it helps others. Because it’s the right thing to do. That kind of generosity? It creates real momentum. And it creates real change in the world.
So if I could leave you with one more thing: do good.
People can feel authenticity. They can feel intention. And when you’re doing something real, for the right reasons, the right people will show up. Doors open. Help arrives. Things fall into place—not because it’s easy, but because you’re aligned.
And that makes all the difference.

If you knew you only had a decade of life left, how would you spend that decade?

Steve Jobs used to look in the mirror every morning and ask himself, ‘If today were the last day of my life, would I want to do what I’m about to do today?’ And if the answer was “no” too many days in a row, he knew something had to change.

When I was 23, I got the call that my mom had been diagnosed with uterine cancer. She’s a warrior, and thankfully, they caught it in time. But that moment shook me to my core. It was the first time I came face-to-face with mortality and just how short life is. I had my own Steve Jobs moment. I realized: if I died the next day, did I live the life I truly wanted to live?

The very next day, I quit my job. I was working on Michigan’s most popular radio show. No plan. No savings. I was making $32k a year, so not much to fall back on anyway. And while I might approach it differently now, I don’t regret it for a second.

They say you live two lives. And that the second begins the day you realize you only have one.

We only get so many days. So many chances to do something with our lives. Why not choose you? Why not choose the fire that burns deep inside your soul? I’ve never looked back since.

The journey hasn’t been easy. It’s been full of sacrifices, detours, and hard truths. But even in failure—even in the face of death—I knew I was doing the most important thing I could with my time on Earth. Or at the very least, I was choosing to take ownership over my own destiny.

That’s how I see my work. My purpose. My art. They’re not separate—they’re inextricably linked. And honestly, it makes everything easier. When you have a true north star, it’s easier to say no to distractions. To things that don’t move you forward.
But here’s the part people don’t talk about: You can have anything in life—just not everything. That’s the cost of chasing something with your whole heart. You miss birthdays. Weddings. Relationships sometimes take a back seat. I’m not asking for sympathy—but I believe in being real about the trade-offs.
Because when you find something you’re willing to die for, the real question becomes: Are you willing to live for it? That’s the hard part. But if you do, you won’t live with regrets. And better yet—you won’t die with them either.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.engagework.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/mrcalvingee/
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/calvingee/