Growing with Fathom: Elliot Tian

From time to time, Fathom invites team members to reflect on their journey with Fathom. In this blog, Elliot Tian, Software Engineer, shares the story of his experience at Fathom and his journey from aspiring game programmer to working at Fathom.

Did you know that one of the first computer games ever made was created over 60 years ago? Steve Russell created Spacewar and it pretty much kicked off the whole video game industry.

Growing up in Shenyang, China, I was just as fascinated by games, but maybe not in the way you'd expect. While my friends were busy trying to win matches in League of Legends and Overwatch, I wondered about how these games actually worked. How did the computer know what to do when I clicked something? What made the characters move the way they did?

I actually took this curiosity pretty far – at 14, I decided to start my own Minecraft server. At first, it was just for fun, but when players started leaving for other servers, I knew I had to make mine more interesting. So I taught myself Java and started creating custom plugins and new game modes. I had no idea what I was doing at first, but I kept at it. The funny thing is, not only did it work (the server ended up making thousands of dollars), but it also introduced me to the world of coding. What started as simple curiosity about how games worked had turned into something much bigger.

And once I actually started learning proper programming, I couldn't get enough. Every new thing I learned just opened up more possibilities to explore. While I started with computer science and found the theoretical side pretty interesting, what really clicked for me was software engineering – actually building things and solving problems with other people. I wanted to see where this could take me, so I decided to study abroad and landed at Carnegie Mellon University for my master's in software engineering.

Finding my way to Fathom

After graduating, I landed a new job at an autonomous driving startup in the U.S. The work was fascinating, but I had my eye on something else. When I was taking classes at CMU, my friends had told me about this healthcare AI company called Fathom. At the time, Fathom had only 17 people, and while my first application didn't work out, I couldn't shake the feeling that they were building something special.

Fast forward a bit, and a second chance at Fathom came up after my time in autonomous vehicles. The interview process was intense but moved quickly, and what struck me most was how genuine everyone was. The engineers who interviewed me – now my colleagues – were incredibly helpful and seemed to actually care about my success.

Growth through mentorship

The thing about Fathom that really stands out is how much the team invests in helping engineers grow and develop their skills. My mentors Adil and Jacob were always there when I needed them. We'd catch up regularly, and they never made me feel bad about asking basic questions (and believe me, I had a lot of questions to bother my mentors with).

This supportive environment made it easier to dive into the variety of work my role involves. I've gone from working with data one day to tackling system architecture the next. While it was pretty overwhelming at first, I've reached a point where I can handle most challenges on my own – though there's always something new to learn.

Here's something that surprises people: I actually love coming into the office. Maybe it's because our New York location makes me feel like I'm in the middle of everything – we're right across from the iconic Charging Bull statue (yes, there are people lined up every day to take pictures with it, come rain, shine, or snow), right in the heart of the Financial District. Plus, working in the office sparks natural collaboration – quick questions turn into productive discussions, fostering a dynamic that's hard to get online.

At Fathom, I get to combine my love for solving technical puzzles with work that matters. Each client brings new challenges that keep me learning and growing. I truly enjoy my time working at Fathom and look forward to welcoming more people to join us into our journey.