Today we’d like to introduce you to Ricky Fok.
Hi Ricky, so excited to have you on the platform. So before we get into questions about your work-life, maybe you can bring our readers up to speed on your story and how you got to where you are today?
You know growing up I’ve always loved tech. My dad is an engineer and worked at a big tech company for almost 20 years and I was definitely influenced by his passion for engineering and computers. Growing up that was definitely apparent. We had a lot of push in the way of making sure that we did a lot of maths and sciences. I did a lot of engineering programs, math programs, and robotics programs throughout high school and that was just something that I was really interested in.
After graduating high school, I decided to pursue my degree in Computer Science at Cal Poly Pomona. During that time, I did some technical internships and was an instructor at Juni Learning, teaching K-12 students fundamental concepts of computer science. I also did computer vision research and led the computer science club, where I was able to lay the initial groundwork for the rebooted hackathon, Bronco Hacks. It was also where I helped build the student-led mentorship program. I graduated from Cal Poly in three years, summa cum laude. After that, I interned at NASA JPL and then went on to study at UCLA.
The reason why I wanted to go to UCLA was to learn more about AI and advanced topics, and to get a better taste for research. I took courses in machine learning and quantum computing and worked as a graduate student researcher in a lab. Everything moved really fast. During that bridge period, I got married, had my first kid, and was hit by a car. It was a difficult time because all these major events were happening at once. It was especially tough because my wife had a medical condition, and we had to be separated for long periods of time. I was recovering alone at school while she was away with our child.
Even during that time, I tried my best to be proactive, and just do things. I did an internship in New York where I met some of my best friends, finished my master’s degree with a thesis on a novel method for automated test generation for code, and was invited back by the CEO of Juni Learning to do content creation, where I generated over a million views.
The accident was actually the inspiration for the startup I’m building now, Stridan. I was able to secure funding, which allowed me to build out this app—essentially the “Duolingo for daily physical activity.” It aims to solve a problem I think a lot of people face, and I’m really excited about it.
After graduating from UCLA, I joined eSmart Tech to contribute to my father’s engineering services company. I’ve helped build web applications, cybersecurity projects, and headed our efforts for securing new projects. A year after graduation, I reconnected with Justin Breznev, whom I had met while judging an event at UCLA. He’s the founder of LA Hacks and the CEO of Hacker Fund, a non-profit that has been helping students for over 11 years. I joined the initiative early last year; since then, I’ve mentored and judged at hackathons in the LA area and helped secure funding for our events.
Throughout all of this, I’ve been mentoring kids from my alma maters ever since I graduated from Cal Poly. I started my own mentorship group called Airmont. Every semester, I take a few students and teach them the things I wish I’d known in school—helping them find a clear picture of their career path and secure internships at places like Microsoft, Amazon, and Y Combinator-backed companies, or get into schools like UT Austin and UCLA.
That’s where I’m at! I’m in San Diego, still contributing to my dad’s company at eSmart Tech, building Stridan, working with the Hacker Fund, and mentoring through Airmont. My most recent endeavor is being selected as a founding host for Vercel’s v0. They have a huge new update coming and want to host a build event in San Diego. It’s open to anyone—middle school, high school, or professionals. If you’re interested in this AI wave and how it’s made building apps really easy, I encourage you to come: https://luma.com/bn4t3a21
I’m sure it wasn’t obstacle-free, but would you say the journey has been fairly smooth so far?
It definitely wasn’t easy. Graduating in three years was incredibly difficult, and honestly, one of the only reasons I did it was because my dad did it. He went to the University of Waterloo in Canada, finished a double major and a double minor in three years, and graduated at the top of his class. I saw it as a challenge—a “why not?” type of thing. I wanted to test myself to see if I could do it, and I did, but it was grueling. I spent a lot of time just working, sacrificing socialization and a lot of other things, but that was the name of the game.
Even after that, life didn’t slow down. Getting married and having a kid while still in school was one thing, but then I got hit by a car. It actually happened only a week or two after my son was born. A couple of weeks after the accident, I started dealing with my wife’s chronic illness, which is something we still deal with today. Everything hitting at once was incredibly difficult to work through.
But we’re living together now. We have a roof over our heads. We’re together, and we have beautiful kids. That has been enough. Those are the most important things. So yeah, it hasn’t been a smooth road, but we’re here. I don’t think anything is truly a smooth road. Even the experiences and achievements I talk about were rough to get to. It’s easy for people to overlook the struggle when they just see the accomplishments. A lot of my mentees say it’s incredibly impressive, but at the end of the day, I really believe a lot of people can do amazing things. I’m not anything extraordinary; I just worked through the difficult parts.
We’ve been impressed with Stridan, but for folks who might not be as familiar, what can you share with them about what you do and what sets you apart from others?
Stridan is the “Duolingo for staying physically active.” It’s built on an AI-native interface that allows you to track and log your workouts, but the core experience is really about that Duolingo-like gamification. We dial down the recommendations to make sure you are moving in some shape or form every single day.
What sets us apart is this singular focus on daily consistency. It’s not just about hitting the gym; it’s about making sure you’re doing the small things—like taking a walk or doing a few push-ups next to your desk. We want to encourage those simple, accessible movements that anyone can do to stay active, even if it’s just a little bit.
As the founder, I pitch a lot of the vision and direction for the company, but on a day-to-day basis, I’m deep in the engineering, design, and product development. We’ve been working on this for almost a year now, and the engineering endeavor has been a massive learning experience in how to build a high-quality iOS product.
Whether you’re a total beginner who has never touched a weight before or someone who already works out a bit and just wants to achieve more, Stridan is built for you. We’re bringing a modern, gamified experience to fitness that is focused on getting you to show up every day. We are aiming for an official release by the end of Q1, and I encourage anyone interested to sign up for our alpha or join our mailing list. You’ll get an email as soon as we officially launch, but you can check us out at www.stridan.co
Can you share something surprising about yourself?
1. I played varsity badminton in high school. I wasn’t really that good, but I did play in a couple of matches.
2. I played intramural esports—I was on a casual Valorant team for a couple of months at UCLA just for fun with a few other people.
I really do love video games, I just don’t have much time to play them now. And with badminton, I enjoy it, but I don’t really have anyone to play with at the moment. This year, I’m really focused on training for my physical health, so I’m centered more on weight training sessions and runs. I’m not really in the right mindset or time in my life for badminton right now, but hopefully soon—maybe every so often.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.rickyfok.com
- LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/rickyfok009/
- Twitter: https://x.com/drf0k
