In a field obsessed with the future, sometimes it’s worth looking back. OGs of Tech is a new occasional series from Close All Tabs that looks beyond the billionaires to spotlight the often-overlooked innovators who helped build the digital world we live in today.

One of these OGs is Felidoro Cueva, who grew up in a rural village in the Andes mountains of Peru, and immigrated to the US in 1964 — during the height of the Civil Rights Movement and the Vietnam War. He went on to become one of the first Latino engineers in Silicon Valley.

And he’s also our producer Maya Cueva’s dad. Maya takes us through Feli’s journey — from how counterculture experimentation influenced his fascination with technology to the discrimination he faced in a startup world where Latino representation was nearly nonexistent.

Guests:

Felidoro Cueva, a pioneering Latino engineer in Silicon Valley

Further reading:

Only The Moon/Solamente La Luna — directed by Maya Cueva and animated by Leah Nichols

Meshugganismo — Maya Cueva, Latino USA

Read the transcript here

Want to give us feedback on the series? Shoot us an email at CloseAllTabs@KQED.org

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Credits:

This episode was reported and hosted by Morgan Sung. Our Producer is Maya Cueva. Chris Egusa is our Senior Editor. Jen Chien is KQED’s Director of Podcasts, and also helps edit the show. Sound design by Maya Cueva and Brendan Willard. Original music, including our theme song, by Chris Egusa. Additional music from APM. Mixing and mastering by Brendan Willard. Audience engagement support from Maha Sanad. Katie Sprenger is our Podcast Operations Manager. Ethan Toven-Lindsay is our Editor in Chief.

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OGs of Tech: A Latino Engineer in Silicon Valley