So let’s start! Tell us a bit about yourself. For example, name, profession, and personal interests.
I have a law degree from the University of Copenhagen, where I specialized in IP, contracts, GDPR, and IT law. In my daily life, I work as a legal advisor and I also have a solid background in sales and business development.
In my spare time, I have been writing about law and technology since the summer of 2020. I started out simply by buying an internet domain where I could publish the research from my Master's thesis about climate change and intellectual property law. Since then, I have kept on going.
Interesting! What was your latest Hackernoon Top story about?
My latest story on Hackernoon, “Explore the Problem of Digital Identities and the Impending Doom of the Dead Internet” was about current issues with “web 2.0” and why a move to “web 3.0” would be beneficial. I specifically focused on the problem of online identity.
Read Tobais’ latest top story here: https://hackernoon.com/explore-the-problem-of-digital-identities-and-the-impending-doom-of-the-dead-internet
Do you usually write on similar topics? If not, what do you usually write about?
I write primarily about tech. My major interest is the implications that technological development have on humans and on civilization at large.
Great! What is your usual writing routine like (if you have one?)
I usually write in the early mornings, on the weekends, and in the late hours if I feel a push to get something finished. I try to write, read, and do research every day.
Being a writer in tech can be a challenge. It’s not often our main role, but an addition to another one. What is the biggest challenge you have when it comes to writing?
I have a lot to say about this topic. I could see myself writing a piece about it in the future.
But most importantly, I think you need to have a strong - I am tempted to say irrationally or stupidly strong - confidence in your own writing skills and abilities. Because you will inevitably face a lot of doubt.
What is the next thing you hope to achieve in your career?
I have stated it as a goal to become an influential voice in the tech space within the next three years (that is in 2025). I have some further defined metrics for this goal that I will keep private for now.
Wow, that’s admirable. Now, something more casual: What is your guilty pleasure of choice?
Music, coffee, more work, and sleep deprivation.
Do you have a non-tech-related hobby? If yes, what is it?
I practice Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu and like to do heavy workouts. My body needs it after long days at the desk. I am also surprisingly good at dancing salsa.
What can the Hacker Noon community expect to read from you next?
They can expect the unexpected.
Currently, I am, like many, many others, in deep shock about Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. I will publish a piece about the conflict within the next two to three weeks.
In the next six months, you can expect articles about technological unemployment, AI, universal basic income, DAOs, “the metaverse”, and perhaps the big tech companies’ rally to get there. I may also write something about the negative impacts of working from home.
Thanks for taking time to join our “Meet the writer” series. It was a pleasure. Do you have any closing words?
“It is not that we have a short time to live, but that we waste a lot of it. Life is long enough, and a sufficiently generous amount has been given to us for the highest achievements if it were all well invested. But when it is wasted in heedless luxury and spent on no good activity, we are forced at last by death’s final constraint to realize that it has passed away before we knew it was passing. So it is: we are not given a short life but we make it short, and we are not ill-supplied but wasteful of it… Life is long if you know how to use it.” - Seneca