14-year-old Kairan Quazi.
SpaceX recently hired a 14-year-old software engineer, Kairan Quazi, who passed the company's "technically challenging" and "fun" interview process. The teenager became the youngest person to ever be hired by SpaceX. He, however, took to social media to inform that popular job search website LinkedIn has deleted his account over the minimum age criteria and questioned how he could be qualified to land "one of the most coveted engineering jobs in the world and not have access to the networking platform".
He took to Instagram to share his disappointment over the same. "@linkedin just sent me this notice that they are deleting my account because I'm not 16. This is the illogical, primitive nonsense that I face constantly. I can be qualified enough to land one of the most coveted engineering jobs in the world but not qualified enough to have access to a professional social media platform? @LinkedIn showing everyone how regressive some tech company policies are. Can people please share this screenshot on their LinkedIn for me and ask people to connect with me on Instagram?" he said in the caption along with a screenshot.
The screenshot shows a message to Mr Quazi from LinkedIn about his account being "restricted" since he does not qualify for the minimum age requirement for the network. Additionally, it added that whenever he turns 16 or older, he will be given the chance to rejoin the platform. "We've also canceled your Premium subscription and issued a refund for any charges incurred," the message added.
The post has amassed several likes and comments since it was shared a few hours ago.
"Time to boycott LinkedIn," said a user.
"It's so sad to see that linkedin "close the gates" for such extraordinary people and talented! I hope linkedin moderators think again about their actions! Keep up your great work Kairan!" added a second person.
A third user added, "Sorry to hear bro."
"So sorry Kairan! That is utterly ridiculous," added another user.
The teenager started studying computer science and engineering at the age of 11 and will graduate from Santa Clara University this month with a degree in computer science and engineering. He is excited to start his new job at SpaceX, and he hopes to use his skills to help the company achieve its goal of sending humans to Mars.