A note on dates: these are documented milestones, not a claim that an old job or location is still current in 2026. We have not verified a present-day biography for every team member.
Oscar Vazquez
ASU reported in July 2014 that Vazquez graduated in May 2009 and later served in the US Army, including time in Afghanistan. Its account also records his citizenship following basic training. Read ASU’s profile of those milestones.
A February 16, 2018 announcement from Washington State University adds a later checkpoint: Vazquez had attended the 2016 State of the Union as a White House guest and testified before Congress on immigration issues. WSU invited him to speak as part of its common-reading program for Spare Parts. These are dated public milestones, rather than a claim about his current employer or address.
Lorenzo Santillan
WIRED’s December 2014 update described Santillan’s culinary studies and a Phoenix catering business with Luis Aranda. It also reported restaurant and mechanical work. Read the 2014 account; the business’s current status is not established by that article.
September 2024: Santillan joined mentor Fredi Lajvardi, director Sean McNamara and writer Elissa Matsueda at a Chandler screening and discussion of Spare Parts. Cronkite News reported the September 22 event on September 26, 2024. This is a later public appearance, not confirmation of his current occupation.
Luis Aranda
The 2014 WIRED update reported that Aranda combined catering with a courthouse janitorial-supervisor role. His story is linked with Lorenzo’s through that shared business, but they are separate members of the team. Read about Luis’s role at the competition and use the cast guide to distinguish him from actor Oscar Gutierrez.
Cristian Arcega
WIRED reported that financial barriers interrupted Arcega’s college education. He was developing product ideas when interviewed in 2014.
Read WIRED’s 2014 follow-up on the four students. Its publication date is essential context for the work and circumstances it describes.
Hear the team’s story beyond the drama
Underwater Dreams is a documentary written and directed by Mary Mazzio and narrated by Michael Peña. It follows the robotics story and its wider legacy. It is a separate film from the 2015 drama Spare Parts. Visit the documentary’s official site.
The documentary’s screening archive also documents appearances by team members after the competition, including events with all four students in Seattle in December 2015.
What about their teachers and school?
Fredi Lajvardi and Allan Cameron mentored the real team. The film combines them into George Lopez’s character, Fredi Cameron. Our Carl Hayden school and mentors guide follows that distinction and the robotics program’s wider legacy.
A better way to read “where are they now?”
Check when an account was published, whether it includes an interview, and whether a claim refers to the real person or the actor. A current review date on a webpage does not turn a historical interview into a current career update.
For the competition itself, read the true story behind Spare Parts. To distinguish the team from the performers, use the cast and real-person guide.
Have a documented update?
If you have a recent interview or an account from a team member, send a correction or source. We would rather date a reliable account than invent a current biography.