I’ve known a couple FAANG developers over the years, and usually IRL friends, partners, and families aren’t usually (my experience of course) usually a huge priority at that point in their career. It’s not just the socially inept computer nerd stereotype, although a couple of them are pretty awkward, but mostly that in order to get to that level requires the utmost dedication and also an otherworldly work ethic, most of them are die-hard workaholics. One of my buddies was working till 10:30 and logged in at 8 that morning earlier this week. It’s just what they do. Most of their friends and social interactions come from online stuff like Discord anyway just because it’s convenient with their work hours.
Passion is the other half of the equation, all the guys I know are extremely passionate about development, and usually when they’re not coding for work, they switch over and start doing the exact same thing on coding some other side project. Their lives pretty much revolve around having a keyboard in relatively close proximity at any given point to be able fix something, or try something new whenever an idea strikes them. They’re brilliant people, but yeah their passion and dedication definitely consumes them.
As far as this guy goes, I’d say he’s pretty damn smart, in that he’s found a way to achieve the former all while travelling and basically being on vacation the whole time. Well played, IMO.