Please see my Portfolio to learn about the projects I’ve worked on.

Summary

Highly versatile, team-oriented technical leader with a diverse range of skills and experiences to drive complex issues to resolution. Passion for software engineering innovation and joy of learning have allowed contributions in multiple industries over the last 15+ years. Work on video games, life-critical spacecraft, nation-state level cybersecurity, and novel AI-augmented human-computer interface systems has been part of the journey. Able to communicate effectively and work optimally with multidisciplinary teams. Craving opportunities to learn from other experts, and taking great pleasure mentoring future brilliant technical leaders.

Highlights and Accomplishments

  • Designed and developed innovative flight avionics software for Burt Rutan’s Ansari X Prize-winning SpaceShipOne , incorporating intuitive symbology and workflows tailored for an unconventional highly dynamic spacecraft, ensuring pilot situation understanding and flight safety.
  • Developed Plan X foundational cyber platform for DARPA, successfully ushering its transition to Cyber Command.
  • Performed forward-leaning research for DARPA PCAS, revolutionizing air-to-ground fire coordination , improving situational awareness, reducing time required to deliver air support, and minimizing risk of friendly fire incidents.
  • Modernized USAF Air Combat Maneuvering Instrumentation platform , a vital tool for monitoring aircraft during and after air combat training exercises , adding next-gen air combat operational concepts to support autonomous vehicles, hyper-spectral sensors, signature control, and advanced data links.
  • Created comprehensive Predator and Reaper Remotely Piloted Aircraft (RPA) fundamentals simulator , increasing USAF student and instructor training effectiveness and throughput.
  • Built novel machine learning models harnessing the brain’s intrinsic strength of intuitive feature extraction and effortless discerning of complex sensory data adding alpha to finance portfolio trading strategies in real time.
  • Co-founded VirtuePlay, creating innovative 3D computer graphics and game engines, developing simulations and experiences for NASA.
  • Developed game adaptation of Michael Crichton’s popular television series ER .
  • Private Pilot and experimental aircraft builder .

Areas of Expertise

Stakeholder Management, Distributed Team Leadership, Excellent Communications, Strategic Planning, Resource Management, Agile Project Management, Software Architecture, SDLC, ML Frameworks, MLOps, Data Management, Code Management, Code Optimization and Refactoring, Coding Best Practices, Experimentation and Prototyping, Full-Stack Development, Testing Strategy, Infrastructure as Code, Live Service Operations, Process Management, Compliance and Assurance, Computer & Network Security

Languages

C++, Python, Golang, JavaScript, SQL, Java, Rust, C#, C

Work History

Vice President of Software Engineering

Optios, Inc., Austin, TX — September 2019 - Present

  • Principal technical leader successfully breaking new ground at the nexus of machine learning, neuroscience, and human performance augmentation.
  • Successfully guided team of scientists from “academic-quality” to “production-ready” model architectures using best practices in ML development with modern ML frameworks, like PyTorch and TensorFlow, ensuring appropriate integration with the overall architecture.
  • Architected and implemented end-to-end MLOps workflows, including distributed/parallel feature engineering, model training, model evaluation, and batch inference generation, reducing training-to-serving time from weeks to hours.
  • Designed and developed full-stack online production system, including web UI, edge hardware and software, real-time bio-signals data acquisition, real-time feature synthesis, real-time model inference generation, and performance monitoring, capable of scaling to thousands of subjects.
  • Developed generative AI models trained on sparse bio-signals features improving discriminative model robustness.
  • Recruited, placed, and oversaw high-impact science and software teams.

Skills: Distributed Computing, Linux, iOS, Android, Svelte, Flutter, Kafka, PostgreSQL, Temporal, Dagster, Pandas, Dask, Spark, Docker, K8s, GCP, MLOps, Weights & Biases, Ray, TensorFlow, PyTorch, Supervised and Unsupervised Learning, Clustering, LSTM, DCN, MATLAB

Research Director

Two Six Labs, LLC., Austin, TX — June 2018 – September 2019

  • Founder and site lead of Two Six Labs’ Austin, TX office, establishing DARPA’s Plan X program as unifying AI cyber platform for Cyber Command (USCYBERCOM).
  • Key contributor to Plan X transition proposal resulting in $95MM award from Pentagon’s Strategic Capabilities Office (SCO), and Two Six Labs’ acquisition.
  • Gathered and transformed “Internet scale” Cyber Mission Force datasets into graph-based features used to train Deep ML models, extending Plan X with intuitive AI insights to further enhance “human-machine” teaming effectiveness.
  • Developed novel, multi-modal intuitive user experiences in 3D AR/VR/MR that allowed “cyber” operators to quickly understand and control cyber battlespaces effectively with AI agent assistance.

Skills: R&D, Computer & Network Security, Distributed and Parallel Computing, Network Programming, Linux, Node.js, React.js, Redux, WebAssembly, WebGL, WebGPU, Spark, Kafka, PostgreSQL, Docker, K8s, Deep Learning, TensorFlow, MLflow

Technical Director

Cubic Global Defense, Inc., Austin, TX — November 2009 – May 2018

  • Developed forward-leaning solutions that successfully addressed DARPA project managers’ requirements.
  • Managed research and development efforts and contributed to technical proposals resulting in over $40MM of DARPA contract wins and acquisition by Cubic Global Defense.
  • Guided, coached and led high-impact software and research teams to high-quality, error-free output.
  • Created novel, multi-modal intuitive user interface applications, from web, mobile, to immersive 3D AR/VR/MR, with supporting back-ends and infrastructure, that significantly pushed the leading edge in cyber, simulation, intelligence, and situation awareness.
  • Developed innovative “visual programming” (no-code) environment enabling non-coders the ability to contribute complex features quickly allowing frequent review and feedback from stakeholders.
  • Collaborated with executive leadership on research direction, staff formation, and project budgets.
  • Full-stack software doyen, Agile and UIUX evangelist.

Skills: R&D, Distributed and Parallel Computing, Network Programming, Cross-Platform, Linux, Unity, Unreal, OpenGL, GPU Programming, WebAssembly, WebGL, React.js, Redux, Svelte, PostgreSQL, GIS, iOS, Android

Summary of work history from 1995 to 2009

Multiple Companies, Multiple Locations

  • VirtuePlay: Designed and developed custom 3D engine frameworks for real-time games and simulations. Created rendering solutions for planetary-sized datasets, enabling real-time transitions from space to sub-meter levels. Developed physics models for NPC path-planning, navigation, and steering control.

  • Legacy Games: Developed game tools, non-player character AI, and custom game-play scripting language. Created complex physics behaviors for bi-pedal characters, including custom physics and collision response systems. Authored intuitive game environment editor based on constrained constructive solid geometry (CSG) techniques.

  • Scaled Composites: Created avionics, flight simulator, and data acquisition system for SpaceShipOne and WhiteKnightOne. Established novel symbology and user experience for Flight Director Display (FDD). Supported software systems with ground control during flights.

  • VirtueArts: Co-founder and creator of full-featured game development platform designed with “WYSIWYG” (What You See Is What You Get) and “RAD” (rapid- application development) concepts to revolutionize games development.

  • Willowbrook Technologies: Created user interface and embedded systems software for x86-based small office VOIP device.

  • A.D. Conmark: Created prescription filling warehouse robotics automation software for pharmaceutical distributor.

  • InsurQuote: Developed high performance DSL and massively parallel runtime for insurance policy risk analysis.

  • Engineering Animation (EAI): Developed networking code for massive multiplayer online game.

Patents

  • WO2022261247A1: Measuring, strengthening, and adaptively responding to physiological/neurophysiological states

Certifications

  • Machine Learning Engineering for Production (MLOps) Specialization, Deeplearning.AI
  • Machine Learning Data Lifecycle in Production, DeepLearning.AI
  • Private Pilot

References available upon request.

Please see my Portfolio to learn about the projects I’ve worked on.