From a manualto the metal
How a borrowed programming book turned into robotics perception, kernels, and embedded R&D.
Age 12
A borrowed C# manual
My journey into coding began when my father handed me a C# programming manual from a friend. Curiosity turned into a lasting habit of building software and then digging into how it works underneath.
Age 14
Security labs
I started learning security in isolated virtual machines with BackTrack Linux, using intentionally vulnerable targets to understand networking, shells, and how small configuration mistakes become system risk.
Age 15
Wireless protocols
Home networking problems pushed me to learn how WPA handshakes, packet capture, and password strength work. The useful lesson was not bypassing a network, but understanding why wireless security depends on protocol details and responsible authorization.
Age 17
Privilege boundaries
Endpoint restrictions made me curious about process privileges, Windows internals, and why bypasses are treated seriously. That curiosity eventually moved into CTFs, lab machines, and a clearer respect for authorization and disclosure boundaries.
Age 19
Automation systems
High-demand ecommerce releases introduced me to queues, rate limits, anti-abuse systems, browser automation, and distributed coordination. It was a messy but formative way to learn why production systems defend against automation and how resilient workflows are designed.
2022 · Age 22
Autonomous vehicles
Represented the United States in Romania for an international autonomous vehicle competition hosted by Bosch. That experience introduced me to embedded systems, robotics constraints, and the engineering friendships that shaped my direction.
2024 · Age 24
Degree, and a few flags
Earned my B.S. in Computer Science and transitioned into my Master's degree. Around the same period, I won CyberFire CTF and ranked in the top 8% nationally in NCL CTF competitions.
2025 · Age 25
Research and robotics
Now pursuing my M.S. at UNLV with research in deep learning for semantic segmentation. Work on autonomous vehicles and mentorship at Koshee AI pushed me toward systems programming, robotics perception, and applied research.
2025 · Age 25
Open source, then production
Contributed to open source projects including OctoMap for point-cloud file reading and MasterDnsVPN mobile networking, then carried the same reliability mindset into event-driven banking systems at Credit One Bank.
2026 · Age 26
Embedded R&D at Konami
Joined Konami Gaming as an Embedded Software Engineer II, building production C/C++ components integrated with embedded hardware and manufacturing systems.
Now
The same curiosity that started with a C# book still drives the work: understand the system, respect the constraints, and build something reliable enough to matter.