Learning and Hobby Projects (2014-2016)
While taking a Bachelor’s in Electrical and Electronics Engineering from The Technical University of Kenya in 2018, It was during those classes that I realized something: I loved building things far more than analyzing circuits. The coursework gave me a technical foundation into Microprocessor systems, programming and simulation, internet database programming. I pivoted. Hard. What followed was days on end of writing Java1.7 and Python2.7 code on hobby projects.
InterIntel Technologies (2016–2020)
My first real dive into professional development started at InterIntel Technologies in Nairobi as an Implementations Lead. The role was wide-open — there wasn’t one stack, so I learned them all.
- Built and maintained a progressive web application that processed payloads to render dynamic interfaces (the frontend to the company’s site generator, the core of InterIntel)
- Developed Native Android apps alongside Polymer-based web apps, both backed by Django DRF APIs running on CentOS 7
- Led the transition across two major versions of the frontend framework, and eventually drove the migration away from deprecated frameworks entirely — no framework at all, just vanilla
- Spearheaded the company’s tech stack setup on a new client’s on-premise datacenter (nginx, EMV processing, USSD systems)
- Pushed the team’s first Android app to the Google Play Store
- Championed better DevOps workflows: Git branching models, CI pipelines, documentation standards
The stack? Java, Python/Django, JavaScript, Polymer, Android, nginx, CentOS 7, USSD protocols, SQL. A true full-stack playground.
ParkPow / Plate Recognizer (2020–Present)
A contract role turned into something bigger — joining ParkPow (now part of Plate Recognizer) in California as a Software Quality Assurance Tester, working with Vision AI models and building integrations around them.
This is where I got deep into:
- Computer Vision & AI: Working with license plate recognition models (ALPR/ANPR), creating APIs and integrations
- Docker & DevOps: Built a PyInstaller-to-Docker extension for Docker Desktop, bridging desktop apps into the container ecosystem
- Integration development: Building sites, scripts, and APIs around vision AI models
- Contributing to the deep-license-plate-recognition codebase
Freelance & Independent Work (2017–Present)
Running parallel to everything else, I’ve been a freelance developer taking on projects end-to-end:
- Salesleadgen — A leads generation web application I built and still maintain. Built with Python/Django, it scrapes LinkedIn and Sales Navigator data for lead prospecting.
- AMZ Top 16 — Tools for tracking Amazon best seller rankings across products
- Inventory Tracker — A Discord bot that monitors price drops on German shoe retailers and alerts users via Discord
- ABS R Android — An Android app tracking Amazon BSR (Best Seller Rank) for specific products
- EAD (Email Attachments Downloader) — An Android app that periodically downloads email attachments to a chosen directory
- Tumblr Poster — A Java Spring Boot desktop app with Selenium WebDriver to automate posting across multiple Tumblr blogs
Open Source Contributions
I believe in giving back. Here are some of my notable open-source projects:
| Project | Stack | Stars |
|---|---|---|
| Instagram-API | Python | ⭐ 120 |
| alpr-anpr-android | Java | ⭐ 3 |
| ussds | Python/Django | USSD utility for finding shortcodes |
| django-pde | Python | Django packages dev environment |
| mitmproxy-docker | Python | Dockerized mitmproxy |
| rich-text-editor | LitElement/WebComponents | Lightweight WYSIWYG editor |
| passmark-cpu | Docker | CPU performance testing container |
And I’ve contributed to projects like Home Assistant integrations (EcoFlow Cloud, KPLC), Music Assistant documentation, Chiaki (PlayStation remote play client), and many others.
What I Build With Today
After nearly a decade in the trenches, these are my core tools and technologies:
- Languages: Python, JavaScript/TypeScript, Java, PHP
- Backend: Django, DRF, Express.js, Node.js
- Frontend: LitElement/WebComponents, Polymer, Vuetify, Materialize
- Mobile: Android (Java/Kotlin)
- DevOps: Docker, nginx, CentOS 7, CI/CD pipelines, Git workflows
- AI/ML: Computer Vision (ALPR), Vision AI model integrations
- Databases: PostgreSQL, MySQL, MongoDB, Realm DB
- Infrastructure: Linux, Kubernetes, Helm charts, Proxmox, Home Assistant
The Pattern
I’m also drawn to projects at the intersection of domains — automation + AI, mobile + web, DevOps + developer tooling. The interesting work lives in those overlap zones.
What’s Next
I’m continuing to work on Plate Recognizer’s vision AI integrations and exploring where Home Assistant, automation, and AI converge. There’s a lot more to build.