UCLA '26
Hi 👋 I'm Derek.
I'm aSoftware EngineerPoker PlayerAmateur PhotographerTaiwanese-AmericanUCLA SeniorPickleball EnthusiastAvid CookSeahawks Fan
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01 — About
A little context.
I'm Derek — a UCLA Computer Science senior graduating June 2026.
I like building things that feel honest :) software with a sense of taste, design that reads like a real person made it. Always curious to learn new things.
Off the keyboard: exploring, volleyball and mahjong/poker with friends, piano when nobody's listening, trying new restaurants, traveling (hopefully), cooking Taiwanese, Korean, and Japanese food.
26'
UCLA CS
4 yrs
shipping code
∞
matcha runs
Roll 027 — recent travels⇆ drag · scroll · click to pop
Kyoto, Japan#01/09
Jiufen, Taiwan#02/09
Maui, Hawaii#03/09
Osaka, Japan#04/09
Home, USA#05/09
Mt. Rainier, USA#06/09
Monterey, USA#07/09
San Francisco, USA#08/09
Westwood, UCLA#09/09
02 — Experience
The timeline.
2023 — 2025
Summer2025
Software Engineer Intern · Ericsson
InternEricsson· Bellevue, WA
Built a Next.js Kubernetes dashboard (80% less manual work), designed AI-powered test automation with Kubeflow + MLflow (60% faster analysis), and applied isolation forests on telemetry to cut deployment failures by 15% across 72 environments.
- Built Next.js dashboard with Python Kubernetes Client to automate cloud resource audits — 80% less manual work.
- Designed AI-powered test automation with Kubeflow, MLflow, PostgreSQL, Qdrant — 60% faster analysis.
- Applied isolation forests on telemetry to reduce deployment failures by 15% across 72 environments.
- Transformed T-Mobile and AT&T requirements into technical specs; collaborated globally in Agile.
Summer2024
Technical Program Manager Intern · Ericsson
InternEricsson· Bellevue, WA
Automated RESTful API tests with Python + Robot Framework (25% latency reduction for T-Mobile), built ArgoCD/Helm GitOps pipelines (70% fewer release errors), and implemented Splunk + Grafana observability.
- Automated RESTful API test cases with Python + Robot Framework, reducing latency by 25% for T-Mobile.
- Created ArgoCD/Helm GitOps pipelines to automate version upgrades and K8s deployments — 70% fewer release errors.
- Implemented Splunk and Grafana observability for real-time cluster health and transaction monitoring.
Jan 2025— Present
Software Engineer · Creative Labs – Ad Optimal
Student OrgCreative Labs – Ad Optimal· Los Angeles, CA
Building scalable MERN backend services connecting businesses with student orgs.
- Integrated Google OAuth and PayPal APIs for secure authentication and transactions.
- Implemented Redis caching to reduce server load and speed up access by 45%.
Jan 2024— Present
Undergraduate Research Assistant · UCLA Zili Lab
ResearchUCLA Zili Lab· Los Angeles, CA
Research on visual perception using first-person video games; tooling for eye-tracking experiments.
- Led study design and data analysis for visual perception research using first-person video games.
- Optimized Python programs for EyeLink eye-tracker, cutting calibration times by 50%.
Summer2023
XR Engineer Intern · Hello xLAB
InternHello xLAB· Osaka, Japan
Developed immersive XR features in Unreal Engine; improved performance and configuration workflows.
- Integrated projection mapping APIs and optimized C++ rendering to increase frame rates by 20%.
- Added JSON configuration compatibility for synchronized multi-projection rendering.
- Team won first prize at the 2023 UNWTO Mega Events competition in Osaka, Japan.
03 — Selected Work
Pick a card. Any card.
Each card is a project I shipped. Drag to scatter, click to flip.
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MERN · Rideshare
BruinsOnBoard
A peer-to-peer rideshare app for UCLA students — match by route, share gas, beat LA traffic with people you actually know.
MongoDBExpressReactNode.js
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Full-stack · AI
MeetCute
An AI date-card app: tell it about you and your match, get a thoughtfully designed date plan powered by Yelp, TripAdvisor, and Google Places.
ReactDjangoPostgreSQLOpenAIYelp API
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Hardware · Robotics
MatchaBot
A 3-jointed robotic arm that automates traditional matcha whisking with servo-driven kinematics and a React dashboard for real-time monitoring.
C++ (Arduino)React.jsArduino WiFiServo Control
drag to move · click to flip
04 — Skills
What I build with.
37 items · curated
Languages/01
PythonJavaScript/TypeScriptC++SwiftSQLHTMLCSS
Frontend/02
ReactNext.jsTailwind CSSSwiftUI
Backend/03
Node.jsExpress.jsDjangoREST APIs
Databases & Caching/04
PostgreSQLMongoDBRedis
Data & ML/05
KubeflowMLflowQdrantNumPyPandas
DevOps & Cloud/06
KubernetesDockerHelmArgoCDGitOpsGrafanaSplunk
Testing & QA/07
Robot FrameworkJestReact Testing Library
Tools/08
GitLinuxUnreal EngineVercel
05 — Contact
Let's build something
worth shipping.
Whether it's a coffee chat, a project idea, favorite poker hand, or you just want to argue about the best ramen in West LA, my inbox is open :) I usually reply within a day.