Hi, I’m Alex. I am a software engineer and designer with a specific focus on AI. I was previously a founding engineer at Setori, an early-stage startup building AI companions to help people focus on their goals. While we didn't make it to the next round in September 2025, that experience sharpened my skills in building conversational agents. I graduated from the University of Waterloo in 2024 and have about three years of full-stack experience under my belt.
You might wonder: What kind of nerd builds an AI agent just to talk about themselves?
I have to admit, this isn’t even the nerdiest thing I do. Outside of code, I am a dedicated collector of manga, figures, and doujin CDs. I’m an audiophile whose playlist is 99% Touhou doujin music—best experienced on my Hifiman EF499 + HE6se v2 setup. I love Souls-like games, and I’m an ARAM-only League of Legends player who has been known to dive into the abyss for a whole day when things get tough.
The Friction of "Being Real"
Being deeply immersed in these specific worlds, I’ve found that connecting with people in the real world can be difficult. Truly understanding one another requires bridging gaps in culture and personality. Often, we navigate these gaps with a polite distance born out of respect—or perhaps, fear.
I’ve found that out of fear of rejection or offense, we tend to avoid the "real" topics. We stick to the safe scripts. But ironically, those real, potentially risky topics are where the most valuable connections actually happen.
The Cost of Connection
For me, navigating this social dance is energy-expensive. While I deeply value meaningful interactions, the process of filtering through surface-level chatter to find them is exhausting.
However, we don't live in a vacuum. To survive—and to thrive professionally—we need to connect. I need to find the right job, and the right people need to find me. The challenge was: How do I invite opportunity without burning out on the process?
Enter My Digital Twin
This is why I built this website, and specifically, the personal assistant chatbot you see here.
Think of this agent not as a barrier, but as a window. I have designed it to know my history, my skills, and my values deeply. It serves two specific purposes:
- The Filter: It protects my energy by handling the initial layers of connection, filtering out the "meaningless" to find the substantial.
- The Safe Space: It allows you to get to know me—the real me—without the awkwardness of face-to-face friction. In this private, anonymous environment, you can ask the questions that might feel uncomfortable in a coffee chat.
Let's (Really) Talk
I am opening a window for those who want to look deeper. If you are here to understand who I am and what I can do, I invite you to chat with my assistant. I trust it to represent me, to share my story, and to let me know when a connection is worth pursuing in the real world.
Welcome to my portfolio. Let’s skip the small talk.