Emerging Technologies

Learnings of a Solo Game Developer — Wacky Drivers video game

The author shares their journey of creating a video game called "Wacky Drivers" for Android and iOS. They had the idea for the game since they were a teenager and decided to use Unity as their development tool. They emphasize the importance of having a Game Design Document (GDD) to stay on track and discuss the development process, including creating reusable components and optimizing performance. They also highlight the importance of refining aspects such as controllers, game balancing, settings, and particles. The author advises releasing a minimum viable product (MVP) and gathering feedback early on. They also discuss their marketing efforts and future plans for expanding the game. The author encourages readers to try the game and provide feedback, and concludes by emphasizing the importance of consistency and sharing their enthusiasm for video game development.

Building Effective Test Frameworks: Lessons from My Experience

In today's agile software development era, building and maintaining effective test automation is crucial for delivering high-quality software products. Building a test framework can be complex and challenging, but with the right approach and mindset, it can be a rewarding endeavor. To navigate through the complexities, it is important to understand the architecture of your application, identify the tools and skill sets of your team, design for reusability and maintainability, implement a robust test data strategy, utilize CI/CD pipelines, and implement effective logging and reporting mechanisms. Documenting your approach and seeking input from stakeholders is also essential. After implementing the framework, thorough documentation and knowledge sharing within the team are important for adoption and maintenance. Continuous learning and enhancement, overcoming frustration and self-doubt, and embracing others' opinions and feedback are also key factors in building an effective test framework. By following these strategies, you can successfully build a test framework that contributes to the success of your team and organization.

Navigating Partnerships with Unicorns and Large Enterprises: Protecting AI Startups' Interests

This article explores the challenges faced by AI startups when partnering with unicorns and large enterprises, and provides strategies to protect their interests. It suggests engaging legal expertise to negotiate favorable terms and review contractual agreements, implementing NDAs and non-compete agreements, and considering jurisdiction and governing law. On the technical side, it recommends encryption, access controls, authorization, watermarking, model protection, federated learning, secure collaboration frameworks, and regular auditing and monitoring. By combining legal and technical safeguards, AI startups can mitigate the risks of theft or unauthorized usage of their AI models.

Team Development Framework for new managers

When transitioning from an Individual Contributor to a Manager, it can feel overwhelming. This post focuses on the mindset shift needed to better utilize the advice available for new Managers. The key difference between the two roles is the core action (Developing code vs. Developing team) and how it is done (high quality vs. high engagement). Managers must have a core set of skills such as building trust, active listening, decision-making, and emotional intelligence. Despite having the development framework and required skills, being a Manager is still hard due to the high cost of being wrong, solutions not always being logical, and non-determinism.

Discovering Non-Traditional Pathways to Success

This is the story of a software engineering intern who, without a college degree, worked his way up to become the CTO/co-founder of a startup. He began tinkering with technology in middle school and continued to develop his skills in high school and college. He joined a startup through an online tech group and worked with the CEO to develop a product that would give users cashback rewards for paying with their bank. Through many iterations, he grew into the team lead position and eventually the VP of engineering, helping to manage the product and find the right product-market fit.