Nick Shapiro

Software Engineer · SF Bay Area

Available for hire

I build things that ship. Currently focused on machine learning with PyTorch and crafting solid web backends.
Previously founded a game company, ran it for 12 years, and had a successful exit.

About

I'm a software engineer with a founder's mindset. I focus on the results that matter. I have 20+ years of web development experience, with deep expertise in full-stack LAMP, Python, PHP, and Perl. I also work in TypeScript and have spent recent years building reinforcement learning projects from scratch with PyTorch.

Before that, I founded Game Craftsmen and ran it for 12 years. I bootstrapped it with credit cards, ran a Kickstarter, raised angel and institutional funding, and grew it to profitability. I hired and managed 20+ employees and over 100 freelancers. I had a successful exit, every investor made money. The new owner is profitable, my entire team stayed in place (minus me), and the games are still running with a thriving player community. Win-win-win.

I've also been a CTO at another long running startup, and a software engineer at a company that was acquired by Google for $500M.

I hold an MS in Computer Science and a BS in Astrophysics from Michigan State University.

Featured Work

The Choice Before Us
🏆 Grand Prize · Future of Life Institute · 300+ entries

An incremental browser game that teaches AI safety concepts through gameplay. Built solo with TypeScript and the Profectus framework. Won a contest run by the Future of Life Institute.

I also build ML projects from scratch — designing simple games, then building reinforcement learning engines to play them. Check out my work on GitHub.

Let's Talk

I'm looking for a software engineering role in web development or machine learning where I can focus on building great things with a strong team. Open to remote, hybrid, or on-site in the SF Bay Area.