I deploy software where it matters most.

Forward Deployed Engineer at Alpheya. I sit between engineering and the client—building, integrating, and shipping solutions for banks and financial institutions.

Dev Kalavadiya
About Me

Engineer turned deployer

Forward Deployed Engineer at Alpheya · NYU Abu Dhabi · Abu Dhabi, UAE

I'm a Forward Deployed Engineer at Alpheya, where I work directly with banks and financial institutions to deploy and integrate software solutions. It's a client-facing role that blends engineering depth with real business outcomes—and I genuinely enjoy being the person in the room who can both talk to the client and write the code.

Before this, I spent nearly two years as a Full Stack Engineer at Mental, building production systems from scratch—an LMS serving 1,000+ users, AI proctoring, real-time payments, the works. I graduated from NYU Abu Dhabi with a B.S. in Computer Science and a minor in Interactive Media.

The Path So Far

2025 - Present

Joined Alpheya as Forward Deployed Engineer, working with banks and financial clients

2024

Full Stack Engineer at Mental—built an LMS, AI proctoring, payment systems from scratch

2023

NBCUniversal internship in NYC—migrated systems handling $2M+ daily in transactions

2020

Full scholarship to NYU Abu Dhabi—Computer Science, Interactive Media minor

What Drives Me

Client Work
Fintech
Building Products
Problem Solving
New Technologies
Travel
Crypto
Sports

A Few Things About Me

Originally from Fiji—island roots, global career

I cook to decompress (and I'm pretty good at it)

Traveled across 15+ countries and counting

Active crypto and markets watcher

Will never turn down a chess game

Interested in working together?

Whether it's a project, a conversation about fintech, or just connecting—I'm always up for it.

The FDE Role

What's a Forward Deployed Engineer?

It's a role most people haven't heard of. Think startup CTO meets technical consultant—you embed with clients, build on the product, and ship outcomes. Here are some resources that explain it well.

Resume

Professional Experience

Forward Deployed Engineer · NYU Abu Dhabi · GPA: 3.97/4.0

Work Experience

Forward Deployed Engineer

Alpheya

Dec 2025 - Present

Working directly with banks and financial institutions to deploy, integrate, and customize software solutions. A client-facing role bridging engineering depth with business outcomes.

  • Embedded with banking clients to scope, build, and ship custom integrations on top of Alpheya's platform.
  • Serve as the primary technical point of contact for client engagements, translating business requirements into working software.
  • Collaborate across engineering, product, and sales to feed field insights back into the core product roadmap.

Full Stack Software Engineer

Mental

Jun 2024 - Dec 2025

Built a production-grade Learning Management System and customer platforms for Mental and foodstars.ai, serving 1000+ active users across global teams.

  • Architected a production-grade Learning Management System from scratch using Next.js 15, React 19, TypeScript, and Shadcn/UI, serving 1000+ active trainees across 5 languages with RTL support.
  • Designed and implemented a scalable Node.js/Express microservices backend integrating AWS services (Cognito, S3, SES), MongoDB, and WebSocket connections for real-time updates, handling 10,000+ API requests daily with 99.9% uptime.
  • Engineered a real-time payment system integrating Amazon Payment Services with Server-Sent Events (SSE) and webhooks for 3DS authentication monitoring, achieving 98% completion rate.
  • Designed an analytics dashboard with 40+ components using Recharts and D3.js, delivering real-time business intelligence, user analytics, and financial insights on engagement, revenue, and region distribution.
  • Built a WhatsApp support system from scratch using Meta Business API and webhooks, managing live conversations with media messaging, ticket assignment, and Slack integration, reducing response time by 60%.
  • Developed an AI-powered proctoring system with real-time violation detection tracking 15+ violation types (face detection, tab switching, browser security), implementing automated session termination, risk scoring, S3 evidence storage, and a comprehensive admin reporting interface via WebSocket connections.
  • Engineered a Unity WebGL wrapper with custom React integration, implementing intelligent scene caching and iOS-specific optimizations that reduced memory usage by 35% and improved mobile performance by 40%.
  • Established a multi-environment CI/CD pipeline using Vercel and AWS EC2, supporting 3 environments with automatic deployments, preview URLs for pull requests, and zero-downtime deployments.

Software Engineer Intern (Full Stack)

NBCUniversal - NBC Sports Next

Jun 2023 - Aug 2023

Supported the GolfNow migration by delivering enterprise booking experiences that process $2M+ daily in peak-season tee time sales.

  • Contributed an end-to-end migration from a legacy system to a modern management and booking engine page, facilitating the processing of over $2M per day in tee time sales during peak seasons.
  • Executed the migration of 2 critical endpoints using Hapi.js, enhancing the backend infrastructure built on Node.js, implementing advanced querying techniques, and optimizing database schemas to ensure data integrity in MongoDB.
  • Elevated the GolfNow frontend by integrating a custom design system package with Material UI through reusable components, adopted across 50+ course sites and utilized by 15 developers.
  • Doubled the number of services leveraging the design system, delivering a standardized UI andaccelerated development process.

Software Engineer Intern (Full Stack)

DHAKIRA Center for Heritage Studies

Oct 2021 - Aug 2024

Developed a comprehensive database web application preserving historical shipping records for the DHAKIRA Center.

  • Engineered a database web application handling over 75,000+ shipping records using Node.js and React.
  • Boosted backend search engine speed by 80% and doubled auto-suggestion speed using Express.js.
  • Created collections in MongoDB and linked 3 separate databases within the backend, streamlining research workflows.
  • Automated data filtering, cleaning, and seeding of entries using Mongoose.js to maintain data fidelity.
  • Performed photogrammetry of primitive sailing boats and generated 3D scans of 50+ components, documenting traditional construction techniques.
May 2019 - Jan 2023

Delivered a K-12 academic platform serving 11,000+ students in Fiji with unified curricula and learning resources.

  • Developed an academic platform providing access to a comprehensive K-12 curriculum for 11,000+ students in Fiji, enabling consistent learning engagement.
  • Coordinated cross-functional teams of developers, content providers, teachers, and leadership to implement an integrated learning dashboard within six weeks.
  • Successfully tested the platform with over 600 students, improving curricular compliance by 98% and meeting student engagement expectations by 94%.

VR Logistics Intern

Mental VR

Nov 2021 - May 2022

Managed VR headset training and logistics that brought immersive experiences to Expo 2020 audiences.

  • Directed VR headset training for participants in virtual events at Expo 2020, ensuring smooth onboarding.
  • Configured headsets and maintained Engage accounts to support continuous programming.
  • Delivered logistic and technical support to VR participants throughout the 3-day event.
  • Presented custom-built virtual environments to high-ranking Gulf government officials, showcasing immersive storytelling.
Jun 2021 - Jul 2021

Built a travel storytelling platform for Professor Piia Mustamaki with bespoke design and launch collateral.

  • Shipped a fully-fledged travel blog using WordPress with custom CSS and HTML tailored to the client's aesthetic.
  • Documented detailed site management guides to streamline content updates for the client.
  • Designed the visual identity, including the site layout and logo, and produced supporting imagery with Photoshop.

Education

B.S. Computer Science, Minor in Interactive Media

New York University Abu Dhabi

Full Tuition Scholarship to NYU with the Global Studies Track for Computer Science

GPA: 3.97/4.0

2024

High School Diploma, Computer Science

Swami Vivekananda College

2019

Technical Skills

Languages

TypeScript
JavaScript
Python
C++
SQL
HTML/CSS
R

Frontend

React 19
Next.js 15
TailwindCSS
Shadcn-UI
Radix UI
Framer Motion
D3.js
Recharts
Nivo
React Hook Form
Zod
nuqs
i18next
React Context API
TanStack Query

Backend

Node.js
Express.js
REST APIs
WebSockets
Server-Sent Events (SSE)
Microservices
Hapi.js
PM2
Webhooks

Databases & Caching

MongoDB
Mongoose ODM
IndexedDB
Redis
Database Migrations
Aggregation Pipelines

DevOps & Cloud

AWS Cognito
AWS S3
AWS SES
AWS EC2
AWS CloudFront
Git
Docker
Vercel
CI/CD
Sentry
Jira
Portfolio

Things I've Built

A mix of production work, side projects, and experiments

FoodStars

FoodStars

Production-grade LMS serving 1000+ users

View project
Sep 2025

Architected and built a comprehensive Learning Management System from scratch using Next.js 15, React 19, TypeScript, and Shadcn/UI.

Mental Website

Mental Website

Business website for Mental

View project
Jul 2024

Built the business website for Mental using Next.js, React, and TypeScript.

NBCUniversal GolfNow Platform

NBCUniversal GolfNow Platform

Migration project handling $2M+ daily transactions

View project
Jun 2023

Contributed to end-to-end migration from legacy system to modern booking engine at NBCUniversal. Migrated critical endpoints using Hapi.js and MongoDB, optimized database schemas. Created custom design system with Material UI adopted across 50+ course sites.

Sytes

Sytes

Your Business, Your Syte

View project
Jun 2025

Using Next.js's multi-tenant architecture, built a platform that allows small businesses to create a beautiful, fast, and functional business website at a fraction of the cost of traditional agencies.

Medytate - Meditation App

Medytate - Meditation App

Meditation App

View project
Apr 2025

Peaceful guided meditation app built with Next.js. Generative AI voices and sleep timer features a variety of meditation sessions to help you find your inner peace.

Hololearn

Hololearn

Gateway to Future Learning

View project
Apr 2024

University Capstone Project built with Next.js. Features a variety of learning 3D VR modules and experiences to help you learn. Revolutionizing the study experience, our platform transforms static textbook content into dynamic, interactive 3D visuals.

DHAKIRA Heritage Database

DHAKIRA Heritage Database

Shipping records database with 75,000+ entries

View project
Oct 2021

Database website for the ancient shipping records and comprehensive search along with Data Visualization. Engineered using Node.js, React, and MongoDB. Boosted backend search engine speed by 80% and doubled auto-suggestion speed.

Heritage Maps

Heritage Maps

Interactive heritage storytelling

View project
Aug 2022

One of the many sites created by using OpenLeaf map integrated into WordPress custom theme for telling heritage stories for historical places. Features interactive maps and rich multimedia content.

Arcade.AI

Arcade.AI

AI-centered arcade studio

View project
Dec 2022

The first of its kind AI-centered arcade studio. Let ARCADE.AI take you on a life changing arcade experience powered by machine learning. Features multiple AI-powered games and experiences.

CLI Shell

CLI Shell

Linux shell with multi-threading

View project
Apr 2022

Implemented a Linux shell with multi-threading and scheduling capabilities. Integrated a remote access capability that allows several users to use the shell at the same time.

1001Worlds | Piia's Travel Stories

1001Worlds | Piia's Travel Stories

Travel blog website

View project
Jul 2021

Built a fully-fledged travel blog website using custom CSS and HTML where needed and transferring content to new site on WordPress. Includes custom theme design and responsive layout.

Python Chess Game

Python Chess Game

Multiplayer chess game

View project
May 2021

Multiplayer chess game in Python and Processing. Features complete chess rules implementation, move validation, and an intuitive graphical interface.

Virtual File Management System

Virtual File Management System

VFS with Linux commands

View project
Mar 2022

Developed a virtual filesystem (VFS) using Linux commands. A user can create/delete/move folders and files. Each inode contains metadata about the node (e.g., file or folder, size, date).

Contact

Let's Talk

Whether it's about a project, an opportunity, or just a good conversation—I'm always happy to connect. I usually respond within a day.

Fastest way to reach me? DM on LinkedIn or shoot me an email.

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