Hi! I am Rafael! đź‘‹
I am a Senior Software Engineer
With 25+ years of experience delivering scalable web and mobile ecosystems across industry and academia, I bring deep practical knowledge to every project — from launching EdTech platforms to thousands of users to directing advanced R&D.
I don't just write code: I excel in teamwork and communication. I've worked closely with designers, product managers, and fellow engineers, understanding the value of clear communication and collaboration.
I thrive on tackling complex technical challenges. I have a strong analytical mind and a deep understanding of algorithms, data structures and different technologies, allowing me to solve problems efficiently and find innovative solutions.
The tech industry is ever-evolving, and I embrace this by staying current with the latest trends, tools, and best practices. My mindset drives me to continuously learn new technologies and adapt my skills.
...and more!
Contributed to the design and delivery of production-grade applications across 20+ products for Fueled and Encyclopaedia Britannica, including a goal-planning platform and a digital learning suite serving 140M+ students globally. Spearheaded high-ownership features end-to-end — real-time draft-state planning, cross-product SSO authentication, and student progress reporting. Improved platform performance and reliability, including a refactoring that reduced API calls and cut backend DB round-trips by 50% on high-traffic endpoints, and leading Next.js and Node LTS upgrades across multi-region deployments.
Bootstrapped and scaled the ImaginaKIDS platform to 15k+ students, 300+ teachers, and 380k+ pages created; sustained R$490k in annual recurring revenue with sub-10% churn. Built and scaled web and mobile platforms end-to-end as lead developer, validating strong product-market fit and hands-on product leadership from zero to revenue.
Served as Director of the Department of Entrepreneurship & Innovation (DEMI/UFMA), mentoring 10 tech startups with a 70% success rate in securing governmental funding, coordinating 10+ funded R&D projects, and driving institutional entrepreneurship programs — while also serving as peer reviewer for IEEE conferences and Springer's Wireless Personal Communications journal. Taught undergraduate and graduate-level Computer Science courses across two major federal institutions for nearly two decades, supervising 7+ Master's students and publishing 6 journal articles and 48+ conference papers spanning distributed systems, IoT, mobile computing, EdTech, and wireless communications.
Built and maintained institutional web systems and information management platforms at UFMA's Information Technology Center and Fapema.
Free financial calculators for Brazilian tech professionals: compare CLT vs PJ, estimate Fator R and monthly DAS under Simples Nacional, price freelance work, and project debts and compound investments. Browser-based simulations with no sign-up or personal data sent to the server.
An iOS application for iPads that lets students create their own digital books. Books can be printed as real physical books. Features include multiple books, customizable characters, scenarios, speech balloons, and text boxes.
A web version of the ImaginaKIDS platform, allowing students to use personal computers to build stories with the same features as the iOS app, plus increased product scalability.
A responsive e-commerce platform for parents to buy book packs, apply discount codes, and pay with credit card or Pix (Brazilian payment). Integrated with partner graphical services for printing and shipping.
An internal system (Sistema de Hospedagem e Exportação de Livros Digitais ONline) used by the ImaginaKIDS team to generate PDF books and export them to a file server.
An internal platform (LogĂstica EletrĂ´nica para Organização, Navegação, Aprovação, Remessa e Distribuição de livros) that integrates data from external CSV services and book files from SHELDON to create printing metadata in JSON and upload to graphical services.
A web app to search for trending GitHub repositories and users. Supports search by text or programming language, favorites tagging, and a trending users list.
An m-learning app for building and sharing microlearning tracks. Teachers share media (images, videos, audios, text) composing a learning path for students.
An open-source authentication API with refresh token rotation and reuse detection using JWT. Features user registration, sign in/out, profile management, admin routes, protected routes, pagination. Hosted on Render.
A POC API that runs Slither and Mythril on Solidity contracts to detect security vulnerabilities (SWC-104, SWC-106). Includes a suggestions API powered by OpenAI ChatGPT.
