# David Gao

> ML Researcher & Software Engineer at Purdue University, B.S. Computer Science & Data Science, Expected May 2028, GPA 3.72. This is a structured, LLM-friendly version of davidgao.com, curated for agents reading on a user's behalf.

i like making cool stuff and i also like piano and games

## Projects

- [DeltaVision](https://github.com/ddavidgao/deltavision): Observation middleware for browser-based GUI agents. Open-source middleware that detects meaningful screen changes between AI agent actions so the agent can skip redundant screenshots. MIT-licensed, with adapters for Anthropic Computer Use, OpenAI CUA, Browser Use, Skyvern, and Stagehand. _Tech:_ Python, OpenCV, FastAPI.
- [DeltaVision-OS](https://github.com/ddavidgao/deltavision-os): OS-level delta-first agent framework (V2). Extends DeltaVision beyond the browser to desktop apps and OSWorld VMs. Same CV cascade, but observation source is mss-based screen capture and the action space adds drag, double-click, right-click, and multi-key hotkeys. Runs against OpenAI-compatible VLM endpoints including llama.cpp server. _Tech:_ Python, mss, pyautogui, OpenCV, Ollama, llama.cpp, OSWorld.
- [DG Attention](https://github.com/ddavidgao/dg-attention): Experimental attention mechanism for OpenAI's Parameter Golf. Alternative attention mechanism where deeper layers transmit only inter-token changes via a parameter-free depth schedule. Zero added parameters, 33% less VRAM on 8xH100, matched standard attention within 0.004 BPB. Named one of OpenAI's 3 favorite non-record submissions (out of 2,000+) in their Parameter Golf retrospective; merged to the official openai/parameter-golf repo. _Tech:_ Python, PyTorch, CUDA, Distributed Training, 8xH100.
- [Slinkt](https://slinkt.app): Large file transfer without the paywall. File transfer SaaS for large uploads using chunked multipart transfers to Cloudflare R2. Launched on Hacker News, with Stripe billing, password-protected downloads, custom slugs, and IP-based rate limiting. _Tech:_ Next.js, TypeScript, tRPC, Cloudflare R2, Stripe, Prisma.
- [CardboardAI](https://cardboardai.dev): AI-native storage management. Multi-tenant platform automating storage facility operations. Custom LangGraph agent handles tenant onboarding, invoicing, and payment collection. Dual-portal architecture serving operators and tenants. _Tech:_ Next.js, TypeScript, AWS RDS, Prisma, LangGraph.
- IoT Locker System: Commercial hardware + software. Smart locker system built on Supabase Realtime and Firebase, deployed across 40+ units with over $100,000 in revenue. A later migration to a Flask + Chromium kiosk made the Raspberry Pi stack lighter and faster to boot. _Tech:_ Flask, Supabase, Firebase, Raspberry Pi, Chromium Kiosk.
- [Resume Builder MCP](https://github.com/ddavidgao/resume-mcp): AI-powered resume tailoring via MCP. Full-stack MCP server for automated resume optimization. Maintains a SQLite profile database, scrapes job postings, and generates tailored LaTeX resumes with relevance-scored experience selection. Deterministic ATS analysis catches keyword gaps while the connected LLM handles semantic rewrites. No extra API keys needed. _Tech:_ Python, SQLite, LaTeX, MCP Protocol, openpyxl, trafilatura.
- [Purdue Dining](https://github.com/ddavidgao/purdue-dining-mcp): AI dining assistant for Purdue, works on ChatGPT & Claude. Say 'I'm hungry' and get real food recommendations from live Purdue dining menus. Deployed as a remote MCP server on Railway, serving both Claude (via MCP connector) and ChatGPT (via GPT Store with REST Actions). Pulls real-time menus and hours from Purdue's HFS API. Never guesses or fabricates menu items. Zero user data stored server-side; preferences live in ChatGPT memory or Claude's project context. _Tech:_ Python, MCP Protocol, Railway, Starlette, Purdue HFS API.
- [RLM](https://github.com/ddavidgao/RLM_TEST): Grounded AI through code execution. Agentic RAG system that forces LLMs to search documents via Python REPL instead of hallucinating. Multi-model orchestration with sandboxed code execution and evidence-based answer grading. _Tech:_ Python, Ollama, DeepSeek, Qwen, Matplotlib.

## Experience

- **Software Engineer Intern**, Pipelines (Apr 2026 - Present). Pre-deployment agent simulation platform backed by Sierra Ventures (San Francisco). Designed a synthetic data pipeline that uses real records as context to generate schema-valid test profiles. Built forward-deployed eval harnesses for RentAHuman (YC P26) spanning trace collection, world-state validation, and judge pipelines; deterministic payment and dispatch gates are projected to cut unsafe actions by roughly 85%.
- **Developer**, BoilerMake (Dev Team) (Apr 2026 - Present). Built and shipped full-stack features across BoilerMake's application platform, spanning frontend, backend services, and data infrastructure that thousands of applicants will use.
- **Software Engineer Intern**, Quture (Mar 2025 - May 2025). Pre-seed AI clothing marketplace. Built virtual try-on features using the OpenAI SDK to overlay clothing onto user photos; cut product return rates by 25%. Responded to a compromised Stripe credential incident, shipped emergency patches, and hardened the authentication flow.
- **ML Research Assistant**, Washington University in St. Louis (May 2024 - Aug 2024). Implemented an evaluation pipeline for self-supervised medical image reconstruction using PyTorch and NumPy. Ran diffusion bridge experiments across subsampling levels on WashU's GPU clusters, contributing to an IEEE ISBI 2025 publication.

## Skills

- **Languages:** Python, TypeScript, JavaScript, SQL, Java
- **Frameworks:** FastAPI, Next.js, React.js, Flask, PyTorch, TensorFlow, Celery, tRPC
- **Infrastructure:** GCP, AWS (EC2, S3, RDS), Docker, Redis, Firebase, Supabase, Cloudflare R2, Vercel
- **Tools:** PostgreSQL, Prisma, LiteLLM, FastMCP, Stripe API, Git, Raspberry Pi

## Contact

- [GitHub](https://github.com/ddavidgao)
- [LinkedIn](https://www.linkedin.com/in/david-gao-322837355/)
- [X](https://x.com/ddavidgaoo)
- [Instagram](https://www.instagram.com/dvaidgao/)

## Optional

- [Human-readable AI page](/ai): same info, rendered as a page
- [Main site](/): full portfolio with styling