DAVE BRADFORD ============= Boise, Idaho · dbradford@hey.com · linkedin.com/in/zerobearing github.com/zerobearing2 · zerobearing.com SUMMARY ------- Rails + AI architect with 25+ years of experience building, scaling, and shipping software. Creator of Rails-AI, an open-source Claude Code plugin that brings Rails domain expertise and agentic workflows to AI-assisted development. Proven track record as first engineering hire, platform architect, and VP of Engineering — growing teams from 0 to 35+ and building data platforms from greenfield to production. Deep expertise in Rails 8, AI agents, LLM integration, multi-cloud infrastructure, and agentic team development. EXPERIENCE ---------- Gierd · Boise, Idaho Sr. Principal Architect · Oct 2025 – Present * Co-architect of the Gierd data platform alongside the CTO, building the core foundations that power the product today * Designed multi-cloud infrastructure spanning internal and customer-facing services * Built data pipeline systems that deliver intelligence from raw ingestion to the UI layer * Stepped back from VP of Engineering to focus on hands-on system design — where my strengths and passion lie * Mentor engineers through code review, pair work, and leading by example; no task too small, from architecture to maintenance VP of Engineering · Feb 2024 – Oct 2025 * Grew the engineering team from 10 to 35+ engineers across onshore and offshore locations * Onboarded when Gierd ran on a cobbled-together system of 3rd party products with no unified customer-facing application * Co-led the founding of the Gierd app from greenfield to production alongside the CTO * Key stakeholder in infrastructure strategy and multi-cloud deployments across the product portfolio * Established engineering foundations, mentoring programs, and processes that enabled the team to scale Zerobearing Enterprises, LLC · Remote Founder · Dec 2006 – Present * AI-first Rails development studio — building proprietary products and consulting on AI integration for Rails teams * Creator of Rails-AI — open-source Claude Code plugin adding Rails domain expertise, workflow commands, and team rules for agentic development (MIT licensed) * Creator of The Feedback Agent — AI-enhanced anonymous feedback platform built with Rails 8, Hotwire, and agentic workflows * Delivered contract engineering across 15+ engagements spanning e-commerce, social platforms, education (TED-Ed), mobile data platforms, and SaaS * Tech stack: Rails 8, Solid Stack, Hotwire, Tailwind CSS, AI agents, MCP servers, LLM integration, AWS, PostgreSQL, Docker, Kamal Daasity · San Diego, CA (Remote) Director of Platform Engineering · Jan 2021 – Feb 2024 * First full-time engineer hired; joined at founding and grew into director-level leadership * Co-architected the core Rails application managing data extraction pipelines and workflows, delivering e-commerce analytics to customers * Grew the technical team from 0 to 25+ across product and engineering, onshore and offshore * Built infrastructure, cloud presence, and engineering processes that enabled the team to scale * Worked closely with C-suite to align engineering output with product strategy and business goals Lead Software Engineer · May 2017 – Jan 2021 * First engineering hire; built the initial Rails application and data pipeline architecture from greenfield * Established coding standards, development workflows, and infrastructure foundations the team scaled on * Designed and implemented the extraction pipeline systems that became the core of the Daasity platform Earlier Career (1996–2013) * Contract Rails Developer — Blue Rocket Inc., CircleSavvy, Pear Sports, TACTIC Race Solutions, Odoclub, TED-Ed (A Hundred Years), twitterfeed, chi.mp: Rails architecture and full-stack development across diverse domains. * Co-Founder — Brandgineers, Inc. (2007–2008): Technology director and chief developer. * Sr. Programmer — mSnap, Sharp Healthcare, Affinity Development Group, Cyberworks: Mobile platforms, healthcare systems, enterprise applications. * BDC Technologies — Sr. Programmer & Partner (1999–2002): Early web development and consulting for clients including Sony, Universal Music, Sykes Enterprises. * PennySaver USA — Software Developer (1996–1997): C/C++ pre-press pagination software; automated ad update workflows, saving 80+ man-hours per week. TECHNICAL SKILLS ---------------- Languages & Frameworks: Ruby, Ruby on Rails (Rails 8), Hotwire, Turbo, Stimulus, Tailwind CSS, Solid Queue, Solid Cache, Solid Cable, Kamal, Minitest, SQL AI & LLMs: AI Agents, Agentic Development, LLM Integration, MCP Servers, AI Automation, Claude Code, Cursor, Prompt Engineering, RAG, OpenAI, Anthropic Claude Infrastructure & Cloud: AWS, EKS, Kubernetes, PostgreSQL, Docker, CI/CD, Multi-Cloud Architecture, Kamal, Linux (daily driver), Unix/CLI, Shell Scripting Data & ETL: Kestra, Airbyte, BigQuery, Snowflake, n8n, Data Pipelines, ETL, E-commerce Analytics Process & Leadership: TDD, Shape Up, Code Review, Mentoring, Engineering Team Building, Remote Team Leadership, Technical Advisory, Architecture Review OPEN SOURCE & PROJECTS ---------------------- Rails-AI · rails-ai.dev Open-source Claude Code plugin that adds Rails domain expertise to AI-assisted development. Layered architecture with workflow commands (setup, feature, refactor, debug, review), domain skills (models, controllers, Hotwire, security, testing, performance), and team rules enforcing Rails conventions. Built on Superpowers for universal workflows. Free, MIT licensed. The Feedback Agent · thefeedbackagent.com AI-enhanced anonymous feedback platform. Recipients never see who sent feedback. AI improves message clarity and impact while preserving the sender's voice. Built with Rails 8, Hotwire, and agentic workflows. Solo project exploring Rails AI agents, skills, and plugin development. EDUCATION --------- California State University San Marcos Coursework in Computer Science — Computer Architecture, C++, Data Structures, Programming Languages, Digital Electronics CERTIFICATIONS -------------- FAA Licensed Private Pilot CONTACT ------- dbradford@hey.com · linkedin.com/in/zerobearing · github.com/zerobearing2