mhotchen · HackerTrans

Oh wow I went and looked that up after reading your comment. Launched less than a month ago! Incredible that you're seeing such impact already

mhotchen

last monthdiscuss

This conversation makes me wonder if age verification at the system level could be considered an externality for its cost to society as a whole, and the solution be to collect tax from any commercial sale of a desktop OS that doesn't implement a defined open standard. If there is any money raised it could be used for eg. education pieces on harm and harm reduction

Maybe it doesn't work in this case, but I think you both make great points. Just feel like there must be a way of bridging this gap

mhotchen

last monthdiscuss

  Location: London, UK
  Remote: Yes
  Willing to relocate: No
  Permanent: No
  Technologies: TypeScript, Python, PHP, SQL, Terraform, Linux, AWS, AWS Lambda
  Email: [email protected]

My name's Matthew Hotchen. I was founding engineer of a successful YC-backed substance use management platform (Pelago Health) delivering rapidly on dozens of features, creating a well-structured backend, data pipeline, and multi-region HITRUST certified platform. I then learned the A-method of hiring and worked hard to build a great team of long-tenured engineers, entrusting them to do their work, scaling CI/CD and test infrastructure, implementing strategic refactors to improve system consistency, implementing reliable security and infosec practices, effective checklist-driven development workflows that helped us release several times a day (with a small team). I was voted most committed to the mission and played a key role in defining the company culture. I was there for seven years and only left when Pelago had really found its footing and was going from success to success (and it continues to do so)

Prior to that I built and led the API team for World First, one of the largest FX brokerages in the UK where I played a leading role in their technology success, becoming and expert in FX markets and bringing innovative solutions to the space, helping the company expand globally over my time there. They sold to Ant Finance for $700m not long after my departure

I've also been a contractor, worked at an agency, and a bespoke suit company with an online tailoring system (and also tried to build my own business in this space)

I'm good at software design, thinking about and modeling data, efficient access patterns. I've worked with a wide selection of tools over the years (17 years professionally). I've been using Linux for 20 years now. I still write the best SQL queries I've ever seen (but I would say that). I've designed and worked with distributed systems and event-driven systems a fair bit and modeled some complex workflows. I've used AWS Lambda extensively

As well as the technologies above, I'm an expert in rapid delivery, team building/hiring, CI/CD, pipelines and workflows, and distributed systems

Although I'm a backend engineer I've also worked extensively on frontends, both mobile (react native) and web (going all the way back to Flash which I worked with professionally early in my career)

I've been taking a break from work to recuperate and put some focus on my hobbies but I have been getting back in to programming (now with LLMs). I'm currently working on an opensource alternative to Github Copilot

I'd like some money coming in though, it's always a good feeling

I'd make a good candidate for any founders who haven't landed on a CTO yet or looking for a stopgap, but want someone they can depend on to deliver what they need rapidly whilst receiving good insights from someone who played a key role in taking an early stage startup to unimagined succcess. I'm not looking for a permanent role. Anything from days to months

mhotchen

2 months agodiscuss

HUMANS need control flow. It's a very effective strategy that has worked wonders in healthcare

mhotchen

8 months agodiscuss

If you consider it in absolute values it makes sense. Bezos could give me a billion dollars which would match my wealth with Pichai's, and he'd still have 199 billion dollars

mhotchen

10 months agodiscuss

It almost feels predestined for this to not solve the problems at hand, overrun on costs and timelines (furthering the first point), in no way streamline existing processes or cut costs, leave behind parts of society, and present security vulnerabilities that can be capitalised on through either social engineering or malware (also furthering the first point, only now citizens will be accused of tax fraud)

I hate to be pessimistic and there are elements of the idea I like, but when reflecting on the issues at hand this feels like popping the toaster because you smell burnt toast, but the rest of the house is on fire

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