I'm a software developer from Johannesburg 🇿🇦 who enjoys turning vague ideas into working software.

Most of my projects start with a question:

"Wouldn't it be cool if..."

A few days later there's usually a Next.js app, an API integration, a database, and several lessons learned the hard way.

Currently at Umuzi, contributing to internal products and cross-functional initiatives while developing both technical and operational skills. My work spans AI-enabled tools, workflow automation, frontend development, system design, stakeholder collaboration, documentation, project coordination, and improving processes that help teams work more effectively.

🧠 AI-powered applications

🔍 Retrieval & semantic search systems

⚡ Developer productivity tools

🌐 Full-stack TypeScript platforms

🤖 OpenAI-powered workflows

🐧 Linux-powered development environments

🧪 Weird experiments that probably shouldn't work

• OpenAI APIs
• Structured Outputs
• Zod Validation
• Retrieval Systems
• Semantic Search
• Google AI Embeddings
• Prompt Engineering
• AI Recommendation Workflows

Most AI apps trust the model and hope for the best.

I wanted predictable outputs.

Built an AI-powered word generation platform using OpenAI structured outputs, Zod validation, MongoDB caching, and typed contracts that make LLM responses behave like application data instead of random text.

Stack

Next.js · TypeScript · OpenAI · MongoDB · Zod

🔗 https://wordgen.samson.codes

A project born from a problem I had myself:

Which projects from my GitHub actually fit this job?

Paste a job description, connect repository data, and let AI recommend the strongest portfolio projects for that role.

Stack

Next.js · OpenAI · GitHub REST API

🔗 https://devprojectpicker.vercel.app

A GitHub analytics experience inspired by Spotify Wrapped.

Aggregates repository activity, contribution patterns, and developer insights into a shareable and visually engaging dashboard.

Stack

Next.js · TypeScript · GitHub API · OpenAI · MongoDB

🔗 https://wrapped.samson.codes

A fitness companion platform focused on accountability, consistency, and progress tracking.

Built with reusable dashboard components, responsive layouts, and data-driven user experiences.

Stack

Next.js · TypeScript · Express · Tailwind CSS

🔗 https://shukuma.samson.codes

Building AI-powered tools that solve real problems while becoming the kind of engineer who can take an idea from a conversation all the way to production.

• Retrieval systems
• AI agents that are actually useful
• PostgreSQL
• Type-safe APIs
• System design
• Modern Next.js architecture
• Building fast without creating future nightmares

• I use Linux as my daily driver and occasionally break things for educational purposes.
• I learn best by building first and reading the documentation after I've already made mistakes.
• I regularly fall into rabbit holes about browser internals, databases, and "how does this actually work?"
• Half my projects begin with "this is probably a bad idea."
• The other half begin with "surely nobody has tried this before."
• I've spent hours researching an idea only to discover there was a perfectly reasonable solution all along.

🌍 Portfolio: https://samson.codes

💼 LinkedIn: https://linkedin.com/in/siyabuilds

📧 Email: [email protected]