Sep 2026 - PresentHybridFull-time
Toronto, ON, Canada
About This Developer
Marco Anthony
Ayuste
AI/ML Engineer, Quant, Researcher & Full-Stack Developer
I build AI-powered tools that solve real problems for real people.
ahh~
*slurp*
Scroll to explore
01*About
Who I Am
About Me
I am Marco, a University of Toronto student. Concrete proof I ship: I built an AI pipeline that reads photos of paper tournament sheets and drops the data cleanly into Google Sheets, cutting my club president's weekly admin from 1 to 2 hours down to under 3 minutes.
That is the work I am drawn to: turning tedious, error-prone, real-world workflows into boring-to-run, easy-to-audit software.
Right now I am an AI Engineer Co-op at CIBC Capital Markets, building AI automation and big data solutions for quantitative risk management, equities and derivatives. Before that I was a Student Research Technologist at DRDC on the AI and Autonomous Systems Team, a Software Engineer Intern at Yadag, an AI/ML Engineer - Team Lead at Paideia Mundi NeuroSystems Institute, and founding developer of the UTM Billiards Club platform (320+ members).
I love hackathons: winner at DeerHacks V, Hack the 6ix, IBM Z x UNSA 2026, and Hack the Globe (Global Spark x BCG; finalist, Health & Humanity track top 2), top finalist at IMC Prosperity 4. Trilingual (English, French, Tagalog), born in Canada, based in Toronto.
Languages Spoken
EnglishTagalogFrench
Skills
Tech Stack
Python
TypeScript
JavaScript
Java
C++
SQL
HTML
CSS
React
Next.js
Node.js
FastAPI
Laravel
TailwindCSS
shadcn/ui
Pydantic
REST APIs
Three.js / R3F
Framer Motion
Streamlit
scikit-learn
PyTorch
TensorFlow
LangChain
LangGraph
Pandas
NumPy
SciPy
Git
GitHub
GitHub Actions
Docker
Linux/Unix
MLflow
Auth0
Figma
UI/UX Design
Human-Computer Interaction (HCI)
pytest
Prompt Engineering
Retrieval-Augmented Generation (RAG)
Model Context Protocol (MCP)
ETL / Data Pipelines
Tableau
Power BI
Vercel
Supabase
Snowflake
PostgreSQL
MySQL
MongoDB
SQLAlchemy
BigQuery
AWS
IBM Cloud
Google Cloud Platform
Vertex AI
Google Colab
Azure AI Foundry
Databricks
Kubeflow
6
Hackathon Wins
12
Competitions
7
Internships/Co-ops
11
Experiences
3
Languages
Infinite
Matchas
02*Experience
Where I Have Worked
Student Research Technologist Co-op
Defence Research and Development Canada (DRDC)
Department of National Defence (DND)
Jun 2026 - Sep 2026HybridFull-time
Toronto, ON, Canada
AI and Autonomous Systems Team
▸40 certifications earned
- CHC122Introduction to CANChat
- COR201Comprehending Financials: A Guide to Financial Statements
- COR216Key Concepts in Financial Management
- COR310Security Awareness
- COR421Introduction to the Federal Procurement Process
- COR502Access to Information and Privacy Fundamentals
- DDN1-M01Reducing the Environmental Footprint of Generative AI
- DDN112Harnessing the Power of DevOps
- DDN210Discover Artificial Intelligence
- DDN218Reaching Efficient Solutions with Computational Thinking
- DDN219Transforming the Workplace Using Artificial Intelligence
- DDN220Getting Started with Machine Learning
- DDN223Inclusive by Design: Applying the Digital Standards and Gender-based Analysis Plus
- DDN235Discover Cyber Security
- DDN243Ethical Considerations in Artificial Intelligence
- DDN244The Design Process: Design Research
- DDN245The Design Process: Qualitative Data Synthesis
- DDN247Cyber Security Quest
- DDN304GC Data Demystified
- DDN305Big Data Fundamentals
- DDN308Exploring Data Visualization
- DDN321Using Generative AI in the Government of Canada
- DDN327Data and Analytics Technologies at Work
- DDN328Evaluating Systems with Data Modelling
- FON301Values and Ethics Foundations for Employees
- FON304Who We Work For
- FON308HR-to-Pay for Employees
- FON415Respecting Official Languages Obligations in the Public Service
- INC118Fostering an Inclusive Workplace
- INC123Moving from Bias to Inclusion
- TRN118Writing Briefing Notes
- TRN136Cultivating Cross-Functional Team Collaboration
- TRN201Preparing and Implementing a Business Plan
- TRN225The Agile Leader
- TRN312Planning Risk Management (PMBOK Guide Sixth Edition)
- TRN318Agile Principles and Methodologies
- TRN319Agile Project Scheduling and Monitoring
- TRN321The Essential Role of the Agile Product Owner
- TRN504Evidence-Informed Decision-Making: Exploring Bias and Uncertainty
- WMT101Preventing Harassment and Violence in the Workplace for Employees
Software Engineer Intern
Yadag Technologies Inc.
Apr 2026 - Jun 2026RemotePart-time
Toronto, ON, Canada
- Built and owned 8 REST API endpoints (auth, matchmaking, tenant config) and 12 schema migrations across Laravel/MySQL and PostgreSQL for a multi-tenant agricultural-staffing SaaS, including a fault-tolerant matchmaking loop on AWS (Lambda, S3) that cut p95 latency from 2.1s to 0.7s and request timeouts from around 8% to under 0.5% via idempotent retries and dead-letter queues
- Shipped 24 PRs (around 3,200 lines) over 6 weeks at a 1-week sprint cadence, including the Python backend integration (webhook handling and APIs) for an LLM-powered multilingual WhatsApp onboarding assistant (English, French, Tagalog) that cut onboarding time from around 15 minutes to under 3 minutes
- Wrote PHPUnit unit and feature tests across the Laravel backend to catch regressions and keep releases stable, working directly with the founding team to translate product and operations requirements into shipped software at startup speed
AI/ML Engineer Intern, Team Lead
Paideia Mundi NeuroSystems Institute
Mar 2026 - May 2026RemotePart-time
Montreal, QC, Canada
- Appointed Team Lead of a cross-university engineering team building a multimodal AI research prototype for early-stage neurodevelopmental healthcare; owned scope, standups, supervisor communication and end-to-end delivery
- Built ETL and preprocessing pipelines for EEG and proprietary datasets, from raw recordings to clean, model-ready signals
- Engineered and benchmarked machine learning models with uncertainty estimates and significance testing so recommendations rest on evidence
- Shipped an Auth0-gated dashboard surfacing predictions and model insights for a non-engineering executive audience
- Set up the engineering foundations: CI/CD, automated tests, documentation and experiment tracking
- Authored the technical report, a plain-language user guide and the demo deck; co-presented the live demo and Q&A
Web Developer Intern
MINOA
Dec 2025 - Apr 2026RemotePart-time
Etobicoke, ON, Canada
- Managing the storefront across both frontend and backend (product updates, collections, navigation, theme changes, and customer-facing pages)
- Supporting SEO improvements, desktop and mobile UX cleanup, and conversion-focused page enhancements
- Optimizing the B2B Collaboration area by reviewing competitor sites and improving navigation and structure
- Automated customer service by integrating an AI chatbot into the site
Founding Website Manager & Lead Developer
UTM Billiards Club
May 2025 - Apr 2026RemotePart-time
Mississauga, ON, Canada
- Architected and delivered the UTM Billiards Club platform using React, TypeScript, Tailwind, Node.js, and Python, shipping responsive tools for rankings, tournaments, scheduling, and club operations serving a 320+ member community across 10+ pages
- Built a rankings data pipeline pulling from Google Sheets via CSV exports that parses and sorts standings by Elo tier, validates inputs, masks player names for privacy, and caches results in localStorage with a 10-minute TTL
- Developed a live Elo rankings dashboard with search, multi-tier filtering, refresh controls, privacy masking, and fully optimized mobile and desktop layouts
- Reduced manual admin work from 1-2 hours to under 3 minutes by building automated Python and Google Sheets ranking workflows, plus a Google OAuth-based 1v1 tracker with an AI/ML image-to-data extraction pipeline that parses match results from sheet photos into structured entries
- Engineered tournament tools including a 2v2 bracket generator supporting team and player modes, randomization, BYE handling, save/load state persistence, and regenerate controls
- Implemented scalable data-driven site architecture using shared JSON as a single source of truth, with date-based rendering logic that auto-splits upcoming vs past events
- Added an optional AI chatbot with persistent floating UI, deployment-safe API fallback behavior, and a simple enable/disable flag
Programming Assistant
University of Toronto (CSE)
Aug 2025 - Apr 2026HybridPart-time
Mississauga, ON, Canada
- Planning, budgeting, and delivering Indigenous programming at UTM's Centre for Student Engagement (Access Days, transition events, and trips)
- Developing PowerPoint materials and supporting the broader portfolio
- Building community through mentorship to strengthen Indigenous student belonging and wellness
- Supporting outreach and partnerships across events, projects, and ongoing programming
SEO Specialist Intern
Stealth Startup
Sep 2025 - Feb 2026RemotePart-time
Toronto, ON, Canada
- 6-month contract working both individually and on a cross-functional team to drive sales through SEO improvements
- Collaborated weekly with the supervisor, social media marketing lead, and 3D designer on keyword strategy, on-page SEO, and conversion-focused copy
- Owned SEO duties end-to-end (audits, on-page optimization, and reporting) while contributing to broader marketing decisions
Inventory Clerk
Hallite Seals
Nov 2023 - Dec 2025On-sitePart-time
Mississauga, ON, Canada
- Worked in multiple seasonal, part-time, and full-time roles across multiple periods
- Managed inbound/outbound shipments, scanning, packaging, and logistics
Poll Clerk
UTMSU
Mar 2023 - Mar 2025On-sitePart-time
Mississauga, ON, Canada
- Facilitated voting procedures during key election periods across 6 election cycles
- Verified student identification, ensured fair and impartial voting, and counted ballots
Game Developer & Items Trader
Roblox
Dec 2019 - Aug 2024RemoteSelf-employed
San Mateo, California, United States
- UGC Creator, built games on Roblox solo + in groups and traded Limited Roblox items, leveraging analytical tools like Rolimons.
03*Projects
What I Have Built
pandexis
FeaturedPandexis
IBM x UNSA Two-Track Winner
Full-stack / AI Engineer (team of 5)
IBM x UNSA two-track winning epidemic simulator pairing a vectorized SEIR plus Monte Carlo engine with a fault-tolerant RAG LLM explainer (IBM Granite, Claude, deterministic template fallback) on IBM Cloud.
Impact
Won two tracks (1 of 5 on the team) against 600+ participants from a 10,000+ applicant pool, backed by 104 automated tests on CI/CD.
PythonFastAPIIBM watsonx GraniteRAGNext.jsMapLibre
inn-sight
FeaturedINN-SIGHT
Hack the 6ix 2026 - MLH Best Use of Gemini API
Full-stack / AI engineer (team of 3)
AI feasibility consultant for short-term rental development, built at Hack the 6ix 2026. Drop a hotel or homestay onto a real Toronto parcel, stress-test it against five extreme-weather weekends, and get an investor-grade memo from a six-specialist Gemini agent briefing.
Impact
Won MLH Best Use of Gemini API at Hack the 6ix 2026. Deterministic simulation engine over 63 benchmark constants (each source-linked or estimate-flagged), a Toronto zoning and Ontario Building Code compliance layer, and 60+ pytest cases enforcing reproducible recommendations.
GeminiFastAPINext.jsMapLibreThree.jsMongoDB AtlasAuth0
locatr
FeaturedLOCATR
DeerHacks V 2026 Winner
Full-stack / AI engineer, top GitHub contributor (team of 4)
Agentic spatial intelligence platform built in 36 hours at DeerHacks V. Six LangGraph agents (Commander, Scout, Vibe Matcher, Cost Analyst, Critic, Synthesiser) turn natural-language requests into a live Mapbox shortlist, streaming agent state to the client over WebSockets.
Impact
DeerHacks V 2026 Winner (1 of 9 prizes across 164 participants). Asyncio fan-out across the Analyst agents dropped pipeline latency from ~9s to under 3s (~70% reduction); 45,000+ lines shipped; Auth0 CIBA gates real Gmail bookings behind a secure mobile push.
LangGraphFastAPINext.js 14SnowflakeGemini 2.5MapboxAuth0
canopy
FeaturedCANOPY
Hack the Globe 2026 - Finalist, Health & Humanity Top 2
Full-stack / AI engineer, #1 GitHub contributor (team of 4)
Continuous remote-care platform for elderly patients. Three linked surfaces: a 'garden' patient check-in with voice AI, a family dashboard, and a clinical dashboard with 0-100 risk stratification. A LangGraph pipeline turns daily signals into early-warning alerts.
Impact
Finalist at Hack the Globe 2026 and top 2 in the Health & Humanity Track, Global Spark's international social impact hackathon run with BCG across Toronto, London, and virtual. 117 commits in 36 hours; judges flagged the triple-interface design as the strongest clinical workflow of the track.
LangGraphFastAPIGroqGeminiSupabaseThree.jsNext.js 15Docker
utm-billiards-site
FeaturedUTM Billiards Platform
Lead developer, club tech lead
Official site for the UTM Billiards Club (320+ members). Built Elo rankings, a tournament bracket generator, a TF-IDF FAQ chatbot, an in-browser 8-ball game with physics, and a Google-Sheets-backed data pipeline so execs can update rankings without touching code.
Impact
Replaced a static Linktree with a production platform the club runs on week-to-week. Handles live leaderboard updates and tournament sign-ups each term.
Next.js 16TypeScriptTailwind v4React Three Fiberp5.jsGoogle Sheets API
paideia-mundi
FeaturedPaideia Mundi Neural Research Platform
Shipped May 2026
AI/ML Engineer - Team Lead
Research prototype for Paideia Mundi NeuroSystems Institute exploring whether EEG and proprietary datasets can support earlier, lower-cost neurodevelopmental screening, built for clinicians and researchers.
Impact
Shipped May 2026: led a small cross-university team from raw data to working ETL pipelines, model benchmarking and a sign-in protected dashboard, and co-presented the live demo to the institute's leadership.
Pythonscikit-learnMNE-PythonStreamlitFastAPIMLflowDocker
claimflow
FeaturedClaimFlow
Solo engineer
Human-in-the-loop AI medical insurance claims platform: provider-pluggable LLM extraction (Claude with Gemini fallback), per-claimant ChromaDB RAG, and a fine-tuned EfficientNet-B0 imaging classifier, with human approval gating every stage.
Impact
94.2% imaging accuracy (ECE 0.016) on 15,000 images, a 253-test suite across state-machine, audit-tamper, PII, and prompt-injection cases, and a hash-chained audit log over every model call.
PythonFastAPIPyTorchChromaDBClaudeNext.js
vigil
FeaturedVIGIL
Full-stack / AI engineer, #1 GitHub contributor (team of 4)
Multi-agent healthcare billing fraud detection built at GenAI Genesis 2026. Students upload a receipt; a 14-agent LangGraph pipeline across five layers (Perception, Reasoning, Planning, Action, Reflection) cross-checks it against the Ontario Dental Association fee guide and surfaces unused benefits.
Impact
Built in one hackathon weekend: 21,000+ lines of code, 26 Playwright E2E tests, and a YAML-driven policy layer so fraud scoring stays auditable.
LangGraphIBM watsonxGemini 2.0 FlashSupabaseMoorcheh SDKFastAPINext.js 14
personal-site
This Portfolio
Designer and developer (solo)
Scroll-driven React Three Fiber portfolio: a procedural tropical beach that fades from golden hour into a starry night, with custom GLSL sky and ocean, islands of hand-built props, sea turtles, crabs, leaping dolphins, sailboats and a lighthouse with a sweeping beam, under an Apple-inspired Liquid Glass interface with a macOS-style Dock.
Impact
Lighthouse desktop: 99 Performance, 100 Accessibility, 100 SEO. An adaptive quality ladder and a static fallback keep the scene at 60 fps at rest in desktop and throttled-phone tests, with WCAG AA text on the glass from golden hour to night.
Next.js 15React Three FiberThree.jsGLSLTypeScriptTailwind v4Framer MotionZustand
04*Contact
Get in Touch
Have a project in mind, a question, or just want to connect? I would love to hear from you.
print("AI is learning");
if (input == "human") {
connect();
}// HITL Review & Efficiency
if (processComplexity > threshold) {
escalateToHuman();
} else {
streamlinePipelines();
}
costOptimization = true;Human + AI
Marco Ayuste
AI/ML Engineer, Quant, Researcher & Full-Stack Developer
A beach waits on the other side