Rufus Gladness

Hi, I'm Rufus.

Software Developer & 3x Founder

Software Developer & 3x Founder with 4+ years of experience architecting and shipping production-grade systems across AI, SaaS, logistics, and social commerce.

I specialize in distributed backend infrastructure: microservices, real-time data pipelines, multi-tenant architectures, and AI integration, using Python, Node.js, TypeScript, and PostgreSQL.

Beyond coding, I've led engineering teams, set technical direction, and made the architecture decisions that shaped the product.

I'm available for remote contracts and full-time roles, and I'm always interested in early-stage environments where the problems are unsolved and ownership is total.

Strategic Tooling

My stack is selected for the best balance of developer experience, ecosystem maturity, and performance.

Python logo

Python

Solidity logo

Solidity

React logo

React

JavaScript logo

JavaScript

Docker logo

Docker

Node.js logo

Node.js

PostgreSQL logo

PostgreSQL

Tailwind CSS logo

Tailwind

Ethers.js logo

Ethers.js

AWS logo

AWS

Heroku logo

Heroku

Cloudinary logo

Cloudinary

Rust logo

Rust

Bash logo

Bash

C logo

C

Professional Experience

2024 – Present

Co-founder & Backend Engineer

SmartMention | Remote

  • Co-founded SmartMention, an AI-powered social listening and brand monitoring platform that tracks real-time mentions across thousands of platforms using custom keywords and hashtags.
  • Architected and built the core crawler engine — a fault-tolerant system capable of high-volume tracking and job queues.
  • Implemented an intelligent keyword monitoring pipeline and utilized Gemini Flash 2.0 to classify signals into leads, crises, trends, and anomalies with sub-second latency and ~87% accuracy.
  • Benchmarked multiple sentiment analysis solutions (Vader, Hugging Face, Gemini Flash) and designed a hybrid approach: Gemini Flash 2.0 as primary engine with Vader as a high-speed fallback for simple cases.
  • Built the scheduler system managing monitoring tasks, collection intervals, and alert triggers; assisted team in building the analytics dashboard frontend.

Stack: Python, Node.js, React, Vite, PostgreSQL, Redis, AWS, NLP

2025 – Present

Technical Co-founder & Lead Developer

Cxperia, France | Remote

  • Architected and engineered the Cxperia platform, a B2B2C SaaS loyalty platform designed for cosmetic brands, focusing on high-fidelity UX and personalized engagement.
  • Implemented a multi-tenant architecture with Row Level Security and Role Based Access Control for team members, ensuring application-level and database-level security, scalability and efficiency.
  • Engineered a privacy-first analytics pipeline to support brand decisions and ensured compliance with GDPR.
  • Configured staging and production environments to enable safe feature validation before rollout, reducing deployment risk across the platform.

Stack: Python, NextJs, React, PostgreSQL, Redis, OVH, Sentry, Docker, Playwright

2025 – Present

Lead Engineer

J-Vortex Inc | Remote

  • Led a team of 5 engineers to build Wigree, an escrow-powered social e-commerce platform.
  • Designed and co-built a http-based microservices architecture across 8 services using Django, balancing rapid development with long-term stability.
  • Implemented Celery for asynchronous task processing across services, handling background jobs, cross-service workflows, and scheduled operations.
  • Established CI/CD pipelines using GitHub Actions and Docker, standardizing deployment across all services and reducing release friction for the team.
  • Configured production server infrastructure including firewall rules, team access controls, and load analysis across microservices to ensure security and stability.

Stack: Python, Django, Celery, Docker, Digital Ocean, PostgreSQL

2024 – 2025

Software Developer

Kentry Limited, Canterbury, UK | Remote

  • Engineered the OnRoute dispatch system, a comprehensive logistics suite for private transport, driving 50% increase in operational efficiency through streamlined workflows.
  • Built a validation system that prevented drivers from initiating a job unless they were within 0.1 mile of the target location to ensure operational integrity.
  • Implemented real-time GPS tracking, document verification workflows, and a competitive bidding where drivers submit fare proposals via mobile app.
  • Implemented materialized view strategy that improved dashboard reporting speeds by 10x.

Stack: Node.js, React, React Native, PostgreSQL, Redis, Websocket, OVH

2022 – 2024

Full-Stack Developer

Web3Fruity, Nigeria

  • Developed a full-stack platform that curates the latest Web3 opportunities, including airdrops, task-based rewards, and play-to-earn games.
  • Designed a tier-based learning system offering structured Web3 education tailored to user experience levels.
  • Integrated Coingecko API for live token metrics, including market supply and price data.

Stack: Node.js, NextJs, MongoDB, Coingecko API, Contentful CMS

Featured Projects

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Tenet

An opinionated, enterprise-grade API framework for Node.js built for security and scalability. Tenet transforms backend development by making security checks 'opt-out' by default and replacing repetitive middleware boilerplate with declarative configuration, ensuring speed to MVP and long-term maintainability.

TypeScriptNode.jsExpressPrismaRedisPostgreSQLDockerZod
OnRoute

A high-performance taxi dispatch and delivery system built for efficiency, security, and precision. Designed with robust admin oversight, driver mobility, and scalable backend architecture.

React NativeViteNode.jsWebSocketPostgreSQLCloudinaryMapboxExpress
SmartMention

A social listening and signal tracking tool designed to help brands monitor online conversations in real time. Analyzes sentiment, impact, and confidence levels across thousands of platforms.

PythonNode.jsReactPostgreSQLRedisWeb ScrapingSentiment AnalysisReal-time Processing

Let's Architect Your Next Venture

Whether you're a founder needing a technical co-founder, a startup scaling their platform, or a team tackling a complex technical challenge—let's build something that matters.

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