System Design
Distributed backends, API contracts, reliability-first boundaries.
George Barakat
Systems / Product / AI
Systems-grade product engineer
Backend systems · AI products · production delivery
Backend-focused engineer shipping production systems: APIs, architecture, and AI where it earns its keep.
Toronto, ON
Build mode
Shipping production systems
Edge
AI + distributed backend thinking
Building systems that are as thoughtful as they are functional.
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Backend Engineer✦
Distributed Systems✦
AI Product Builder✦
API Architecture✦
Production Delivery✦
Open Source Contributor✦
System Design✦
Product Thinking✦
Backend Engineer✦
Distributed Systems✦
AI Product Builder✦
API Architecture✦
Production Delivery✦
Open Source Contributor✦
System Design✦
Product Thinking✦
About
Backend depth, product judgment, clean execution.
Positioning
I build production software with a backend core and a product mindset: clear architecture, solid interfaces, and fast execution.
Operating principles
- Build for clarity/
- Engineer for scale/
- Ship with intention/
Delivery Rhythm
Tight iteration, monitored releases, production-safe rollouts.
AI Integration
RAG, LLM APIs, and AI features tied to measurable outcomes.
Years building
3+ (Professional)
Primary focus
Backend + AI
Industries
Financial Services, SaaS, Consulting
Location
Toronto, Ontario
Featured Work
Selected builds and systems work.
AI Assistant
Portfolio-aware Q&A (embed when ready).
George AI
Ask about projects, stack, and architecture.
Engineering Toolbox
Capabilities by domain.
func main()
01 / Capability
Languages
Languages I use for systems, products, and automation.
- Go for production backends and distributed tooling.
- Python for AI pipelines, services, and automation.
API Response
02 / Capability
Backend
APIs, services, and operational reliability.
- REST, gRPC, GraphQL, and integration-heavy service design.
- Distributed patterns, rate limiting, and event-driven flows.
03 / Capability
Frontend
Interfaces that stay understandable as products grow.
- React and Next.js App Router delivery.
- Accessible components, polish, and Firebase-backed realtime where needed.
04 / Capability
Databases
Modeling and performance for real workloads.
- PostgreSQL, Redis, Elasticsearch, Qdrant for search and AI retrieval.
- Schema design, indexing, and safe migrations.
Deploy
05 / Capability
Cloud / DevOps
Shipping and running software in production.
- Docker, Kubernetes, AWS (S3, RDS, Lambda), Terraform.
- GitHub Actions, monitoring, and incident response.
06 / Capability
AI / Data
Applied AI with product outcomes in mind.
- OpenAI and Gemini APIs, RAG, and vector retrieval.
- Prompting and workflow acceleration where it earns its keep.
07 / Capability
Tools / Workflow
How work actually gets done.
- Code review, Agile delivery, on-call and SLA ownership.
- Planning with product and stakeholders end to end.
Experience
Shipping with ownership in production environments.
EXPERIENCE
Career progression
Production systems · Ownership · Delivery
Career signal
Increasing scope from enterprise code to owned delivery.
Financial Systems
Jr Application Developer
FirstOntario Credit Union
Period
Apr 2025 to Present
Backend services and vendor integrations in a regulated environment, moving legacy toward service-oriented rollouts with minimal downtime.
99.9% uptime; ~37% efficiency gain via automation-led releases.
Capabilities
Backend ServicesLegacy ModernizationMonitoring
Product Delivery
Software Engineer
Kiwi Code
Period
Dec 2023 to Apr 2025
Full-stack delivery with Go and Node APIs, React, Firebase sync, and integrations across concurrent client work.
Product Owner for a 3-person team; CI/CD with Actions and Docker for weekly releases.
Capabilities
Go APIsReact AppsCI/CD
Enterprise Scale
Intern Software Developer
TD Bank
Period
Apr 2022 to Jul 2022
Java features for mobile banking stacks through enterprise QA and secure SDLC practices.
Shipped tested code with strong unit/E2E coverage in a compliance-heavy setting.
Capabilities
JavaTestingSecure Coding
Education
Formal CS training, business minor.
Academic base
Technical depth plus business literacy for product conversations.
Honours Bachelor of Science
Computer Science
Minor in Business
Brock University
St. Catharines, Ontario
CS fundamentals plus a business minor for product, finance, and org context.
Selected Achievements
Proof of execution, not buzzwords.
Signal 01
18k+/min
High-throughput event handling
Stream processing that stayed deterministic through spikes.
Signal 02
35%
Faster product launches
Reusable architecture patterns shortened build-to-launch cycles.
Signal 03
2.1x
Deeper engagement
Interaction design that materially increased session depth.
Signal 04
9 hrs/week
Operational time saved
AI tooling that cut repetitive triage and improved prioritization.
Lab & focus
Experiments and where attention is going.
Signal over noiseSystems before featuresInterfaces with intentFast loops, deliberate architectureSignal over noiseSystems before featuresInterfaces with intentFast loops, deliberate architecture
Lab
Signal Forge
Rules-plus-LLM ranking for product requests by effort, risk, and impact.
Lab
Latency Atlas
Tracing API latency by boundary to catch hotspots early.
Focus
Right now
Cleaner backend boundaries for AI-assisted products and stronger observability.