about.md
About
Principal engineer and AI architect working across full-stack products, cloud infrastructure, custom agent workflows, and voice AI.
Hi, I'm Subodh
I'm a principal engineer, AI architect, and founder based in Bangalore. Over 14+ years in software, I've worked across mobile products, connected devices, real-time platforms, and cloud infrastructure. These days, much of my work is in LLM applications, custom agent workflows, and voice AI.
I work with product teams and domain experts to understand how a job gets done, then build the software around it. That can mean a web or mobile interface, backend services, an integration with an existing system, or the infrastructure to run it. I stay close to implementation while leading architecture and delivery.
What I'm working on
My current work spans four organizations, with a different role in each.
At Spoon, I'm Founding Engineer and CTO. I'm building the technical foundation for a restaurant operations platform, connecting financial, point-of-sale, and inventory data. The work involves integrations with Toast, Plaid, and Finch, and APIs that operational agents can use. We are developing it alongside Kerbey Lane Cafe, so the design is grounded in the work of a restaurant team.
I founded OneNeural for applied AI consulting and product development. Work there includes RecruitIQ, which connects candidate screening with AI-led voice interviews, and an experimental Support Co-Pilot that brings transcription, retrieval, and suggestions into a live call. I also write about agent architecture and build examples of the patterns I discuss.
At Atoms, I'm Principal Engineer for James Clear's official Atomic Habits app. My work spans the React Native application, backend services, and cloud architecture, including AI-driven habit nudging. The app reached 600K+ organic installs in its first year and 120K+ monthly active users, and earned a Webby Award nomination.
As CTO at Ayrin Digital, I lead technology strategy and engineering practices across full-stack, cloud, and AI work. The consultancy has delivered 50+ engagements for companies including Google, Nike, Clorox, AccuWeather, Pearson, and Royal Caribbean. My role connects technical decisions with client needs and the team's ability to deliver them.
How I approach the work
I start with the workflow: who uses it, what information they need, which systems it touches, and what happens when something goes wrong. That gives us a useful first scope and a way to decide whether the software helps.
For an AI application, the model is one part of that design. The surrounding work includes getting the right data into context, building tools with clear boundaries, and deciding when a person should review an action. Voice adds another constraint: the system has to keep up with a conversation.
I care about how the team will debug and operate what we build. My background in full-stack and cloud engineering is useful here, because the difficult parts often sit between the model, the application, and an existing business system.
How I got here
My career started in mobile and IoT. At Philips Healthcare, I built iOS and Android apps, developed wearable solutions, and did R&D on IoT infrastructure. At HARMAN International, I led iOS and Android development, cross-platform work with Xamarin and React Native, Node.js and .NET services, and cloud setup on AWS and Azure for connected-device products. That early work gave me a deep respect for device constraints, connectivity, and shipping to real users on real hardware.
From there, I moved into mobile and cloud. At Mutual Mobile, I spent five years building products for clients across healthcare, logistics, field operations, and consumer apps, growing from an engineer into a technical lead, then into an architect responsible for system design and client delivery. At Symbl.ai, I worked on real-time conversation intelligence, building APIs for voice, video, and text understanding at scale.
Those experiences taught me to take constraints seriously, whether they come from a device, a network, a client's existing systems, or the people using the product. The full timeline is on the experience page.
What I believe
Software should fit the people who use it. I want to understand their existing habits and constraints before asking them to adopt a new tool.
I think of AI-native design as a product question. What becomes possible when the software can interpret language, retrieve context, or choose a next step? The answer still has to justify the added latency, cost, and uncertainty.
I prefer architectures that leave room for the product to change. Good fundamentals and clear boundaries make it easier to move quickly without leaving the next engineer a puzzle.
How I lead
I lead through context. I want engineers to understand the problem deeply enough to make good decisions without waiting for me. That means explaining why a decision matters, being open about constraints, and listening when someone sees a better approach.
I stay involved in design and implementation, and make room for people to own their work. Clear feedback, including difficult conversations, is part of supporting a team. So is recognizing that people with different backgrounds will notice things I miss.
Outside work
My curiosity extends well beyond technology, and it shapes how I think about problems, design products, and relate to people.
Nature, farming, and animals. I spend time on my farmhouse whenever I can. I am building a permaculture setup there, growing trees, working with plants, and paying attention to how natural systems sustain themselves. Animals are part of that picture. The patience required to grow something from the ground up is not that different from building a company.
Science, art, and spirituality. I am drawn to how things work at every scale, from quantum mechanics to ecosystems to questions about meaning and purpose. Art and aesthetics shape how I design products, and I think about the big questions more than most engineers admit to.
Travel, culture, and music. Different cultures challenge assumptions. I have worked and traveled across multiple continents, and those experiences changed how I think about building for diverse users. My playlist is rarely mainstream; independent artists pushing creative boundaries keep things interesting.
A personal note
Trying hard to get a hold of my life.
That is my honest state, most of the time. Building products, staying technically sharp, being present for the people I care about, and still finding time to think clearly about what matters. I am not pretending to have it figured out. I am just trying to do good work, learn from the process, and leave things a little better than I found them.
Kind words
What clients have said about working with Ayrin Digital, the consultancy I lead as CTO.
“I wasn't expecting such a high level of commitment from a third-party partner. The development work had a very positive impact on the business, helping the business gain more clients and users. The team's efforts played a role in internal success, and their end-to-end product management was an advantage. They were a devoted partner who offered valuable suggestions.”
“With good ideas, contact, and feedback, Ayrin's team has been able to save almost half an hour per day per person, by the use of biometrics, which is a lot of money for a company of our size. A completely new code written without bugs took about a third of the time as the first attempt for around a third of the price.”
“Our experience with Ayrin's team has been phenomenal. We were up against some pretty overwhelming problems in the CRE space, and with the team's help we've built incredibly powerful, intuitive software to enable our brokers to win more business and while delivering an unforgettable client experience. The team was consistent, reliable and transparent with their process and deliverables. I'm always impressed at their ability to interpret our needs and provide a simple, beautiful solution.”
“The team is competent and are very flexible and engage with each other and with my team. Their drive to be part of long-standing solutions means that they work collaboratively from day one with a vision that goes beyond on-trend products. Their work has solidified a positive brand opinion.”
“The team worked with us to integrate the power of real-time connectivity and the cloud into more than a million ESCORT and Beltronics models on the road today.”
“After working with this team for years, I fully trust them to drive the execution of Flexdrive's vision. Thanks to their partnership, we've expanded from a fleet of 35 vehicles in one market to almost 600 vehicles in four major metros; and that was just the beginning.”
“Great design, terrific code quality: a really talented team.”
“The team delivered an intuitive platform that received positive feedback from its more than 24,000 active users. The product generated more than $1 million in gross revenue within a year. The team is responsive, adapting practices according to feedback, which supports ongoing collaboration.”
“Our business is driven by our network of skilled Style Advisors, and we created Style Kit to help deliver a more effective, customized shopping experience at the point of sale. The impact on transaction metrics affirms that the platform is an effective way to further enhance the J.Hilburn experience through digital commerce.”
“They fired on all cylinders in every single function. We're very thankful for such a positive experience and well-executed delivery.”
“I was particularly excited about the ways that elementary teachers will be able to take advantage of the platform to collect more and better data about their students and progress. Careful progress monitoring and intervention during children's formative years is so critical to their future success, and with our platform, teachers will have the ability to record assessments and share results with their colleagues and parents anytime, anywhere, in real time.”
“It is exciting to find a team like Ayrin's. As an innovator, we are seeking passionate driven partners without the typical limitations in their heads.”
“I really appreciated their dedication and their willingness to accommodate based on our needs. The team provided the best communication methods and the highest level of availability that I've experienced.”