Yaroslav Smirnov

About Me

I'm a backend engineer who ships production systems where AI is a core infrastructure component, not an afterthought. My work spans the full lifecycle: system design, implementation, deployment, and ongoing reliability. I think in terms of value creation, user impact, and architectural trade-offs.

My approach emphasizes engineering maturity—systems that are maintainable, observable, and built for real-world constraints. I've architected platforms serving hundreds of users with 99.9% uptime, orchestrated multi-provider AI layers with intelligent failover, and built payment systems processing real transactions.

I specialize in async Python patterns, relational database design, multi-model AI orchestration, and containerized deployments. My systems maintain high availability even under challenging conditions like geographic API restrictions or third-party provider outages.

Engineering Competencies

Backend & Systems

Architecting async-first systems with clean service boundaries, sophisticated database patterns, and production-grade error handling.

AI Orchestration

Building multi-provider AI layers with intelligent routing, automatic failover, cost optimization, and structured output validation.

DevOps & Deployment

Containerized deployments, hybrid server/serverless architectures, CI/CD pipelines, and production infrastructure management.

Data & Reliability

Complex schema design, transaction safety, connection pooling optimization, and comprehensive monitoring for production stability.

Professional Experience

Present

Software Engineer (Backend) — AI Integrations & DevOps

Independent Systems

End-to-end ownership of production systems across EdTech, e-commerce, and automation domains. Responsibilities include system architecture, AI orchestration layer design, database modeling, containerized deployment, and ongoing reliability engineering. Systems serve hundreds of active users with documented uptime and measurable business impact.

Technical Skills

Languages & Frameworks

  • Python (asyncio, type hints, context managers)
  • FastAPI, SQLAlchemy (Async), Pydantic
  • python-telegram-bot, aiogram 3
  • JavaScript/TypeScript (React, Vue.js)

Databases & Storage

  • PostgreSQL, MySQL
  • Connection Pooling & Transaction Management
  • Schema Design & Optimization
  • Redis (caching, task queues)

AI/ML Integration

  • Multi-Provider Integration (OpenAI, Gemini, Groq, Together AI)
  • Custom Fallback Systems
  • Content Generation & Moderation
  • Cost Optimization Strategies

DevOps & Deployment

  • Docker, GitHub Actions
  • Cloudflare Workers, Netlify Functions
  • Environment Configuration
  • Logging & Monitoring

Get In Touch

I'm interested in opportunities where I can build reliable, scalable systems that solve real problems. If you're looking for a backend engineer who can architect and ship production systems, let's connect.

Open to:

  • Backend/Full-Stack Python roles with system ownership
  • AI Integrator positions (orchestration, not research)
  • DevOps-focused Backend Engineering
  • System Architecture & Reliability Engineering

Available for remote and hybrid opportunities with international teams.