Experience
What I've built, what I've learned, and the formal coursework behind it.
Work
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2025 – Present · 6+ monthsBuilding Cortex · Solo founder & developerNative iOS app (Swift, SwiftUI, CoreData) for AI-powered health journaling. Built voice input, semantic search across entry history, NLP for unstructured writing, and a conversational assistant with full long-context memory. AWS Bedrock for the model layer.
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2025 – PresentBuilding Scriptum · Solo founder & developerNative macOS Markdown editor with live preview, math rendering, Mermaid diagrams, presentations, and PDF export. No Electron, no subscriptions.
What I've Worked On
- Product design and app architecture
- Native iOS and macOS development (Swift, SwiftUI, CoreData)
- Interface and interaction design
- AI and retrieval: RAG pipelines, embeddings, vector search, knowledge graphs, long-context conversational systems
- Project management: scoping, planning, and shipping solo across long timelines
- Websites and landing pages (msakkal.com, ms-dev.app)
- App distribution: code signing, notarization, App Store submission, releases
Certifications · AI & Machine Learning
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Building with the Claude APIAnthropic · Coursera
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Building Generative AI-Powered Applications with PythonIBM
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Generative AI: Prompt Engineering BasicsIBM
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Machine Learning with PythonIBM
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Developing AI Applications with Python and FlaskIBM
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Introduction to Artificial Intelligence (AI)IBM
Certifications · Software & Data
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Python for Data ScienceIBM
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Databases and SQL for Data Science with PythonIBM
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HTML, CSS, and JavaScript for Web DevelopersJohns Hopkins University · Coursera
Certifications · IT & Networking
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Google IT SupportGoogle · Coursera
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Introduction to NetworkingCisco Networking Academy