Curriculum Vitae
Current Role
Independent software engineer developing open-source tools for network automation and intelligent systems.
Education
PhD, Computer Science University of South Australia, 2017
Thesis: Abstractions and Transformations for Automated Data Network Configuration
Developed compiler-based approach to transform high-level network specifications into multi-platform device configurations. Research focused on graph transformations, declarative network modeling, and automated configuration generation across heterogeneous vendors. Created AutoNetkit, which was integrated into Cisco’s VIRL network simulation platform and presented at PyCon Australia 2013.
Bachelor of Engineering (Telecommunications), First Class Honours University of Adelaide, 2008
Final year subjects: Telecommunications, Communications, Computer Networks and Applications, Signal Processing, Advanced Telecommunications, Optical Communications, Communication Network Design
Bachelor of Economics University of Adelaide, 2009
Awards: Development Economics III Excellence Award (2009), The DSTO Surveillance Systems Undergraduate Prize (2008), Dean’s Merit Certificate for Outstanding Academic Achievement in Electrical & Electronic Engineering (2008)
Technical Skills
Languages: Rust, Python, Go, Swift, JavaScript
Domains:
- Network automation and configuration generation
- Multi-agent systems with message broker architectures
- Real-time signal processing (biometrics, RF)
- High-performance visualization and simulation
Tools & Frameworks:
- Infrastructure: Docker, NATS, OpenTelemetry, Tokio
- Web: FastAPI, Flask, Vue, Axum
- Data & ML: Polars, Pydantic, NeuroKit2, PyTorch
- Rust Ecosystem: PyO3, petgraph, serde, tracing
- Network: INDI/ASCOM protocols, MPLS, BGP, OSPF
Professional Work
Independent Software Engineer (2025-Present)
- ank_pydantic: Developing a high-performance network topology modeling framework with a Rust core (
petgraph) and Python bindings (PyO3) for large-scale network simulation. - NetVis: Built a deterministic topology layout engine that transforms complex multi-layer network graphs into information-dense visualizations for engineering analysis.
- Agentic Systems: Implementing a security-first multi-agent framework using NATS and Docker for isolated, capability-based automation in production environments.
- HealthyPi Ecosystem: Developing real-time biometric signal processing pipelines (ECG, PPG, HRV) for experimental health monitoring hardware.
AutoNetkit - Cisco VIRL Integration (2013-2017) Open-source network configuration automation tool developed during PhD research. Integrated into Cisco’s Virtual Internet Routing Lab (VIRL) platform for automated multi-vendor provisioning. Supported major vendors including Cisco IOS, IOS-XR, NX-OS, Juniper JunOS, and Arista EOS.
Internet Topology Zoo (2010-2013) Curated database of real-world network topologies from ISPs and research networks. Widely used in academic research for network analysis and algorithm validation. Over 2,000 citations on Google Scholar.
Example: GÉANT European research network topology from the Internet Topology Zoo
Publications & Links
Full CV: Download PDF