Ted Choi
ActiveAn amateur bowler, an amateur soccer player, a reader, a listener, and a software engineer.
Q. What is your perspective on AI?
I now spend the vast majority of my working hours actively collaborating with and leveraging AI. Today, AI has evolved beyond software engineering into an indispensable foundation across all industries, and how effectively one utilizes AI directly reflects an engineer's capability and impact.
I utilize AI as a powerful catalyst to bridge previous knowledge gaps and elevate my problem-solving ability, experiencing dramatic leaps in productivity and execution speed every single day. In this era, specific programming languages, platforms, or domains are no longer the bottleneck—what truly matters is the vision you dream and dare to build.
Q. Tell me about your background and experience.
I began my career as an IT Security Manager, which provided me with a solid foundation in IT infrastructure and security. Over the past 10+ years, I have worked as a Software Engineer, focusing primarily on PHP-based platforms ranging from large-scale e-commerce systems to custom CMS solutions.
Q. Which domain or field are you most confident in?
Most of the companies I have worked with specialized in digital commerce, allowing me to build deep expertise in the E-commerce domain. Additionally, through my hands-on experience in various startups, I have developed the ability to build infrastructure from the ground up for small-to-medium-sized projects. I believe developers are creators who turn imagination into reality—transforming abstract, ambiguous requirements into reliable, production-ready services, with the ultimate goal of delivering tangible value to real-world businesses.
Q. What is your experience with Node.js?
I actively follow modern engineering trends and understand the performance benefits of the Node.js ecosystem. While my core experience is in PHP, I have a strong grasp of Node.js fundamentals. Currently, I am contributing to a project building backend services with NestJS. I believe that focusing on core architectural principles rather than just language syntax allows me to adapt quickly and deliver reliable solutions in any stack.
Q. How proficient are you with Docker?
For the past several years, I have consistently used Docker and Docker Compose across all my projects to standardize development environments and eliminate inconsistencies across team members. I am also experienced in containerizing applications and configuring CI/CD workflows. Given my backend background, I am particularly adept at orchestrating Nginx, PHP, and MySQL within containerized environments.
Q. Do you prefer frontend or backend development?
With modern web development blurring the lines between client and server, I value both equally. Frontend development is exciting because of immediate visual feedback and crafting seamless user experiences, while backend engineering is deeply rewarding when designing scalable architectures and optimizing performance. Ultimately, my priority is contributing wherever the product and team need it most.
Q. How experienced are you with server and cloud infrastructure?
Having worked in environments where full-cycle ownership was essential, I naturally developed strong capabilities in server administration and DevOps. With the widespread adoption of cloud platforms, I have gained practical experience architecting infrastructure and establishing automated CI/CD pipelines across AWS, Azure, and GCP. While many organizations now have dedicated infrastructure specialists, my practical knowledge allows me to collaborate effectively and bridge the gap between development and operations.