Independent software engineering

I build systems software.
I fix complex bugs.

I'm A. Sulaiman, a software engineer based in Switzerland. I build execution runtimes in C and contribute to PHP, Pulsar Engine and other open-source projects.

View engineering work GitHub
Rust / C / Data-heavy applicationsIndependent developer
01 / Selected projects

Engineering work, with the code to back it up.

Upstream contributions to PHP and Pulsar Engine, the Recode runtime and independent products.

Flagship projects

01

Pulsar Engine: GPU Skeletal Skinning

On Intel N150 (500,000 vertices, 128 joints), GPU skinning reduced CPU preparation from 55.416 to 0.025 ms and synchronized 256×256 offscreen frame time from 98.998 to 16.261 ms.

I moved the skeletal preview skinning path to a WGSL vertex shader in Pulsar's Rust/wgpu renderer. Indexed bind-pose meshes remain on the GPU; only changed joint palettes are uploaded. Tests covered CPU/GPU parity and GPU resource lifecycles, including an imported 34,159-vertex rig. These results are specific to the benchmark: scene GPU time increased, and offscreen timings exclude editor UI and presentation.

RustwgpuWGSLGPU resource managementRendering validation
Merged upstreamRead the case study ↗Merged PR #10 ↗Benchmark details ↗
03

Pulsar Engine: Animation Systems & Event Infrastructure

I built foundational Rust systems across four merged upstream repositories: backward-compatible animation assets with typed notifies, float/vector curves and root-motion extraction; deterministic indexed time-window evaluation; instance-directed Gamma/EventHub delivery; and Blueprint event discovery and binding. Added regression coverage for serialization, event routing and compilation. Collaborated with maintainer tristanpoland, who extended the timeline editor, refined Blueprint component scoping and aligned upstream repository integration.

RustAnimation systemsDeterministic evaluationGamma / EventHubBlueprint scripting
4 PRs merged upstreamRead the technical article ↗Plugin_SKM PR #8 ↗Pulsar-Native PR #1466 ↗Helio PR #363 ↗Plugin_Blueprints PR #37 ↗
04

Senticor

Production intelligence for game studios. Connects tasks, dependencies, capacity, bugs, builds and scope changes to probabilistic milestone forecasts, explainable delivery risks and scenario-based planning.

Data scienceProbabilistic simulationForecastingDecision support
Public websiteVisit Senticor ↗

Upstream contributions

  1. 05Integrated upstream
    PHP / Zend JIT

    PHP Core: Tracing JIT Correctness Fix

    Preserved indirect type information across tracing-JIT side traces in dynamic by-value and by-reference calls; added PHPT regression coverage.

    PR #24699CommitTechnical notes
  2. 06Open / Review
    PHP / Zend JIT

    PHP Core: Tracing JIT CV State and CSE

    I addressed three GH-24683 incorrect-value cases: a CV spill occurring before loop guards, redundant typed-constant copies overwriting live CVs, and CSE reusing stale spill-slot bindings. The patches adjust assignment/register allocation and live-range-aware spill sharing, with PHPT and Linux x86_64 JIT validation. Independent Apple M1 tests found no remaining incorrect results in the reported cases (A: 9→0, B: 252→0, C: 939→0).

    B · PR #25085A+C · PR #25136GH-24683
  3. 07Merged upstream
    Pulsar / Importer

    Pulsar Engine: glTF Multi-Skin Importing

    Preserved every glTF mesh skin's joint mappings, decoded all weight sets, and kept asset IDs stable across reimports.

    PR #1550Technical notes
  4. 08Merged upstream
    Pulsar / Plugin_SKM

    Pulsar Engine: Skeleton Hierarchy Editor

    Added bone creation, deletion, renaming and reparenting with undo/redo, hierarchy validation, referenced-bone safeguards and persistent bone-local sockets.

    PR #5
  5. 09Open / Review
    PHP / OPcache

    PHP Core: OPcache Map Pointer Management

    Proposed resetting stale PHP-FPM worker-local map-pointer watermarks at activation while preserving preloaded slots; added multi-worker regression coverage and NTS/ZTS checks.

    PR #24644Issue #23859
  6. 10Open / Review
    PHP / Zend conversion

    PHP Core: Floating-Point Precision and Memory Efficiency

    Proposed a 770-digit cap in Zend's floating-point conversion path to limit temporary allocations at extreme serialization precision; tested equivalent output.

    PR #24688Issue #24563

Other projects

11

Perdisum

An adaptive learning platform exploring the relationship between reading, understanding and long-term retention. Built around concept-level learning, personalized study sessions and memory-aware review.

Data scienceAdaptive learningPersonalizationLearning systems
Public websiteVisit Perdisum ↗
12

NEXUS

A financial engineering platform in development. Brings together a simulated exchange, quantitative research, distributed infrastructure and blockchain-based settlement.

Systems programmingDistributed systemsQuantitative financeIn development
In development
02 / Engineering services

Engineering help for
difficult codebases.

I take on focused work in existing codebases: tracking down hard bugs, improving performance and building features that need careful integration. I'll agree the scope and how to verify the result before starting.

Starting prices in CHF. Fixed-price quotes are agreed in CHF.

Small Fixes & Technical Tasks

For a contained bug, small integration or focused tooling change.

Starting atCHF 390

  • One clearly defined issue or small deliverable
  • Reproducer or acceptance criteria agreed in advance
  • Targeted implementation and relevant checks
  • Changes delivered in your existing repository
  • Short written handoff

Limited to a small, reproducible task. Extensive investigation, multiple issues and ongoing support are quoted separately.

Send project details

Targeted Systems Engineering

For architecture constraints, performance bottlenecks and low-level defects.

Starting atCHF 1,200

  • Focused technical assessment and root-cause investigation
  • Targeted architecture, runtime or code-level intervention
  • Relevant profiling, tests or regression checks
  • Integration into the existing codebase
  • Concise documentation and technical handoff

For a specific problem with a clear scope. I'll investigate it, make the change and verify it in your codebase.

Send project details

Advanced Engineering

For substantial refactors, specialist subsystems and performance-critical work.

Starting atCHF 3,490

  • Architecture review and implementation plan
  • Multi-component refactoring or specialist subsystem development
  • Performance and correctness verification
  • Integration and regression test coverage
  • Technical handoff for the agreed deliverable

For work that touches several parts of a system. I'll confirm the requirements and boundaries before quoting the job.

Send project details

Custom Engineering

For complex systems, cross-cutting architecture or multi-phase contracts.

Individually scopedRequest a Quote

Potential engagements

  • Backend systems and distributed services
  • Architecture and migration planning
  • Runtime and tooling integrations
  • Performance analysis and optimization
  • Data-intensive applications and pipelines
  • Complex APIs and service boundaries
  • Specialized engineering tools
  • Multi-phase implementation and modernization

I'll review the requirements before quoting. If the unknowns need their own investigation, I'll scope that separately.

Send project details

How I quote.

I quote against an agreed scope, not an open-ended promise. If I need to investigate before I can price the fix, I'll explain that first.

All listed amounts are starting prices. CHF is the original and contractual pricing currency. EUR and USD conversions are approximate.

  • Additional functionality outside the agreed scope requires a separate quotation.
  • Hosting, infrastructure, third-party services and ongoing maintenance are priced separately.
  • Corrections of defects in agreed functionality are distinct from optional revision requests.

Tell me about the problem.

Send me a short description of the codebase, what's going wrong or what you'd like to build. I'll reply in writing and let you know if I can take it on.

You don't need to choose a package before messaging me.

Text me Email me

To maintain deep, uninterrupted focus, I work by text and email rather than calls. Send a short description of the problem and a repository link or minimal reproducer if you have one. I'll reply in writing if the work is a fit.

Text: +41 78 264 80 00 aasulaiman0613@gmail.com
03 / About

A bit about
my work.

I like working on problems where the details matter: how data moves through a system, how code behaves and what happens when assumptions break.

I build independent projects and contribute to existing codebases. Most of my work sits between systems programming, data and product development.

04 / Contact

Have a project
you'd like help with?

Send me a few lines about what you're building, the issue you're facing and where I could help. Text or email works best.

Message me aasulaiman0613@gmail.com Text me: +41 78 264 80 00
GitHub ↗Senticor ↗Perdisum ↗