Job Title:
Developer Relations Engineer
Place of Work:
DataStax
Industry or specialization:
I specialize in building with AI.
What got you into Web Design/Development/working on the web?
Glass balls, glossy Tux penguins, and creating great UX.
What does a typical day or week look like for you? What sort of things do you do?
I typically wake up, eat something, do some exercise, and then work. In my free time, I enjoy community and playing Fortnite with my brother Philipp.
What types of web technologies do you work with most often?
Literally Cursor and iTerm every day. That’s all, honestly.
What is your favorite thing about your job?
I get to build whatever I want and be creative about it. Once I build something I enjoy, I then get to talk about it with the community and teach them how to do similar things.
What do you wish you could change about your job?
I wish for clearer communication and genuine kindness instead of game playing and indirect communication.
Where do you see your section of the web development/design/etc industry going?
I see it going towards the service of people, where it has always gone—sometimes for money, sometimes for the altruism of it.
What questions should I have asked that I didn’t?
What’s important to you above all else? People. The human beings that make this up. Everything I do is for them: to provide value and help them live better lives.
What would you tell someone to do who’s looking to get into the industry? How should they best prepare themselves?
Learn to enjoy the work, develop reasonable skill with or without getting paid for it, and you’ll be unstoppable.
Is there a way people (social media, blog etc) can get in contact with you to ask questions etc?
I’m on X at @tejaskumar_ and I also have a podcast that developers love.
Last Question: If you had to be a zombie and you had to eat someone’s brains, whose would it be and why?
Jesus Christ’s because it’d probably heal/unzombify me.