A FEW THINGS FROM MY WORKBENCH

I’ve been making things
since I was twelve.

Hi, I’m Mohanad. I build robots, write software,
and explore new questions through research.

Follow the story
Started at twelve · still buildingSCROLL TO THE BEGINNING
01 / THE BEGINNING

The robot that
started everything.

I built this one at twelve, from PVC pipe and a handful of thrusters.
Teaching it to steer and to see through its camera is what pulled me
into software, and later into machine learning and computer vision.

MY FIRST ROVDrag to turn it around
Bringing the first robot back.0%

A photo from the workbench. A little footage from the pool.
Hover to take a closer look · tap to open

WHERE THAT LED

About me

I study computer science at TUM and write software for robots and for people working with AI. Along the way I co-founded Vortex, an underwater robotics company whose ROVs inspected pipelines along the Suez Canal.

Now I build appliedAI’s internal AI agent, and at the MIT Media Lab I research where brain-computer interfaces meet generative AI. A PhD is the next step. I still build things on weekends.

02 / A FEW THINGS I MADE

Ideas I had to try.

Some became products. Some taught me things.
These are a few I’m glad I followed.

Turn an idea into a playable game.

Hover to watchTap to explore

Turn words and images into 3D assets.

Hover for a moment from the fairTap to explore

Help TUM students find answers.

Hover to look insideTap to explore
03 / ALONG THE WAY

Experience

Full CV
  1. appliedAIProduct Engineering InternAt appliedAI, I turn business problems into AI solutions for enterprise clients. I work across model training, fine-tuning, and software development, taking a solution from the initial problem through to client delivery.Dec 2025 — Present
    Munich

    Alongside client work, I created Apli, a Slack assistant that helps employees find internal knowledge, submit AI use cases, and reach the right support team.

    Expanded Apli into an internal agent ecosystem covering use-case intake, meetings, OKRs, and access to LLM infrastructure.

    Model training · Fine-tuning · Software engineering · AI agentsAbout the company
  2. MIT Media LabVisiting Student ResearcherI research the intersection of generative AI and brain–computer interaction as a visiting student at MIT Media Lab.Dec 2024 — Present
    Hybrid

    Researching the intersection of brain–computer interaction and generative AI at the MIT Media Lab.

    Generative AI · Brain–computer interactionFluid Interfaces group
  3. SAPSoftware Engineering InternI worked with SAP’s infrastructure team to spot cloud performance bottlenecks before they affected users. Using Dynatrace and real-time system metrics, I helped improve reliability.Oct 2024 — Oct 2025
    Walldorf

    Used Dynatrace to monitor SAP’s cloud infrastructure and identify performance bottlenecks.

    Worked with the infrastructure team to analyze real-time system metrics and improve cloud reliability.

    Dynatrace · Cloud monitoring · Performance analysisAbout the company
  4. peaqMember of Technical StaffI helped build the peaq portal, including authentication, NFT minting, and quest management. I led frontend development and built modules connecting software with real-world devices.Feb 2024 — Oct 2024
    Munich

    Helped build the portal’s infrastructure, secure authentication, NFT minting, and quest management systems.

    Led frontend development and built low-code modules for IoT and decentralized physical infrastructure integrations.

    Rust · Frontend engineering · DePINAbout the company
  5. TUMResearch AssistantI worked with Microsoft engineers and TUM to take pAIge from a hackathon prototype to a student-services pilot. I also built an augmented-reality research prototype for real-time object recognition.Nov 2023 — Apr 2024
    Germany

    Collaborated with Microsoft engineers and the TUM School of Business to refine and scale a student-services chatbot into a pilot-ready solution.

    Built a VisionOS research prototype with ARKit and CoreML to explore real-time object recognition in augmented reality.

    Conversational AI · ARKit · CoreMLThe pAIge story
Earlier experience 6 roles
  1. Synapse AnalyticsSoftware Engineering InternI built and modernized React components for an internal UI library, and fixed issues across the library and admin dashboards.Jul 2023 — Sep 2023
    Remote

    Built components for an internal UI library with React and SCSS, migrated class components to functions, and fixed issues across the UI package and admin dashboards.

    React · JavaScript · SCSSAbout the company
  2. SpoknSoftware Engineering InternI built frontend features for enterprise customers with React and TypeScript. Alongside product work, I refactored the codebase and documented improvements to make it easier to maintain.May 2022 — Jun 2023
    Remote

    Built product features with React, TypeScript, and React Query for enterprise customers.

    Documented technical improvements and refactored React and Redux code to improve stability and maintainability.

    React · TypeScript · React Query · ReduxAbout the company
  3. RubikalSoftware Engineering InternI built a platform where people could create and share a résumé, collect feedback, and use it to improve their profile.Jul 2022 — Sep 2022
    Alexandria

    Developed a résumé creation and sharing platform with a dashboard for collecting feedback and making improvements.

    React · Redux Toolkit · Tailwind · Ruby on RailsAbout the company
  4. Strive MathEntrepreneur in ResidenceI designed and built a new product from its initial specification, working across the React frontend and Node.js backend. I also wrote materials to help the team work with the code.Mar 2022 — May 2022
    Singapore

    Designed and implemented a product with React, Node.js, Express, and MongoDB. Improved the login experience and wrote training materials to help the team work with the codebase.

    React · Node.js · Express · MongoDB
  5. VortexCo-founder & CTOI co-founded an underwater robotics startup and led engineering on robots for industrial inspection. We delivered a pipeline and infrastructure inspection contract along the Suez Canal.Aug 2020 — Feb 2023
    Dubai

    Co-founded an underwater robotics startup building ROVs and AUVs for industrial subsea inspection. Secured and delivered a pipeline and infrastructure inspection contract along the Suez Canal.

    Built ROS 2 navigation with camera, IMU, and depth fusion for autonomous waypoint following. Deployed YOLO on NVIDIA Jetson to detect corrosion, marine growth, and structural defects.

    Collected and labeled coral reef survey data during Red Sea field missions for the company’s detection models.

    ROS 2 · Sensor fusion · YOLO · NVIDIA Jetson
  6. PresizeSoftware Engineering · Working StudentI worked in a team of three on an apparel recommendation system, in collaboration with TUM.ai and Presize.May 2017 — Aug 2017
    Munich

    Worked in a team of three on an apparel recommendation system in cooperation with TUM.ai and Presize.

    Recommendation systemsAbout the company
04 / RESEARCH

Research

Exploring opportunities for a PhD directly after undergrad.

Google Scholar
  1. 2026

    Breaking Negative Cycles

    CHI
  2. 2025

    AI & Robotic Assistants in ADHD Therapy

    Human-Centric Intelligent Systems
  3. 2024

    Robotic Assistants with ChatGPT & Claude

    Intelligent Environments
  4. 2024

    The Future of ADHD Care

    Healthcare

Blog

Some stories behind the things I’ve made.

All posts
Illustration of a purple PCB and chip

Why I’m coming back to hardware

From building underwater robots
to studying the hardware behind AI.

Illustration of a handheld game console

A game from a few words

Building Playable: turning text prompts
into games you can play.

05 / AWARDS & COMPETITIONS

Awards and competitions

Hackathons, robotics championships and programming contests since 2018.

  1. 1st

    Microsoft × TUM

    A student-services chatbot that became pAIge.    Hackathon · Munich · team · 32 teams    2023
  2. 2nd

    KYA Protocol

    On-chain trust and reputation layer for AI agents.    Tech Europe hackathon · Berlin · solo · 250+ participants · Solana · SDK · CLI · LangChain agents    2025
  3. 3rd

    HackNation

    Solo build in a worldwide field.    Global hackathon · solo · 1,000+ participants    2026
  4. 3rd

    IDEAsHack

    ScienceBridge: Graph-RAG that links stranded research to industry.    Finals · Poland · team of 3 · Finalist · Next.js · Gemini · Supabase · Three.js    2026
Earlier results 14 more · 2018–2024
  • Finalist

    Porsche Digital Campus Challenge

    An automotive solution exploring AI-powered predictive analytics and optimization.    2024
  • Best presentation

    Intelligent Environments

    Research on conversational robotic assistants using ChatGPT and Claude.    2024
  • Top 10

    AWS DeepRacer

    Training reinforcement-learning models for autonomous racing.    2024
  • Best EdTech startup

    AAST Rally

    Recognition for innovation in education.    2022
  • Finalist

    MATE ROV

    Computer vision and pilot software for the team’s underwater robot.    2022
  • 5th

    RoboSub

    Underwater robotics with Team Vortex.    2021
  • Best technical mentor

    IEEE AAST AlexSB

    Helping students build technical skills through workshops and projects.    2021
  • 3rd

    ECPC

    Egyptian Collegiate Programming Contest.    2020
  • 1st

    Artificial Intelligence Underwater Challenge

    AI for underwater robotics.    2020
  • 2nd

    Underwater Robotics Research Center

    Recognition for robotics research.    2020
  • Top 100

    Africa & Arab Collegiate Programming Championship

    Competitive programming at the regional championship.    2020
  • Finalist

    Creed AI · Portugal incubator

    An entrepreneurship milestone with the Creed AI project.    2020
  • Finalist · best project

    Intel ISEF

    An autonomous medicine-delivery robot.    2019
  • Finalist

    RoboCup

    An early milestone in robotics and AI.    2018