The "Antigravity" Effect: How AI Turned a Backend Dev into a UI Designer

This is a submission for the New Year, New You Portfolio Challenge Presented by Google AI

About Me

I am a Cloud Engineer with a deep passion for Google Cloud and a recent focus on cloud security engineering and architecture. For me, technology isn't just a job—it's a playground. I love exploring the possibilities of what we can build, which drives me to create meaningful, free-to-use applications like RivalReel and HomePilot.

My philosophy is simple: technology should benefit everyone. Whether I'm designing secure cloud landing zones for enterprise clients or building a social app for friends, I aim to share my love of technology with the world.

Portfolio

How I Built It

This portfolio is built with FastAPI and Tailwind CSS, hosted serverless on Google Cloud Run.

The "Antigravity" Effect

I'll be honest—I'm a backend engineer at heart. I can architect secure, scalable cloud infrastructure in my sleep, but when it comes to frontend work, I'm often slow and struggle to make things look "premium."

This is where Antigravity, an advanced AI coding assistant using Google's Gemini models, changed the game for me.

• Accelerated UI Design: I used AI to bridge the gap between my backend logic and strict design requirements. It helped me generate the glassmorphism aesthetic and complex animations that would have taken me weeks to hand-code.
• Interactive Components: The interactive architecture diagram in the "RivalReel" section (go check it out!) was built by pair-programming with Gemini. I explained the architecture, and it helped me render it into a responsive, animated SVG.

Powered by Gemini

I don't just use AI to write code; I embed it into the very fabric of my applications.

• RivalReel: The backend features a Gemini Flash agent running on Vertex AI. This agent autonomously monitors news and trends to generate daily challenges for users, keeping the content fresh without manual intervention.
• Portfolio: This site itself is a testament to how AI tools can amplify a developer's capabilities, turning a "backend dev" into a full-stack creator.

What I'm Most Proud Of

I'm most proud of how this portfolio represents the harmony between human creativity and AI assistance.

Technically, I love the Interactive Architecture Diagrams. It's one thing to list "Cloud Run" on a resume; it's another to let a user eagerly explore the data flow between my mobile app, load balancers, and database with a hover-over interface.

On a personal level, I'm proud to show that AI isn't just a tool for efficiency—it's a companion to society. It enables me to bring my ideas to life in ways I couldn't before, allowing me to share my passion for technology with a wider audience.