In a timeline that feels uncertain and full of negativity, the SGFDevs community has a ray of light to help us find our optimism and creativity. You may have seen him around if you’ve hit up an OpenSGF meetup, or been at an SGFDevs meeting lately. He’s got a quiet, unassuming confidence that isn’t flashy, and belies his big ideas, entrepreneurial spirit and drive. Zack Bradshaw not only has big ideas, but big ideas that could make a hugely positive impact on our community and society.
Zack’s an Ozarks native, having grown up in Stockton. He comes by his entrepreneurial spirit easily as his father and brother are both entrepreneurs. While finding his passions in the development world, he started as many devs do, in game development. He played around with Unreal Engine, even looking into 3D modeling and scene building. Soon, he realized that programming was where he found the most satisfaction. He bypassed the traditional secondary education and relied on his self-motivation to learn the skills he needed to create a career. From hardware to software, game development to design, Zack has done it all. He has a love for coding that has only grown stronger over his career. But his true love is AI.
Most recently Zack found himself doing web development for Logic Forte. But the drive to create and passion for AI are so strong, he decided to make a huge change. Recently, he left his traditional job and is building his own company focused on harnessing the power of AI. But starting a business can be daunting. So he’s enrolled in the accelerator program at the E-Factory. A move that highlights his commitment and drive to this industry and our community.
And speaking of commitment to community, he demonstrates it weekly with his involvement in OpenSGF. Zack didn’t just join OpenSGF, he helps to keep it alive with his role of co-organizer. Fully supporting the mission to help our community by contributing the skills of local developers. OpenSGF works to support local nonprofits by providing a volunteer group of designers and developers to tackle technical problems for our community. The group is open to all skill levels, from non-technical people to established engineers. Zack’s favorite part of working with the group is the opportunity to learn deeply by teaching. If you’re interested in joining this team of motivated, talented and compassionate people, check out OpenSGF!
When not supporting our community or starting up his AI focused company, Zack loves to work with his family creating and learning new things in tech. Recently, he worked with his brother to design and build his own keyboard. They call it the “Seahorse” and it has only 30% the number of keys as a traditional keyboard, optimizing the way he works. I almost feel bad for his lonely mouse hiding next to this shining creation, as he strives to never need it again.
While his entrepreneurial spirit and community-focused passions are examples of what make Zack a fantastic developer, what really struck me about Zack was his pure and honest optimism for the future. He's not just a tech enthusiast; he's an idealist who sees a world transformed for the better through technology. He sees a future where AI doesn’t just automate tasks, but allows people to live more fulfilling lives by empowering them to become entrepreneurs or work in industries/fields that truly support their happiness. He spoke of life-extending technology and expanding humanity by colonizing space. In a world of jaded pessimism, it was refreshing to hear his enthusiasm.
My conversation with Zack left me invigorated and optimistic about the future. I’m incredibly excited to have someone like him in our community, continually working to better the lives of us all. I have no doubts that his career will be successful and I look forward to hearing more about his business as it takes flight!
Through the course of our conversation, Zack mentioned many hackathons and challenges that he's taken part of recently, and I wanted to hightlight some of his awesome work here!
Finishing in the top 25 with ikigAI
Finishing in the top 8 with Profit Pilot
Fusing Zack's love of game dev with AI at 2023 Epic Megajam with Rise of Agora
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