Kalob Taulien

Senior Full-Stack Software Engineer

kalob.io github.com/kalobtaulien linkedin.com/in/kalobtaulien

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Summary

Python-first full-stack engineer specializing in Django, APIs, and applied AI, including RAG, hybrid search, and LLM integration. Coding since 1999, with experience across established engineering teams, agencies, startups, and open source. Wagtail CMS core team member and educator to more than 750,000 developers. I pair deep technical work with business awareness and clear communication.

Core skills

Backend: Python, Django, Django REST Framework, API design, background jobs, testing
Applied AI: LLM integration, RAG, embeddings, vector and hybrid search, reranking, evaluation
Frontend & mobile: JavaScript, TypeScript, React, React Native, Expo, Tailwind CSS
Data & delivery: PostgreSQL, PostGIS, pgvector, NoSQL, Docker, Git, CI/CD
Technical education: Curriculum development, technical writing, video course production, developer mentoring
Developer relations: Developer advocacy, technical communication, community engagement
Architecture & product delivery: Full-stack architecture, MVP development, third-party integrations, maintaining production applications
Open source: Core maintainership, collaborative development, code review
Mobile delivery: Apple's App Store and Google's Play Store releases, Expo EAS builds, mobile analytics, crash monitoring
Cloud & infrastructure: Cloudflare Workers, Azure, Linux, deployment and hosting
CMS & e-commerce: Wagtail CMS, WordPress, Shopify apps, Admin APIs, and theme development, content migrations, CMS architecture
Integrations & automation: REST APIs, webhooks, workflow automation, payment integrations

Professional experience

Muck Rack

July 2025 - Today

Software Engineer

Hired to help maintain and upgrade their CMS that serves millions of requests per month.

LearnWagtail.com

2018 – Present

Founder & Instructor

Created 60+ YouTube tutorials on Wagtail CMS before launching LearnWagtail.com in 2018, now the #1 resource for learning Wagtail, used by thousands of developers every month.

Taulien Enterprises

2020 – Present

Director

Canadian corporation through which I subcontract and augment engineering teams for software companies, and teach developers to code — largely a vehicle for operating internationally.

Mozilla Foundation

September 2020 – May 2022

Senior Engineer & Developer Advocate

Hired to augment the Wagtail development team, then helped grow Mozilla's Canadian and American web development teams. Reported to senior stakeholders on Wagtail CMS, Django, and frontend development, and worked alongside in-house senior engineers managing design and development.

The NHS

May 2021 – September 2022

Development Team Augmentation

Helped manage an advanced Wagtail setup handling data for 60 million UK citizens, under specialized insurance requirements. Major emphasis on peer review before any change reached staging, with communication and security treated as paramount while working alongside government stakeholders.

NASA (JPL)

May 2019 – December 2021

Engineering Team Augmentation

Joined the JPL team to help build a headless Wagtail site and plan infrastructure for maximum security and uptime, while mentoring developers on Python, Django, and Wagtail best practices. Mostly architectural work: closing security gaps against large-scale DDoS attacks and planning for traffic spikes during major news releases.

Lift Interactive

January 2017 – December 2019

Fullstack Developer

Became the team's go-to developer across more than 30 projects, some award-winning, after quickly mastering their stack. This work led to an invitation to join the Wagtail CMS core development team.

Selected achievements

Member of the Wagtail CMS core development team.
Taught more than 750,000 people how to code, starting in 2012.
Founded, built, and run LearnWagtail.com.
Founded and built startup and education products.
Shipped cross-platform mobile apps with React Native and Expo.

Education & development

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