# Leighton Tidwell - Staff Software Engineer & AI Tech Lead

> Staff Software Engineer and AI Tech Lead at Future, where I lead applied AI strategy, build production-ready AI systems, and mentor engineers on modern development workflows. Background spans military, startup, and private-sector environments, with deep experience in React, Next.js, Node.js, GraphQL, AWS, and Python.

## About

Leighton Tidwell is a Staff Software Engineer and AI Tech Lead who bridges emerging AI capabilities with real product and engineering execution. He brings a rare combination of AI systems thinking, full-stack execution, and technical leadership shaped by military, startup, and private-sector experience. He pursues every project as an expression of his faith in Christ.

## Current Role

**Staff Software Engineer, AI Tech Lead at Future** - Leading applied AI initiatives, building production-ready AI systems, and mentoring engineers on modern development workflows. Focused on turning emerging AI capabilities into reliable software that drives real user and business impact.

## Experience

- 9+ years of professional software engineering experience
- Applied AI leadership across LLMs, agents, evals, observability, and agentic development workflows
- Mission-critical systems development for the United States Department of Defense
- Full-stack engineering and technical leadership across startup and private-sector environments
- Team mentorship on AI adoption, development workflows, and engineering best practices

## Skills & Expertise

**Core Technologies:**
- React, Next.js, Node.js, TypeScript
- GraphQL, AWS, Python
- LLMs, AI Agents, Observability
- Full Stack Development

**Specializations:**
- Applied AI systems and strategy
- Technical leadership and mentoring
- Production-ready AI system design
- Bridging AI capabilities with product and engineering execution
- Faith-driven, purpose-centered engineering

## Projects

**Stinky Pointing Poker** (https://stinky-pointing-poker.com)
- A lightweight planning poker tool built for teams experiencing load issues with the original
- Real-time collaborative estimation made simple
- Built with Next.js, React, and Supabase
- Open source: https://github.com/leighton-tidwell/stinky-pointing-poker

## Contact

- LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/leightontidwell/
- GitHub: https://github.com/leighton-tidwell
- Website: https://l8in.tdwl.dev

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## Faith & Mission

Leighton approaches his work through the lens of his Christian faith, bridging emerging AI capabilities with real engineering execution as an expression of worship. His mission is guided by Ephesians 6:7 (NLT): "Work with enthusiasm, as though you were working for the Lord rather than for people."