Dimitar Slaev, Developer in Geneva, Switzerland
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Dimitar Slaev

Bio

Dimitar has 13 years of commercial experience building web applications with a focus on React, TypeScript, and modern full-stack development. Currently developing an AI chat platform similar to ChatGPT, he brings expertise in LLM integration, chat interfaces, function calling, and RAG. On the back end, he has experience with Node.js and Next.js, building type-safe, documented, and testable REST APIs.

Portfolio

Enterprise
Open-source LLMs, TypeScript, React, React Native, Electron
DeinDeal
Next.js, React Testing Library, Jest, Storybook, GitLab CI/CD...
Alma Media
React, TypeScript, Node.js, Material UI, Storybook, Figma, Amazon S3 (AWS S3)...

Experience

  • CSS - 13 years
  • Front-end - 13 years
  • React - 7 years
  • Node.js - 5 years
  • Next.js - 4 years
  • TypeScript - 4 years
  • Tailwind CSS - 2 years
  • AI SDK - 1 year

Preferred Environment

Visual Studio Code (VS Code), MacOS

The most amazing...

...project I've built recently is a privacy-focused AI coding assistant for VS Code that optimizes token usage.

Work Experience

Developer

2024 - PRESENT
Enterprise
  • Built AI-powered chatbots with LLM integration and function calling.
  • Developed cross-platform chat applications using React (web), React Native (mobile), and Electron (desktop).
  • Debugged and developed real-time messaging features with WebSocket connections.
Technologies: Open-source LLMs, TypeScript, React, React Native, Electron

Senior Front-end Developer

2023 - 2024
DeinDeal
  • Built features in Next.js involving server-side rendering and extensive unit and integration tests.
  • Consolidated repositories, eliminating release procedures, and increasing productivity by 20%.
  • Introduced TypeScript, significantly enhancing the developer experience and code quality.
  • Replaced third-party dependencies, improving performance and security.
  • Implemented UX improvements related to mobile usability and product filtering.
Technologies: Next.js, React Testing Library, Jest, Storybook, GitLab CI/CD, Server-side Rendering (SSR), Responsive Web Design (RWD), Front-end, Accessibility, Core Web Vitals

Senior Front-end Engineer

2022 - 2024
Alma Media
  • Developed new features using React, TypeScript, Jest, Storybook, and Agile methodology.
  • Collaborated closely with product managers, designers, back-end developers, and QA.
  • Delivered a complete e-invoicing solution based on the PEPPOL standard, including UI and REST API integration.
  • Updated the back end, including OpenAPI specs, database migration, integration, and end-to-end tests.
  • Participated actively in internal review meetings to demo new features to stakeholders.
  • Led the development of a multi-brand design system using Figma, React, and Atomic Design principles.
  • Documented solution architecture, best practices, and business logic in Confluence.
Technologies: React, TypeScript, Node.js, Material UI, Storybook, Figma, Amazon S3 (AWS S3), Front-end, Responsive Web Design (RWD)

Lead Front-end Engineer

2020 - 2022
BuzzCast
  • Brought the initial proof-of-concept to a production-ready platform used by thousands of users.
  • Promoted to a lead position for having a primary contribution to the front-end codebase.
  • Created libraries for shared components, editable tables, and utilities.
  • Separated the UI from business logic to improve code reusability and test coverage.
  • Interviewed, onboarded, and provided guidance to new members of the front-end team.
  • Discussed technical feasibility and estimated development effort with higher management.
Technologies: JavaScript, React, Redux, Redux-Saga, Redux Thunk, CSS, Storybook, Sass

Senior Front-end Engineer

2019 - 2020
Platform Design Agency
  • Developed an award-winning website with interactive animations.
  • Developed client sites while ensuring browser support and performance.
  • Promoted clean code principles among the team, specifically DRY, YAGNI, and modular architecture.
Technologies: JavaScript, CSS, React

Senior Full-stack Developer

2018 - 2020
Self-Employed
  • Crafted a pixel-perfect, responsive website with advanced scroll animations for a renowned design agency.
  • Developed an eCommerce site using the MERN stack, integrating Algolia for product search and categorization, and Stripe for payments.
  • Designed and developed the front-end for an insurance search web application using Figma and React.
Technologies: UI Development, React, Vue, Front-end, Full-stack, Node.js, MongoDB, Figma, Web UX, GSAP, Anime.js, Amazon S3 (AWS S3), DigitalOcean, Firebase

Front-end Developer

2017 - 2018
Unilend
  • Redesigned and customized the internal administration panel by implementing a pre-built HTML theme and integrating it with the existing PHP back end, modernizing the interface while maintaining business logic.
  • Developed a tool to streamline data entry from bank statements, reducing manual effort and improving accuracy.
  • Participated in the development of a Partner Portal for organizations such as AXA Banque.
  • Created financial charts with Highcharts.js, providing data visualization for customers and stakeholders.
  • Developed responsive email templates, ensuring consistent appearance across multiple email clients.
Technologies: JavaScript, jQuery, PHP, Twig, CSS, Sass, Highcharts

Front-end Engineer

2017 - 2018
Unilend
  • Worked in a team following a well-established Agile methodology.
  • Developed a UI to facilitate data entry from bank statements using OCR.
  • Developed a CSV importer with complex validation logic.
  • Documented new features and best practices using Confluence.
Technologies: JavaScript, CSS, Responsive, DataTables, Forms, Object-oriented Programming (OOP), Sass, Twig, PHP

Software Engineer

2016 - 2017
OryxCloud
  • Developed a comprehensive style guide and reusable components from designs.
  • Integrated responsive designs across all marketplace pages.
  • Built WordPress sites for the company, help center, and premium clients.
  • Implemented features and pages using HTML/CSS/JavaScript and Vue.
Technologies: JavaScript, jQuery, Vue, WordPress, Bootstrap

Front-end Developer

2015 - 2016
Touch Awesome
  • Developed and launched the company website on WordPress.
  • Implemented custom carousel sliders with advanced animations.
  • Customized WordPress and HTML themes from ThemeForest for various clients.
Technologies: HTML, CSS, JavaScript, PHP, WordPress, Photoshop CS3

Freelance Web Developer

2012 - 2015
Self-employed
  • Converted designs to pixel-perfect, responsive HTML/CSS/JavaScript.
  • Developed custom WordPress themes and plugins using PHP and Advanced Custom Fields (ACF).
  • Optimized performance for static and WordPress websites.
Technologies: HTML, CSS, JavaScript, Flash, WordPress, Responsive Web Design (RWD), Yoast SEO, Photoshop CS3, SVG

Experience

Personal Website

https://www.dimslaev.com
An interactive portfolio showcasing modern full-stack development and AI integration. Built with Next.js 14, TypeScript, and Tailwind CSS, this website features an AI-powered chat assistant that answers questions about Dimitar's career and expertise. The chatbot implements function calling to fetch GitHub projects, CV information from the database, and LinkedIn profile data.

VS Code AI Chat

https://github.com/dimslaev/ai-chat
AI-powered coding assistant for VS Code with focus on data privacy (zero telemetry). The extension supports multiple AI providers and custom endpoints, allowing organizations to use their own AI infrastructure. It features intelligent task classification that adapts responses for code generation, refactoring, testing, debugging, and documentation, as well as context-aware file attachment for understanding multi-file projects. Built with TypeScript and React, the project demonstrates VS Code extension development, including extension-webview communication, OpenAI API integration, and modern UI implementation with streaming responses and optional agent mode for file operations.

SoundFeed

https://sfeed.vercel.app
A unified music feed platform that consolidates content from SoundCloud and Spotify into a single searchable interface. Built with Next.js, this application features a custom SoundCloud scraper, Spotify API integration, and Algolia-powered instant search, providing users with complete control over filtering and discovering music across merged feeds. The app includes an automated import process for syncing content from multiple sources and a custom audio player for seamless playback.

Education

2006 - 2010

Bachelor's Degree in Communications and Marketing

Hult University - London, UK

Certifications

OCTOBER 2024 - PRESENT

Generative AI with Large Language Models

DeepLearning.AI

JULY 2024 - PRESENT

Certified Entry-Level Python Programmer

Python Institute

SEPTEMBER 2022 - PRESENT

Certified TypeScript Developer

W3Schools

Skills

Libraries/APIs

React, Node.js, Redux-Saga, Zod, React Testing Library, Vue, GSAP, Anime.js, jQuery, Highcharts

Tools

Redux Thunk, Figma, DataTables, AI SDK, GitLab CI/CD, WebView, Photoshop CS3, Flash

Languages

CSS, JavaScript, TypeScript, Sass, PHP, HTML, Python

Frameworks

Material UI, Next.js, Tailwind CSS, Twig, Redux, React Native, Electron, Jest, Bootstrap

Paradigms

Responsive Web Design (RWD), Responsive, Object-oriented Programming (OOP), UX Design

Platforms

MacOS, Algolia, DigitalOcean, Firebase, WordPress

Storage

Amazon S3 (AWS S3), MongoDB

Other

Front-end, UI Animation, Storybook, Forms, Programming, Digital Marketing, Open-source LLMs, Server-side Rendering (SSR), Accessibility, Core Web Vitals, OpenAI SDK, Prompt Engineering, Radix UI, Zustand, HTML5 Audio, UI Development, Full-stack, Web UX, Yoast SEO, SVG, Generative Artificial Intelligence (GenAI), LoRa

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