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Thinking.

Writing about building local-first AI, scalable engineering, and the intersection of code and creativity.

10 posts
AI & Automation Apr 20, 2026 · 6 min read

The Case for Local-First AI: Beyond the OpenAI API

Why I am shifting my automation pipelines away from cloud dependencies and toward local hardware ownership.

LLM Self-Hosting Privacy n8n
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Engineering Apr 18, 2026 · 4 min read

Database-First Design: Building Systems That Last

A deep dive into why your schema is more important than your UI when building for scalability.

PostgreSQL Architecture Prisma Scalability
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Career Apr 15, 2026 · 5 min read

Bridging the Gap: From CS Student to Production Engineer

How to apply classroom theory to real-world development without getting lost in the noise.

Learning Astro TypeScript Workflow
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Engineering Mar 28, 2026 · 4 min read

Why I Chose Astro Over Next.js for My Portfolio

A practical breakdown of how Astro's island architecture solved problems that SSR frameworks overcomplicate.

Astro Performance SSG
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AI & Automation Mar 15, 2026 · 6 min read

Running Llama 3 Locally: A Practical Guide

How to set up Ollama, pull Llama 3, and build real workflows that don't rely on API calls or cloud providers.

Local AI LLM Ollama
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Engineering Feb 20, 2026 · 5 min read

TypeScript Patterns I Use Every Day

Discriminated unions, branded types, and other patterns that make TypeScript more than just type annotations.

TypeScript Patterns DX
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Engineering Feb 5, 2026 · 7 min read

Database Schema Design: Think Before You Migrate

Why schema-first design saves you from infinite migration loops and how to get it right from day one.

Database PostgreSQL Design
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AI & Automation Jan 22, 2026 · 8 min read

Building a RAG Pipeline with Local Embeddings

How to build a retrieval-augmented generation system that runs entirely on your machine using local models.

Local AI RAG Automation
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Career Jan 10, 2026 · 4 min read

From Freelance to Product: What I Learned

The mindset shift from delivering features to building systems, and why it changed how I write code.

Career Freelancing Growth
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Engineering Dec 18, 2025 · 3 min read

Tailwind CSS Tips from a Year of Daily Use

Advanced patterns, dark mode strategies, and custom utilities that made my Tailwind workflow significantly faster.

Tailwind CSS Styling
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Currently available for specialized PERN systems or AI automation consulting.

© 2026 Jero Halili · Built with Astro & Tailwind