Alexis Vargas

Software Engineer · Backend & Full-Stack (Python/Django, Vue, Flutter)

Sydney, NSW, Australia
English (professional), Spanish (native)

Open to backend and full-stack roles in Sydney

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About

I build web, mobile and backend software end to end. What I enjoy most is backend and infrastructure work: APIs, Linux servers, deployment and cloud platforms such as AWS and Railway.

Since 2025 I have designed, built and run Caissify on my own: a Django API with real-time features, a Vue web app, Flutter apps on Google Play and the App Store, and a Rust desktop app, deployed on Railway with CI, staging and production.

I started in 2012, when CodeIgniter was one of the most popular PHP frameworks and Laravel was becoming the standard for PHP. Since then I have built production web applications and APIs in Laravel, Ruby on Rails and Django, most recently as a Solution Engineer at Shore Consulting Group in Toronto, across several client projects with Vue and React front ends.

I work with AI coding agents (Claude Code, Cursor) every day, with written rules, CI and code review, so I move fast without losing quality.

Chess is where Caissify started: I am a chess player and coach.

10+ yearsbuilding production web software
4 platformsweb, iOS, Android and desktop, built solo
1,500+ testsacross the Caissify API and mobile app

Projects

Caissify

Jun 2025 – Present

Founder & Lead Engineer (self-directed)

Chess platform for playing, learning and coaching that I designed, built and run as the only engineer: about 2,000 commits across 12 repositories since June 2025. Live on Google Play and the App Store in English and Spanish; version 2.0 is out on Google Play first.

Infrastructure: one Docker image deployed on Railway as four services (web, Celery worker, Celery beat, WebSockets) with PostgreSQL and Redis; separate staging and production; CI on every repository
Backend: Django 5.2 / DRF API with about 330 API operations and about 1,050 tests; real-time games, Rush tournaments and live coaching on Django Channels, with room state in Redis and a PostgreSQL event log
Mobile and web: Flutter app for iOS and Android with 545 automated tests in CI; Vue 3 + TypeScript web app with Stockfish compiled to WebAssembly
Desktop: offline-first Rust/Tauri app for tournament arbiters that syncs with the API through idempotency keys
Product: live coaching with homework and student groups, and child-safety features (kid mode, parental consent)

Python
Django
Django REST Framework
Celery
Django Channels
PostgreSQL
Redis
Vue 3
TypeScript
Flutter
Rust
Tauri
Docker
Railway
GitHub Actions

Visit site ↗ App Store ↗Google Play ↗

caissify-pairings

Apr 2026 – Present

Author and maintainer (open source)

Open-source Python library for chess tournament pairings (FIDE Swiss and round-robin), published on PyPI and used by the Caissify API and desktop app, with tests in CI on Linux and macOS.

Python
NetworkX
pytest
GitHub Actions
PyPI

Visit site ↗ Source code ↗

Caissify Tournament Manager (desktop)

Apr 2026 – Present

Founder & Lead Engineer (self-directed)

Offline-first desktop app for chess arbiters: Swiss and round-robin pairings, TRF16 import/export, tiebreaks, PDF sheets and one-click sync to the cloud.

Rust backend with SQLite, React 19 + TypeScript front end, English and Spanish.
Ships the Python pairing engine inside the app as a self-contained sidecar.
GitHub Actions builds signed installers for macOS (notarized), Windows and Linux; CI runs type checks, tests, cargo fmt and clippy.

Rust
Tauri 2
React 19
TypeScript
SQLite
Python
GitHub Actions

Visit site ↗

Pirakito: private, local-first finance app

Oct 2026 – Present

Personal project

End-to-end encrypted household finance app that works offline first.

Integer-only money, an immutable ledger corrected by reversals, and an offline outbox that never drops changes.
Passkey unlock with WebAuthn; data is stored encrypted in IndexedDB and synced through PocketBase.
About 780 tests: unit, property-based, Playwright end-to-end and upgrade tests, all in GitHub Actions CI.

TypeScript
Vue 3
PWA
IndexedDB
libsodium
WebAuthn
PocketBase
Playwright

lexisvar.me

Personal project

This site: a small Laravel CMS that renders my CV as a web page, an ATS-friendly page and a PDF from one data source, with an admin area, feature tests and a Docker deploy on Railway.

PHP
Laravel
Blade
dompdf
PHPUnit
Docker
Railway

Visit site ↗ Source code ↗

Experience

Jul 2024 – Present

Chess Coach

Sydney Academy of Chess

Teach group classes, private lessons and training squads for juniors and adults
Plan lessons and progressions, and prepare students for rated tournaments
This work shaped the tournament and coaching tools I built in Caissify

Feb 2022 – Jan 2024

Solution Engineer / Product Engineer

Shore Consulting Group · Toronto, Canada (remote, contract)

Joined as Solution Developer and progressed to Solution Engineer / Product Engineer, working on several client projects at once
Built and maintained applications in Ruby on Rails and Python/Django, with Vue.js and React front ends
Wrote complex PostgreSQL queries and reports, and implemented Elasticsearch-backed search
Wrote unit and integration tests, reviewed peers' code, supported DevOps on Linux and documented solutions in GitLab

Jan 2020 – Feb 2022

PHP Laravel Developer

Grupo Bien Pensado

Designed and built REST APIs in Laravel for several client projects, used by web and mobile apps
Modelled relational schemas and wrote efficient queries
Agreed API contracts with front-end and mobile developers

Jun 2017 – Mar 2019

PHP Analyst

HandyCommerce

Maintained and extended e-commerce products built on Laravel, WordPress/WooCommerce, Vue.js and Angular
Integrated Elasticsearch for product search
Delivered client features in a small development team

Jan 2015 – Nov 2017

Project Manager & Developer

Solvitio

Mar 2013 – Nov 2014

Linux Server Support

Factoria Digital

Mar 2012 – Mar 2013

PHP Developer

Grupo i33

Skills

Backend: Python
Django
Django REST Framework
Celery
Django Channels / WebSockets
REST API design
OpenAPI
Frontend: Vue 3
TypeScript
React
Pinia
Vite
Tailwind CSS
Mobile & Desktop: Flutter
Dart
Rust
Tauri
Data: PostgreSQL
Redis
SQLite
Elasticsearch
Cloud & DevOps: Docker
Railway
GitHub Actions
Sentry
AWS S3
Linux
AI-assisted development: Claude Code
Cursor
LLM APIs
Also experienced in: PHP
Laravel
Ruby
Ruby on Rails
MySQL

Education

Oct 2026

Bachelor of Systems Engineering

Corporación Universitaria Remington, Colombia · Ingeniero de Sistemas

Contact

Let's talk

I am open to backend and full-stack engineering roles in Sydney, and happy to talk about how I can help your team. The quickest way to reach me is by email.

lexisvar@gmail.com