SOMARs – Team Captain / Vision Lead

Jan '25 - Present

The Student Unmanned Aerial Systems (SUAS) competition is a globally recognized challenge where university teams design autonomous drone systems capable of completing real-world missions. For 2026—UCSC’s first year competing—the theme is search and rescue. Our system must autonomously map disaster-affected areas for first-responder assessment, identify survivors, and deliver supply packages to designated locations.

I serve as both the Team Captain and the Vision Lead. Since this is UCSC’s first SUAS team, I reorganized the entire structure from the ground up, taking inspiration from established programs at UC Irvine and UC Berkeley. I created new subteams to handle each major subsystem and appointed leads to ensure clear ownership and direction. As Vision Lead, I oversee the development of our computer-vision pipeline and mapping algorithms that enable autonomous detection, navigation, and mission execution.

MATE – Integration Lead

Jan 24' - Present

The MATE ROV competition is an international tournament where university teams build underwater remotely operated vehicles (ROVs) to solve mission scenarios based on real ocean-engineering challenges. In 2025, the competition was held in Alpena, Michigan with a focus on shipwreck surveillance and marine archaeology. For 2026 in St. John’s, Canada, the theme shifts to ice-sheet and sub-freezing exploration. Mission tasks range from fish population surveys and water-sample collection to fuse replacement and 3D mapping of coral structures.

The core of any ROV is its enclosure—an underwater-rated housing that protects the electronics, ESCs, sensors, and microcontrollers while maintaining watertight integrity. The ROV is powered and controlled through a tether that delivers power and Ethernet from the surface to the onboard systems. My role on the MATE team is to design this enclosure and develop the power-distribution system, ensuring that every subsystem receives safe, reliable, and well-managed power within a compact, underwater-proof design.

Hardware Systems Collective – Undergrad Researcher

Jan '25 - Present

still new to this project, stay tune for updates :)

Pinpoint Avl - Internship

Mar '24 - June '24 (Beep Beep, I'm a Bus!)

Pinpoint AVL is a UCSC-affiliated startup that collaborates with the university’s TAPS department to develop custom electronics for campus transportation systems. Their work includes building passenger-counting hardware, vehicle-tracking units, and upgraded digital signage for bus fleets.

During my internship, I worked as an Electrical Engineer focusing on modernizing UCSC’s bus headsigns. I designed new PCB upgrades that expanded the LED display system from a 2-panel to a 4-panel configuration, rebuilt and rewired legacy enclosures to support the new hardware, and ensured proper power compatibility. I also authored user documentation and operating instructions to help bus drivers easily operate and troubleshoot the upgraded displays.

Citris - Remote Drone Pilot

Jan '25 - June '25

hai