Stephen Kochan – AI Specialist & Legacy Software Pioneer
69 years young, 40+ years shaping software, ready to innovate in AI
email / phone / LinkedIn / Portfolio
Fully Remote Preferred | Part-Time Open | Passionate About AI & Legacy Tech
Career Highlights (Notable Firsts & Bestsellers)
• 2025: Earned IBM SkillsBuild Arti cial Intelligence Fundamentals Badge – Deepened
expertise in AI concepts, machine learning, and practical applications.
• 2025: Certi ed in Prompt Engineering for ChatGPT (Great Learning) – Enhanced skills
in crafting AI prompts, complementing authorship of “ChatGPT Made Easy.”
• 2024: Authored “ChatGPT Made Easy” – Practical guide to AI, re ecting recent pivot
to AI community engagement.
• 2010s: Led iOS team at Tinder as 11th employee – Scaled world’s leading dating
app, team leadership in high-growth startup.
•-: Founded and sold Pipeline software company – Grew to 45 sta (35
engineers), showcasing entrepreneurial spirit.
• 1983: Published “Programming in C” – Bestselling book, still in print after 42 years,
shaping generations of coders.
AI Journey (Recent & Relevant)
• Certi ed in Prompt Engineering for ChatGPT (Great Learning, 2025) and AI
Fundamentals (IBM SkillsBuild, 2025) – Up-to-date with AI trends, prompt design, and
machine learning basics.
• Wrote a custom bot using Botpress to serve as a customer support, customer service,
technical support, and sales lead representative given a website URL and policy
document. Recognized returning customers to make relevant product
recommendations (e.g. compatible camera equipment).
• Authored “ChatGPT Made Easy” (2024) – Demysti ed AI for everyday people,
showcasing practical AI application knowledge.
Legacy in Software Development & Publishing (40+ Years)
• Lead iOS Developer, Tinder (2010s): 11th employee, led team enhancing global
dating app, Objective-C/Swift expertise; also served as Director of Discovery Team
and Mobile Architecture
• Programming Books: Multiple bestsellers, including “Programming in Objective-C” and
"Unix Shell Programming," educating developers worldwide.
• Senior/Lead iOS Developer: Built award-winning apps like Call of Duty Ghosts, Disney
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DMA, and DirectTV.
• Technical Manager: Oversaw large-scale graphics systems and OS porting to
embedded platforms.
Skills Snapshot
• AI/Tech: Prompt engineering, ChatGPT, natural language processing, AI
fundamentals, iOS-AI integration.
• Programming: Objective-C, Swift, C (foundational), Python, Shell, iOS app
development.
• Leadership: Team lead at Tinder, startup scaling, mentoring junior developers.
• Communication: Proven through bestselling books, clear technical writing.
Why Me?
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At 69, I bring wisdom, experience, and a fresh AI passion. Recently certi ed in AI
Fundamentals (IBM) and Prompt Engineering (Great Learning), I’m ready for part- or full-time,
remote roles to innovate, leveraging 40+ years of software legacy.
