About Me

Hi there! I'm Harkanwal, a Senior Software Engineer currently working at Twilio, with over 6 years of experience in building large-scale distributed systems, privacy-compliant architectures, and high-performance backend solutions. My journey in tech has been driven by a passion for solving complex technical challenges while delivering significant business impact.

What I Do

Currently at Twilio as a Senior Software Engineer (L3). Over the past few years I have worked across multiple high-impact areas:

Privacy & Compliance Systems

• Implemented Consent in Engage (Public Beta) enabling GDPR compliance for user data preferences
• Re-architected Deletion Orchestration Reporting systems, eliminating data loss incidents
• Optimized Redis usage in Privacy Systems ensuring 100% detection of PII classifications

Large-Scale Performance Optimization

• Implemented key components of the Batch-to-Realtime Compute Migration project projected to reduce company COGS by ~$6M annually; owned design of control plane RPC changes and Conductor workflow orchestration
• Optimized SQL queries in Batch Compute reducing DPU costs by up to 80% and execution times by up to 95% (15 hours → 45 minutes)
• Designed a resumable S3 offset reader for Realtime backfills, enabling continuation from failure points and saving days of reprocessing during interruptions

AI/ML & Media Processing

• Led development of Generative AI Captioning from POC to production, integrating OpenAI APIs and evolving prompt strategies; adopted by multiple enterprise clients
• Built a media transcription & translation pipeline (AWS MediaConvert + message queues + OpenAI Whisper API) producing WebVTT captions at scale
• Developed cache invalidation system (Redis Hash + Cloudflare APIs) enabling instant media updates, unlocking partnerships with news publishers requiring near-real-time content delivery

Technical Stack

• Languages: Python, Go, Scala, Java, JavaScript/TypeScript, C++, Bash, SQL
• Frameworks: Spring Boot, Node.js, React, FastAPI, Finatra, Conductor, Airflow, Spark, Hadoop
• Cloud & DevOps: AWS (EC2, ECS, Lambda, S3, DynamoDB, Step Functions, Kinesis), Kubernetes, Docker, Terraform
• Data & Streaming: Kafka, Redis, Elasticsearch, Trino, Snowflake, Databricks, Athena

My Journey

Twilio (2024 - Present) - Senior Software Engineer (L3)

Currently working across Governance and Compute teams, focusing on privacy systems, cost optimization, and large-scale migrations. Key achievements include implementing GDPR-compliant Consent systems, re-architecting deletion orchestration systems, and implementing key components of a compute migration project projected to save the company ~$6M annually.

Bazaarvoice (2022 - 2024) - Senior Software Engineer (L3)

Worked on the Social Commerce Team where I designed and implemented a GDPR-compliant deletion orchestrator. Led development of Generative AI Captioning from POC to production, built media transcription & translation pipelines, and reduced storage costs by 20% through implementing S3 retention policies and content tracking systems.

Morgan Stanley (2019 - 2022) - Software Engineer II/I

Started in the Data Distribution Team designing and delivering data distribution APIs for financial reporting. Later joined the ETL team where I built Teradata query simulators, enhanced internal ETL tools, and led migration of legacy ETL systems.

Capgemini (2018 - 2019) - Software Analyst

Automated HR reporting dashboards and completed comprehensive Core Java training, pretty boring times though lol.

Recognition & Impact

My work has been recognized across all organizations where I've contributed:

• Twilio - Operational Spotlight (Q2 2025)
• Bazaarvoice - Global Engineering Recognition, Global Gong Award
• Morgan Stanley - Highest Rated Employee (two consecutive years)

Education

Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) BHU, Varanasi (2014 - 2018)

• Strong foundation in engineering principles
• Developed analytical thinking and problem-solving skills