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Location:
Darmstadt, Germany
Nationality:
German
Languages:
German (Native)
English (Fluent)
Email:
nico.heidtke@gmx.de
Website:
https://scatterarrow.com
LinkedIn:
https://linkedin.com/in/nico-heidtke
GitHub:
https://github.com/nicoheidtke
Technical Skills
Programming
Frameworks
Platforms
DevOps & Tools
Specialized Domains
Projects
Scatterarrow.com
Entirely hand-crafted personal blog and CV layouting tool. Using `straightshot`, my own static site generator.
Tech: Python, TypeScript, Go, Podman, Terraform
Certifications
Security Journey - Yellow Belt
securityjourney.com • 2025-07
Publications
Growing Pains: Lessons from Seeing C++ Codebase Mature
Conference Talk •
Meeting C++ 2024 •
2024
Subspace projection of multi-dimensional unsupervised machine learning models
Patent Application •
US Patent Office •
2017
US20170147941A1 / WO2017090023A1
Anomaly detection for context-dependent data
Patent Application •
PCT/European Patent Office •
2016
PCT/EP2016/058628 / WO2016177566A1
Key Achievements
Global AI Hackathon 2017 Winner
2017
A global competition where 42 teams prototyped datascience and AI solutions for fraudulent content detection problems.
Core Competencies
AI-Assisted Development
Early adopter since ChatGPT's release. I use agentic LLMs as learning tools and implementation accelerators.
System Design
Top-down approach starting with system behaviors, APIs, and sometimes tests before implementation. Built high-availability, low-latency and real-time analytics systems.
Software Architecture
I implement and teach simplicity, good APIs, separation of concerns, minimal and obvious dependencies, well-defined architectural boundaries.
Best Practices and Mentoring
I learn and teach best practices for everything I work with. Successfully mentored many talented junior engineers into great seniors.
Leadership and Management
Servant leader focused on team happiness and productivity. I hire for talent and passion - people excel at what they care about. I lead with transparency, optimism, and genuine care for individual growth.
Platforms
Architect and implement systems on diverse technology stacks. I have experience with Windows, Linux, web, mobile, and some cloud platforms.
3D Game and Graphics Programming
Built complete game and rendering engines from scratch using OpenGL and DirectX. Comfortable with 3D mathematics, historic and modern engine design patterns like ECS.
Computer Vision
Worked closely with domain experts on many Computer Vision and traditional machine-learning problems like detection, tracking and recognition of objects, people and faces.
Nico Heidtke
Senior Software Engineer, Architect and Team Leader
Experienced software engineer with 20+ years across diverse technologies, specializing in C++, Python, and software architecture. I design and build software for multiple platforms including Windows, Linux, cloud, web and mobile, with experience in domains such as computer vision, 3D graphics, game engines, and data science. As a leader, I am known for mentoring colleagues, sharing best practices, and introducing modern development processes. I stay current through conferences, professional communities, and continuous experimentation with new technologies.
Team Lead / Senior Software Engineer
2025-03— Present
Exasol AG
Nuremberg, Germany (remote)
Leading the team responsible for the cluster operating system and build, test and deployment tooling for Exasol Analytics Database - the fastest distributed in-memory analytics database
- Systems programming in distributed Linux environments
- Feature development and maintenance of large legacy C++/Python/Go/bash codebase
- Solution development and complex deployment problem-solving (AWS, Terraform, rootless)
Technologies: C++20, Python, Go, Linux, Distributed systems, AWS, Terraform
Software Engineering Manager
2021-01—2025-02
exocad GmbH
Darmstadt, Germany
Built and led team of 6 developers focused on modernizing DentalCAD - the market-leading 3D CAD software for dental restorations
- Modernizing practices, tools and architecture for the entire C++ codebase (~900k lines) and ~30 developers
- Fostered collaborative and innovative environment, boosting learning, productivity and morale
- Modernization (C++03 to C++20), compiler porting (VS 2013 to Clang 18) and platform migration (Windows to Linux)
- Introduced new build systems (MSBuild -> CMake, Conan 2), SCM (SVN -> git), productivity tooling (clang-format, static analysis), CI/CD (Jenkins) and testing infrastructure (gtest)
- Established modern guidelines for code reviews, software security, 3rd-party dependency and release processes
Technologies: C++20, CMake, Conan 2, git, C# 8, .NET 6, Windows, Linux
AGT International (Darmstadt, Germany)
Multiple roles spanning nearly a decade, working and travelling for very diverse projects
Team Lead / Development Architect
2015-08—2020-12Led development of multiple projects including Coach AI SDK, Professional Bull Riders system, and Media Streaming Platform
- Provided best-practices and architecture of our multi-platform AR SDK, for a team of about to 20 people
- Cooperatively developed C++/Kotlin computer vision and ML solutions out of research prototypes written in Python
- Developed sensor-based scoring system for the pro bull riding sport, replacing human judges with real-time analytics
- Implemented high-availability backend systems and hybrid on-site/cloud media processing platform
- Deployed solutions on AWS using EC2, S3, Kinesis, and SQS for scalable cloud infrastructure
Technologies: C++17, Python 3, Kotlin/Native, Java, Elixir, Unity 3D/AR, iOS, Android, AWS, gstreamer
Senior Developer / Team Architect
2013-08—2015-07Software architect and developer for Analytics Runtime framework and Anomaly Detection SDK
- Architected framework for structuring and hosting analytics solutions with big data integration (Spark, Hadoop, Kafka)
- Co-invented and developed multilingual anomaly detection SDK (Python, Java, C++) with ML models
- Co-developed novel computer vision solutions working directly with data scientists and computer vision experts
- Led C#/.NET/WPF UX prototypes and production system integration development
Technologies: Python, Java, C++, C#, WPF, Apache Spark, OpenCV, MongoDB, AWS
Developer
2011-08—2013-07Earlier role at AGT International, contributing to Smart City platform development and advanced tracking systems
- Developed various novel object and people tracking systems with computer vision capabilities
- Worked with camera systems, facial recognition, 3D geo-location
- Integrated external hardware and software systems
- Worked in cross-functional Scrum teams of 4-8 people
Technologies: C++, C#, WPF, OpenCV, dlib, FFmpeg, OpenGL
Developer
2008-08—2011-05
maila-push
Darmstadt, Germany
Designed and implemented Zone Engine - a specialized 3D game engine for interactive construction project experiences
- From scratch design and implementation of a 3D/game engine
- Designed and built entity-component, scene graph, asset management, scripting, physics, input/control and animation systems
- Implemented the DirectX rendering subsystem and integrated Bullet Physics for real-time simulation
- Implemented multi-threading, custom allocators and low-level performance optimizations
- Created workflow tools using QT for our production department
Technologies: C++, Lua, Game Engines, DirectX, QT, Bullet Physics
IT Specialist
2002-09—2008-06
Pitney Bowes Management Services GmbH
Viernheim, Germany
Inventor and primary developer of the Print Stream Machine - an automated document processing platform
- Invented and implemented an automation platform for ETL, document generation, printing, inserting, archiving and customer billing
- Developed client and server applications for Windows in Delphi 7 and C#
- Conducted user training and worked directly with customers on integration projects
Technologies: C++, C#, .NET, Delphi 7, MySQL
Education
IT Specialist – Application Development in Applied Computer Science
Karl-Kuebel-Schule
2002-09-2005-07
Bensheim, Germany
Location:
Darmstadt, Germany
Nationality:
German
Languages:
German (Native)
English (Fluent)
Email:
nico.heidtke@gmx.de
Website:
https://scatterarrow.com
LinkedIn:
https://linkedin.com/in/nico-heidtke
GitHub:
https://github.com/nicoheidtke
Technical Skills
Programming
Frameworks
Platforms
DevOps & Tools
Specialized Domains
Projects
Scatterarrow.com
Entirely hand-crafted personal blog and CV layouting tool. Using `straightshot`, my own static site generator.
Tech: Python, TypeScript, Go, Podman, Terraform
Certifications
Security Journey - Yellow Belt
securityjourney.com • 2025-07
Publications
Growing Pains: Lessons from Seeing C++ Codebase Mature
Conference Talk •
Meeting C++ 2024 •
2024
Subspace projection of multi-dimensional unsupervised machine learning models
Patent Application •
US Patent Office •
2017
US20170147941A1 / WO2017090023A1
Anomaly detection for context-dependent data
Patent Application •
PCT/European Patent Office •
2016
PCT/EP2016/058628 / WO2016177566A1
Nico Heidtke
Senior Software Engineer, Architect and Team Leader
Experienced software engineer with 20+ years across diverse technologies, specializing in C++, Python, and software architecture. I design and build software for multiple platforms including Windows, Linux, cloud, web and mobile, with experience in domains such as computer vision, 3D graphics, game engines, and data science. As a leader, I am known for mentoring colleagues, sharing best practices, and introducing modern development processes. I stay current through conferences, professional communities, and continuous experimentation with new technologies.
Professional Experience
Team Lead / Senior Software Engineer
2025-03— Present
Exasol AG
Nuremberg, Germany (remote)
Leading the team responsible for the cluster operating system and build, test and deployment tooling for Exasol Analytics Database - the fastest distributed in-memory analytics database
- Systems programming in distributed Linux environments
- Feature development and maintenance of large legacy C++/Python/Go/bash codebase
- Solution development and complex deployment problem-solving (AWS, Terraform, rootless)
Technologies: C++20, Python, Go, Linux, Distributed systems, AWS, Terraform
Software Engineering Manager
2021-01—2025-02
exocad GmbH
Darmstadt, Germany
Built and led team of 6 developers focused on modernizing DentalCAD - the market-leading 3D CAD software for dental restorations
- Modernizing practices, tools and architecture for the entire C++ codebase (~900k lines) and ~30 developers
- Fostered collaborative and innovative environment, boosting learning, productivity and morale
- Modernization (C++03 to C++20), compiler porting (VS 2013 to Clang 18) and platform migration (Windows to Linux)
- Introduced new build systems (MSBuild -> CMake, Conan 2), SCM (SVN -> git), productivity tooling (clang-format, static analysis), CI/CD (Jenkins) and testing infrastructure (gtest)
- Established modern guidelines for code reviews, software security, 3rd-party dependency and release processes
Technologies: C++20, CMake, Conan 2, git, C# 8, .NET 6, Windows, Linux
AGT International (Darmstadt, Germany)
Multiple roles spanning nearly a decade, working and travelling for very diverse projects
Team Lead / Development Architect
2015-08—2020-12Led development of multiple projects including Coach AI SDK, Professional Bull Riders system, and Media Streaming Platform
- Provided best-practices and architecture of our multi-platform AR SDK, for a team of about to 20 people
- Cooperatively developed C++/Kotlin computer vision and ML solutions out of research prototypes written in Python
- Developed sensor-based scoring system for the pro bull riding sport, replacing human judges with real-time analytics
- Implemented high-availability backend systems and hybrid on-site/cloud media processing platform
- Deployed solutions on AWS using EC2, S3, Kinesis, and SQS for scalable cloud infrastructure
Technologies: C++17, Python 3, Kotlin/Native, Java, Elixir, Unity 3D/AR, iOS, Android, AWS, gstreamer
Senior Developer / Team Architect
2013-08—2015-07Software architect and developer for Analytics Runtime framework and Anomaly Detection SDK
- Architected framework for structuring and hosting analytics solutions with big data integration (Spark, Hadoop, Kafka)
- Co-invented and developed multilingual anomaly detection SDK (Python, Java, C++) with ML models
- Co-developed novel computer vision solutions working directly with data scientists and computer vision experts
- Led C#/.NET/WPF UX prototypes and production system integration development
Technologies: Python, Java, C++, C#, WPF, Apache Spark, OpenCV, MongoDB, AWS
Developer
2011-08—2013-07Earlier role at AGT International, contributing to Smart City platform development and advanced tracking systems
- Developed various novel object and people tracking systems with computer vision capabilities
- Worked with camera systems, facial recognition, 3D geo-location
- Integrated external hardware and software systems
- Worked in cross-functional Scrum teams of 4-8 people
Technologies: C++, C#, WPF, OpenCV, dlib, FFmpeg, OpenGL
Key Achievements
Global AI Hackathon 2017 Winner
2017
A global competition where 42 teams prototyped datascience and AI solutions for fraudulent content detection problems.
Core Competencies
AI-Assisted Development
Early adopter since ChatGPT's release. I use agentic LLMs as learning tools and implementation accelerators.
System Design
Top-down approach starting with system behaviors, APIs, and sometimes tests before implementation. Built high-availability, low-latency and real-time analytics systems.
Software Architecture
I implement and teach simplicity, good APIs, separation of concerns, minimal and obvious dependencies, well-defined architectural boundaries.
Best Practices and Mentoring
I learn and teach best practices for everything I work with. Successfully mentored many talented junior engineers into great seniors.
Leadership and Management
Servant leader focused on team happiness and productivity. I hire for talent and passion - people excel at what they care about. I lead with transparency, optimism, and genuine care for individual growth.
Platforms
Architect and implement systems on diverse technology stacks. I have experience with Windows, Linux, web, mobile, and some cloud platforms.
3D Game and Graphics Programming
Built complete game and rendering engines from scratch using OpenGL and DirectX. Comfortable with 3D mathematics, historic and modern engine design patterns like ECS.
Computer Vision
Worked closely with domain experts on many Computer Vision and traditional machine-learning problems like detection, tracking and recognition of objects, people and faces.
Professional Experience (continued)
Developer
2008-08—2011-05
maila-push
Darmstadt, Germany
Designed and implemented Zone Engine - a specialized 3D game engine for interactive construction project experiences
- From scratch design and implementation of a 3D/game engine
- Designed and built entity-component, scene graph, asset management, scripting, physics, input/control and animation systems
- Implemented the DirectX rendering subsystem and integrated Bullet Physics for real-time simulation
- Implemented multi-threading, custom allocators and low-level performance optimizations
- Created workflow tools using QT for our production department
Technologies: C++, Lua, Game Engines, DirectX, QT, Bullet Physics
IT Specialist
2002-09—2008-06
Pitney Bowes Management Services GmbH
Viernheim, Germany
Inventor and primary developer of the Print Stream Machine - an automated document processing platform
- Invented and implemented an automation platform for ETL, document generation, printing, inserting, archiving and customer billing
- Developed client and server applications for Windows in Delphi 7 and C#
- Conducted user training and worked directly with customers on integration projects
Technologies: C++, C#, .NET, Delphi 7, MySQL
Education
IT Specialist – Application Development in Applied Computer Science
Karl-Kuebel-Schule
2002-09-2005-07
Bensheim, Germany
Location:
Darmstadt, Germany
Nationality:
German
Languages:
German (Native)
English (Fluent)
Nico Heidtke
Senior Software Engineer, Architect and Team Leader
Experienced software engineer with 20+ years across diverse technologies, specializing in C++, Python, and software architecture. I design and build software for multiple platforms including Windows, Linux, cloud, web and mobile, with experience in domains such as computer vision, 3D graphics, game engines, and data science. As a leader, I am known for mentoring colleagues, sharing best practices, and introducing modern development processes. I stay current through conferences, professional communities, and continuous experimentation with new technologies.
Email:
nico.heidtke@gmx.de
Website:
https://scatterarrow.com
LinkedIn:
https://linkedin.com/in/nico-heidtke
GitHub:
https://github.com/nicoheidtke
Technical Skills
Programming
Frameworks
Platforms
DevOps & Tools
Specialized Domains
Team Lead / Senior Software Engineer
2025-03— Present
Exasol AG
Nuremberg, Germany (remote)
Leading the team responsible for the cluster operating system and build, test and deployment tooling for Exasol Analytics Database - the fastest distributed in-memory analytics database
- Systems programming in distributed Linux environments
- Feature development and maintenance of large legacy C++/Python/Go/bash codebase
- Solution development and complex deployment problem-solving (AWS, Terraform, rootless)
Technologies: C++20, Python, Go, Linux, Distributed systems, AWS, Terraform
Software Engineering Manager
2021-01—2025-02
exocad GmbH
Darmstadt, Germany
Built and led team of 6 developers focused on modernizing DentalCAD - the market-leading 3D CAD software for dental restorations
- Modernizing practices, tools and architecture for the entire C++ codebase (~900k lines) and ~30 developers
- Fostered collaborative and innovative environment, boosting learning, productivity and morale
- Modernization (C++03 to C++20), compiler porting (VS 2013 to Clang 18) and platform migration (Windows to Linux)
- Introduced new build systems (MSBuild -> CMake, Conan 2), SCM (SVN -> git), productivity tooling (clang-format, static analysis), CI/CD (Jenkins) and testing infrastructure (gtest)
- Established modern guidelines for code reviews, software security, 3rd-party dependency and release processes
Technologies: C++20, CMake, Conan 2, git, C# 8, .NET 6, Windows, Linux
AGT International (Darmstadt, Germany)
Multiple roles spanning nearly a decade, working and travelling for very diverse projects
Team Lead / Development Architect
2015-08—2020-12Led development of multiple projects including Coach AI SDK, Professional Bull Riders system, and Media Streaming Platform
- Provided best-practices and architecture of our multi-platform AR SDK, for a team of about to 20 people
- Cooperatively developed C++/Kotlin computer vision and ML solutions out of research prototypes written in Python
- Developed sensor-based scoring system for the pro bull riding sport, replacing human judges with real-time analytics
- Implemented high-availability backend systems and hybrid on-site/cloud media processing platform
- Deployed solutions on AWS using EC2, S3, Kinesis, and SQS for scalable cloud infrastructure
Technologies: C++17, Python 3, Kotlin/Native, Java, Elixir, Unity 3D/AR, iOS, Android, AWS, gstreamer
Senior Developer / Team Architect
2013-08—2015-07Software architect and developer for Analytics Runtime framework and Anomaly Detection SDK
- Architected framework for structuring and hosting analytics solutions with big data integration (Spark, Hadoop, Kafka)
- Co-invented and developed multilingual anomaly detection SDK (Python, Java, C++) with ML models
- Co-developed novel computer vision solutions working directly with data scientists and computer vision experts
- Led C#/.NET/WPF UX prototypes and production system integration development
Technologies: Python, Java, C++, C#, WPF, Apache Spark, OpenCV, MongoDB, AWS
Developer
2011-08—2013-07Earlier role at AGT International, contributing to Smart City platform development and advanced tracking systems
- Developed various novel object and people tracking systems with computer vision capabilities
- Worked with camera systems, facial recognition, 3D geo-location
- Integrated external hardware and software systems
- Worked in cross-functional Scrum teams of 4-8 people
Technologies: C++, C#, WPF, OpenCV, dlib, FFmpeg, OpenGL
Developer
2008-08—2011-05
maila-push
Darmstadt, Germany
Designed and implemented Zone Engine - a specialized 3D game engine for interactive construction project experiences
- From scratch design and implementation of a 3D/game engine
- Designed and built entity-component, scene graph, asset management, scripting, physics, input/control and animation systems
- Implemented the DirectX rendering subsystem and integrated Bullet Physics for real-time simulation
- Implemented multi-threading, custom allocators and low-level performance optimizations
- Created workflow tools using QT for our production department
Technologies: C++, Lua, Game Engines, DirectX, QT, Bullet Physics
IT Specialist
2002-09—2008-06
Pitney Bowes Management Services GmbH
Viernheim, Germany
Inventor and primary developer of the Print Stream Machine - an automated document processing platform
- Invented and implemented an automation platform for ETL, document generation, printing, inserting, archiving and customer billing
- Developed client and server applications for Windows in Delphi 7 and C#
- Conducted user training and worked directly with customers on integration projects
Technologies: C++, C#, .NET, Delphi 7, MySQL
Projects
Scatterarrow.com
Entirely hand-crafted personal blog and CV layouting tool. Using `straightshot`, my own static site generator.
Tech: Python, TypeScript, Go, Podman, Terraform
Publications
Growing Pains: Lessons from Seeing C++ Codebase Mature
Conference Talk •
Meeting C++ 2024 •
2024
Subspace projection of multi-dimensional unsupervised machine learning models
Patent Application •
US Patent Office •
2017
US20170147941A1 / WO2017090023A1
Anomaly detection for context-dependent data
Patent Application •
PCT/European Patent Office •
2016
PCT/EP2016/058628 / WO2016177566A1
Certifications
Security Journey - Yellow Belt
securityjourney.com • 2025-07
Key Achievements
Global AI Hackathon 2017 Winner
2017
A global competition where 42 teams prototyped datascience and AI solutions for fraudulent content detection problems.
Core Competencies
AI-Assisted Development
Early adopter since ChatGPT's release. I use agentic LLMs as learning tools and implementation accelerators.
System Design
Top-down approach starting with system behaviors, APIs, and sometimes tests before implementation. Built high-availability, low-latency and real-time analytics systems.
Software Architecture
I implement and teach simplicity, good APIs, separation of concerns, minimal and obvious dependencies, well-defined architectural boundaries.
Best Practices and Mentoring
I learn and teach best practices for everything I work with. Successfully mentored many talented junior engineers into great seniors.
Leadership and Management
Servant leader focused on team happiness and productivity. I hire for talent and passion - people excel at what they care about. I lead with transparency, optimism, and genuine care for individual growth.
Platforms
Architect and implement systems on diverse technology stacks. I have experience with Windows, Linux, web, mobile, and some cloud platforms.
3D Game and Graphics Programming
Built complete game and rendering engines from scratch using OpenGL and DirectX. Comfortable with 3D mathematics, historic and modern engine design patterns like ECS.
Computer Vision
Worked closely with domain experts on many Computer Vision and traditional machine-learning problems like detection, tracking and recognition of objects, people and faces.
Education
IT Specialist – Application Development in Applied Computer Science
Karl-Kuebel-Schule
2002-09-2005-07
Bensheim, Germany