Hernani Costa - AI CTO & Co-Founder

Q: Where is Hernani based?

Hernani is based in London, United Kingdom and can operate in on-site , hybrid , and remote work models.

Q: What languages does Hernani speak?

Hernani speaks the following languages: English (Native), Portuguese (Native), Spanish (Advanced) .

Q: How many years of experience does Hernani have?

Hernani has at least 16 years of experience. During this time, Hernani has worked in at least 14 different roles and for 17 different companies . The average length of individual experience is 1 year . Note that Hernani may not have shared all experience and actually has more experience.

Q: What is Hernani's latest experience?

Hernani's most recent position is AI CTO & Co-Founder at INGENIUS .

Q: What companies has Hernani worked for in recent years?

In recent years, Hernani has worked for INGENIUS , Tarucca , Bondify.com , experdata , and Lalaland.ai .

Q: Which industries is Hernani most experienced in?

Hernani is most experienced in industries like Information Technology (IT) , Education , and Energy . Hernani also has some experience in Pharmaceutical , Fashion and Apparel , and Retail .

Q: Which business areas is Hernani most experienced in?

Hernani is most experienced in business areas like Information Technology (IT) , Research and Development (R&D) , and Strategy and Planning . Hernani also has some experience in Product Development , Business Intelligence , and Project Management .

Q: Which industries has Hernani worked in recently?

Hernani has recently worked in industries like Information Technology (IT) , Energy , and Education .

Q: Which business areas has Hernani worked in recently?

Hernani has recently worked in business areas like Information Technology (IT) , Strategy and Planning , and Product Development .

Recommended expert

London, United Kingdom

Experience

Jun 2024 - Present

1 year 9 months

Amsterdam, Netherlands

AI CTO & Co-Founder

INGENIUS

Collaborated with co-founders to define technical and business strategies, aligning product development with financial goals.
Built and mentored a high-performing technical team, overseeing recruitment, onboarding, and professional growth.
Designed a scalable, cost-effective microservices infrastructure on AWS, ensuring robust, secure, and high-performing platform capabilities while optimising operational costs.
Evaluated and implemented advanced AI tools to enhance platform capabilities, focusing on automation and intelligent agent incorporation.
Interfaced with investors and clients to refine product offerings and secure necessary resources.
Reduced course creation time from weeks to minutes through AI innovations and a robust, scalable, and cost-effective tech infrastructure.
Collaborated intensively with designers and educational specialists to deliver a feature-rich, user-centric platform, receiving positive feedback on its design and effectiveness.
Fostered a culture of adaptability and iterative progress, enabling the team to thrive in a fast-paced, ever-evolving technological landscape.

Jun 2023 - Present

2 years 9 months

Eindhoven, Netherlands

Chief Data and AI Architect Officer (CAIO) & Co-Founder

Tarucca

Designed and deployed a robust microservices-based infrastructure on AWS, enabling secure and efficient data processing across multiple Smart Data Acquisition Systems (SDAS).
Built seamless data pipelines to collect, transmit, and analyse large datasets from photonic sensors, transforming raw data into actionable insights for decision-making.
Applied advanced AI models to automate processes, enhance analytics, and optimise wind energy operations through predictive maintenance.
Recruited and led a multidisciplinary team of engineers and data scientists, fostering collaboration and delivering on Tarucca’s mission.
Improved efficiency by automating workflows and integrating IoT systems with scalable cloud infrastructure.
Successfully deployed multiple SDAS units, enabling reliable and scalable data capture for wind turbine monitoring.
Contributed to pivotal projects like AIRTuB-ROMI, ReliaBlade2-NL, and the MIT R&D, advancing renewable energy through software innovation and AI-driven insights.
Established an agile team culture, enabling adaptability to technological demands and achieving key milestones in data analytics and predictive maintenance.

Jul 2022 - Jun 2023

1 year

Rotterdam, Netherlands

Chief Information Officer

Bondify.com

Spearheaded the creation and refinement of the MVP for a contract automation platform, collaborating with cross-functional teams to implement iterative releases and gather valuable feedback from early adopters.
Led a team of designers, AI developers, and engineers, ensuring a collaborative environment that fostered agile methodologies, innovation, and problem-solving.
Actively engaged with early adopters to understand user needs and validate platform features while supporting investor conversations by articulating technical strategies and aligning them with business goals.
Designed and implemented a robust, microservices-based infrastructure on AWS, ensuring scalability, security, and integration readiness.
Automated workflows and optimised system architecture, improving the platform’s flexibility and adaptability for future growth.
Developed and launched the MVP of a next-generation contract automation platform, enabling iterative feature releases and facilitating adoption by early users.
Built a secure, scalable IT framework that supported multiple iterations and feedback loops during the platform’s development.
Fostered a team culture of collaboration, adaptability, and innovation, ensuring consistent progress and alignment with company goals.

Jan 2022 - Dec 2022

1 year

Amsterdam, Netherlands

CTO & Co-Founder

experdata

I built a scalable SaaS platform that connected massive datasets to actionable insights, empowering pharmaceutical experts to access critical information and make informed decisions.
I spearheaded the technical infrastructure from the ground up, designing and launching a robust, scalable data pipeline that allowed Pfizer experts to quickly access information, create targeted leads, and align the right people with critical projects. By bridging people and technology, I delivered a platform that simplified workflows, aligned with organisational goals and delivered insightful information.
Beyond the product, I built and led a cross-functional team of developers, fostering a culture of collaboration, innovation, and empowerment. From hiring and coaching to aligning processes with business objectives, I ensured the team excelled while focused on delivering impactful results.

Jan 2021 - Dec 2021

1 year

Amsterdam, Netherlands

Director of AI & Engineering

Lalaland.ai

Delivered an industry-disrupting platform capable of generating human-like digital models for the fashion and apparel industry.
Responsible for hiring, leading, coaching, managing and growing a multidisciplinary team of 10+ people in Machine Learning, Computer Vision, Cloud Software Engineering and QC.
Accountable for the design, management, delivery, quality, availability, and performance of the company’s technology backbone, encompassing digital fashion, data pipelines, cloud infrastructure, R&D, rapid PoCs & MVPs, and Software Development.

Jul 2019 - Dec 2020

1 year 6 months

Groningen, Netherlands

Tech Team Lead

Kaios.ai

Hired, coached and managed a multidisciplinary team of 10+ in Machine Learning, Computer Vision, Web Development and Cloud Software Engineers.
Translated customers' requests into technical requirements and prioritised them according to business needs.
Managed and led 10+ intelligent imagery solutions (e.g. video, mobile mapping, satellite imagery, LiDAR and drone imagery).

Nov 2017 - Jun 2019

1 year 8 months

Amsterdam, Netherlands

NLP Data Scientist

Elsevier

Worked on software requirements, system architecture, infrastructure maintenance, development, testing, evaluation, deployment, and serverless applications.
Used natural language processing (NLP), information extraction (IE), information retrieval (IR), and text & data mining.
Developed in Python, DynamoDB, Lambdas, API Gateway, SQS, and other AWS services.

Jul 2017 - Present

8 years 8 months

Canada

Tech Advisor

CalendHer Technologies Corp

Jul 2017 - Oct 2017

4 months

Delft, Netherlands

Data Engineer

GeoPhy

Set up low-maintenance, high-quality and efficient data pipelines and collected and prepared datasets for ingestion and gold standards for system performance.
Worked on development, testing, and optimization using Python.

Oct 2016 - Jun 2017

9 months

Amsterdam, Netherlands

NLP/ML Data Scientist

StartMonday

Led a large scale NLP system that recommends products to relevant users, working on customer journey, software requirements, product design, development, testing, deployment, and optimization.
Used NLP (information extraction, information retrieval, text & data mining) and machine learning (ML).
Developed in Python and Java.

Oct 2015 - Dec 2015

3 months

Rome, Italy

Early Stage Researcher (Secondment)

Translated s.r.l.

Visiting Translated s.r.l. on a secondment via the European funded project EXPERT.

Sep 2014 - Dec 2014

4 months

Wolverhampton, United Kingdom

Early Stage Researcher (Secondment)

University of Wolverhampton

Visiting the University of Wolverhampton on a secondment via the European funded project EXPERT.

Sep 2013 - Sep 2016

3 years 1 month

Málaga, Spain

Early Stage Researcher

University of Málaga

Researched and developed various modules to collect and prepare multilingual data for translators and machine translation systems, covering research, software requirements, software design, development, testing, deployment, optimization, and scientific publications.
Deployed publicly available software: iCompileCorpora (a web application to create multilingual web corpora), PreProcessor (processes and annotates raw textual data), STSModule (computes the semantic similarity between sentences and documents), DSMModule (measures and ranks sentences and documents based on their degree of similarity).
Used NLP (information extraction, information retrieval), statistics, machine learning (ML), and machine translation (MT).
Developed in Java, R, and Python.

Sep 2011 - Dec 2011

4 months

Portugal

Researcher

FCCN - Linguateca

Worked at Linguateca, a distributed language resource center for Portuguese, launched from the Computational Processing of Portuguese project, expanding its mission and aims.

Sep 2010 - Jan 2013

2 years 5 months

Coimbra, Portugal

Teacher

Coimbra Institute of Engineering

Taught programming and algorithms.

Sep 2010 - Jul 2012

1 year 11 months

Coimbra, Portugal

Teacher

Professional School of Lousã

Taught operating systems, communication networks, and computer architecture.

Sep 2009 - Oct 2013

4 years 2 months

Coimbra, Portugal

Researcher

Centre for Informatics and Systems of the University of Coimbra

Industries Experience

See where this freelancer has spent most of their professional time. Longer bars indicate deeper hands-on experience, while shorter ones reflect targeted or project-based work.

Experienced in Information Technology (12.5 years), Education (10.5 years), Energy (2.5 years), Pharmaceutical (1 year), Fashion (1 year), and Real Estate (0.5 years).

Information Technology

Education

Energy

Pharmaceutical

Fashion

Real Estate

Business Areas Experience

The graph below provides a cumulative view of the freelancer's experience across multiple business areas, calculated from completed and active engagements. It highlights the areas where the freelancer has most frequently contributed to planning, execution, and delivery of business outcomes.

Experienced in Information Technology (15 years), Research and Development (12 years), Strategy (8.5 years), Product Development (6.5 years), Business Intelligence (4 years), and Project Management (1.5 years).

Information Technology

Research and Development

Strategy

Product Development

Business Intelligence

Project Management

Summary

With over two decades of experience at the intersection of technology, people, and processes, I thrive on designing solutions that create meaningful impact. My passion for AI, education, and product development fuels my mission to empower organisations and individuals to harness technology for real-world success.

Here’s what I do best:

Building Products: Designed and launched dozens of tools that simplify work, align with organisational goals, and deliver seamless customer experiences.
Developing Teams and Coaching Individuals: Led cross-functional teams to success by bridging skill gaps, fostering collaboration, and empowering individuals to excel.
Aligning Processes: Transformed fragmented operations into cohesive systems that connect people, processes, and business objectives.
Advancing Technology: Spearheaded digital innovation by identifying, implementing, and scaling cutting-edge tools to address complex challenges and create lasting impact.
Engaging Stakeholders: Partnered with stakeholders across all levels to ensure strategic alignment, clarity, and successful project outcomes.

What sets me apart:

Empowering Informed Decisions: I provide clear frameworks and actionable insights to help people and organisations make confident, well-informed choices.
Bridging People and Technology: I see technology as a bridge to connect creativity, strategy, and results, enabling businesses to unlock new possibilities.
Delivering Results: Whether launching AI-driven initiatives or mentoring the next wave of talent, my work focuses on tangible outcomes and real-world impact.
Leadership with Empathy: As a Sailor, Mentor, and Builder of Bridges, I navigate challenges with adaptability, guide others with care, and connect ideas with solutions to drive transformation.

Looking ahead:

I’m building a vibrant AI community for learners, experts, and innovators—a space to collaborate, share ideas, and tackle real-world challenges. Together, we’ll foster mentorship, innovation, and business growth in the AI landscape.

Whether you’re navigating digital transformation, exploring AI’s potential, or building scalable solutions, I’m here to help. Let’s create a smarter, more connected future—one step at a time.

Skills

Operations Management
Devops
Technological Literacy

Languages

English

Native

Portuguese

Native

Spanish

Advanced

Education

Oct 2013 - Jun 2019

University of Malaga

PhD (Marie Curie Fellow) · Computational Linguistics · Málaga, Spain

Oct 2007 - Jun 2010

University of Coimbra

MSc, Artificial Intelligence · Computer Science · Coimbra, Portugal

Oct 2007 - Jun 2008

University of Vigo

Computer Science · Vigo, Spain

...and 1 more

Certifications & licenses

Interpersonal Communication Communicating In The Language Of Leadership

Interview Master Class

Research Scholarship Award Of Scientific Excellence

Strategic Thinking

Profile

Created

January 2025

Last Update

January 2026

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Frequently asked questions

Do you have questions? Here you can find further information.

Where is Hernani based?

Hernani is based in London, United Kingdom and can operate in on-site, hybrid, and remote work models.

What languages does Hernani speak?

Hernani speaks the following languages: English (Native), Portuguese (Native), Spanish (Advanced).

How many years of experience does Hernani have?

Hernani has at least 16 years of experience. During this time, Hernani has worked in at least 14 different roles and for 17 different companies. The average length of individual experience is 1 year. Note that Hernani may not have shared all experience and actually has more experience.

What roles would Hernani be best suited for?

Based on recent experience, Hernani would be well-suited for roles such as: AI CTO & Co-Founder, Chief Data and AI Architect Officer (CAIO) & Co-Founder, Chief Information Officer.

What is Hernani's latest experience?

Hernani's most recent position is AI CTO & Co-Founder at INGENIUS.

What companies has Hernani worked for in recent years?

In recent years, Hernani has worked for INGENIUS, Tarucca, Bondify.com, experdata, and Lalaland.ai.

Which industries is Hernani most experienced in?

Hernani is most experienced in industries like Information Technology (IT), Education, and Energy. Hernani also has some experience in Pharmaceutical, Fashion and Apparel, and Retail.

Which business areas is Hernani most experienced in?

Hernani is most experienced in business areas like Information Technology (IT), Research and Development (R&D), and Strategy and Planning. Hernani also has some experience in Product Development, Business Intelligence, and Project Management.

Which industries has Hernani worked in recently?

Hernani has recently worked in industries like Information Technology (IT), Energy, and Education.

Which business areas has Hernani worked in recently?

Hernani has recently worked in business areas like Information Technology (IT), Strategy and Planning, and Product Development.

What is Hernani's education?

Hernani holds a Doctorate in Computational Linguistics from University of Malaga, a Master in Computer Science from University of Coimbra and a Bachelor in Computer Science from University of Coimbra.

Does Hernani have any certificates?

Hernani has 4 certificates. Among them, these include: Interpersonal Communication Communicating In The Language Of Leadership, Interview Master Class, and Research Scholarship Award Of Scientific Excellence.

What is the availability of Hernani?

Hernani is immediately available part-time for suitable projects.

What is the rate of Hernani?

Hernani's rate depends on the specific project requirements. Please use the Meet button on the profile to schedule a meeting and discuss the details.