# Alexa Amundson **Technical Founder & Systems Architect** Lakeville, MN | amundsonalexa@gmail.com | (507) 828-0842 | [blackroad.io](https://blackroad.io) | [GitHub](https://github.com/blackboxprogramming) --- ## Summary Technical founder who architected BlackRoad OS — a distributed AI orchestration platform spanning 6 compute nodes, 48+ domains, 130+ edge workers, 29 AI models, and a complete stack from task queues to observability to multi-agent coordination. Achieved 57-71% LLM cost reduction with sub-200ms latency. Previous career generating $23M+ in regulated financial services (FINRA Series 7/63/65), building the data pipelines, segmentation models, and compliance frameworks that drove results. Every layer of BlackRoad — networking, storage, compute, AI, monitoring, deployment — designed and operated solo. --- ## Technical Skills **Architecture:** Distributed systems, microservice orchestration, five-layer AI ecosystem design, tokenless API gateway, capability-based agent routing, append-only journal systems, vectorized ethics framework, zero-trust compliance (OPA/Rego) **Full Stack:** TypeScript/Node.js 22 (Hono, Zod, Next.js 15, React 19, Zustand), Python (FastAPI, LangGraph), Bash (400+ scripts), SQL, Excel VBA **Infrastructure:** WireGuard mesh VPN, Cloudflare (130+ Workers, 95+ Pages, 40 KV, 7 D1, 10 R2, 18 Tunnels), Docker (100+ Dockerfiles, Swarm, Compose), Terraform, Ansible, Kubernetes, DigitalOcean **AI/ML:** Ollama (29 models, 4 custom), Hailo-8 (52 TOPS), multi-provider gateway (Anthropic, OpenAI, Ollama, Gemini), Qdrant vector DB, RAG pipelines, TTS, computer vision (YOLOv5, ResNet) **Financial:** FINRA compliance (2210, SEC 204-2), risk modeling, portfolio optimization, annuity product engineering, customer segmentation, CRM data governance (Salesforce) --- ## Experience ### Founder & Chief Architect — BlackRoad OS *Remote | June 2024 – Present* *(Founded concurrently with Securian role; transitioned to primary focus June 2025)* Built an end-to-end distributed AI platform from scratch. Every component designed, coded, deployed, and operated solo. #### The Architecture Architected **five-layer AI ecosystem** (Interface → Orchestration → Data → Compliance → Compute) enabling deterministic multi-agent coordination across web, mobile, CLI, and edge devices. Directed **hybrid LLM deployment** (self-hosted Mistral 7B/Llama 3 + Claude fallbacks) achieving **57-71% inference cost reduction** ($1.0-1.3K vs $3.5K/mo) with sub-200ms latency. #### The Platform (TypeScript) - **blackroad-core**: Tokenless AI gateway (Hono + Zod) — agents never hold API keys, rate limiting (token bucket), policy engine (OPA/Rego), fallback chains, multi-provider adapters (Anthropic, OpenAI, Ollama, Gemini) - **blackroad-agents**: 6 named agents with capability-based routing, Zod-validated schemas, and provider-specific access control - **blackroad-operator**: `br` CLI for fleet management — status, invocation, deployment, logs, config - **blackroad-web**: Next.js 15 dashboard (React 19, Zustand, Tailwind CSS 4) with real-time agent grid and glass-morphism UI - **blackroad-infra**: Terraform modules (Cloudflare, DigitalOcean, Railway), Docker multi-stage builds, CI templates - **blackroad-docs**: Architecture docs, ADRs, API specs, runbooks, governance, brand system #### The Orchestration Layer - **Task Queue** (472 lines, SQLite): 4 queue types (default 10K, inference 5K, batch 1K, priority 100), dead-letter routing, automatic retry, worker daemon with heartbeat - **Autonomy Orchestrator** (246 lines): Task marketplace polling, priority routing, skill-based dispatch, zombie cleanup - **Agent Registry** (297 lines): 11+ agents (hardware/AI/human), SSH testing, capability discovery, cryptographic identity - **Multi-Agent System** (14 Python modules): 9 specialized roles, capability scoring, 30K-agent deployment design, peer-to-peer calling via SHA-256 #### The Observability Stack - **Distributed Tracing** (487 lines): Trace ID propagation, span hierarchies, error rates, dependency graphs - **Cost Tracking** (451 lines): Per-resource billing (CPU/GPU/inference/tokens/storage/network), budgets, invoices - **Infrastructure Dashboard** (Python, 775 lines): 9-service monitoring, live logs, SQLite backend #### The Compliance Layer - **Zero-trust framework**: OPA/Rego policy enforcement, Keycloak SSO, tokenized PII handling for RIA/BD audit requirements and SEC Rule 204-2 alignment - **Vectorized ethics**: Moral and compliance constraints embedded as high-dimensional vectors in policy evaluation with explainability - **Immutable audit trails**: SHA-256 hash-chained append-only journals with data lineage tracking #### The Network - **WireGuard Mesh**: 6-peer hub-spoke (Anastasia hub → Alice, Cecilia, Octavia, Aria, Gematria) - **Cloudflare Edge**: 130+ Workers, 95+ Pages, 40 KV, 7 D1, 10 R2, 18 Tunnels, 48+ domains - **Pi Fleet**: Alice (gateway/DNS/PostgreSQL/Qdrant), Cecilia (16 AI models/Hailo-8/TTS/MinIO), Octavia (1TB NVMe/Gitea/NATS/Swarm), Aria (Portainer/Headscale) #### The AI Fleet - 29 Ollama models across 4 nodes (4 custom fine-tuned CECE models) - 52 TOPS neural acceleration (2x Hailo-8) - Computer vision (YOLOv5, ResNet) on edge NVMe - TTS pipeline, CECE API Gateway, Qdrant vector DB - Model endpoint manager with load balancing and token counting #### The Automation - 400+ shell scripts, 240+ Node.js projects, 100+ Dockerfiles, 35+ Compose configs - Ansible (9+ roles), Terraform modules, GitHub Actions runners on Pi - **1,326+ GitHub repos** (107 personal + 1,218 BlackRoad-OS org) + self-hosted Gitea (100+ repos, 7 orgs) --- ### Internal Annuity Wholesaler / Senior Sales Analyst — Securian Financial *St. Paul, MN | July 2024 – June 2025* - Generated **$23M+ in annuity sales** (92% of goal vs. 74% territory median) - Engineered product optimization calculator analyzing 5+ annuity structures with scenario modeling across 5-7 year horizons - Built **data quality pipeline** driving **75% of new lead generation** by identifying 50%+ CRM error rate - Implemented **behavioral analytics** increasing advisor engagement **33% MoM** - Architected CRM governance auditing **6,000+ Salesforce records** for FINRA 2210 compliance - Selected as technical presenter at LPL Financial conferences and Securian Winter Sales Conferences (24,000+ advisor network) - *Recognized that AI-enabled automation reduces human evaluation risk more effectively than manual compliance review — catalyzed full-time transition to AI systems architecture* --- ### Financial Advisor — Ameriprise Financial *Minneapolis, MN | July 2023 – June 2024* - Identified **$18.4M in convertible AUM** via Excel/VBA customer segmentation and cohort analysis - Retained **$3.1M in at-risk assets** through quantitative reallocation strategies - Ranked **#1 in qualified appointments**, 97% client satisfaction --- ### Licensed Real Estate Agent — eXp Realty *White Bear Lake & Apple Valley, MN | May 2022 – December 2023* - Built lead qualification and appraisal gap risk models - Executed **1,000+ outreach touchpoints**, **10% conversion** to qualified leads --- ## Licenses & Certifications - **FINRA:** SIE, Series 7, Series 63, Series 65 (CRD# 7794541) - **Insurance:** Life & Health (Minnesota) - **Trademarks (USPTO):** BLACKROAD OS, BLACKBOXPROGRAMMING, ALICE --- ## Education **University of Minnesota — Twin Cities** B.A., Strategic Communication: Advertising & Public Relations | December 2022 Relevant Coursework: Real Estate Finance, Risk Management, Leadership, Project Management --- ## Awards National Speech & Debate Finalist | Securian Winter Sales Conference Presenter (2x) | LPL Due Diligence Presenter | Ameriprise Sales Training Award | Enterprise MSP Sales Award (3x) --- ## What I Built — By the Numbers | What | Scale | |------|-------| | Compute nodes | 6 (4 Pi + 2 cloud) | | LLM cost reduction | 57-71% | | AI models | 29 deployed, 4 custom fine-tuned | | Neural compute | 52 TOPS (2x Hailo-8) | | Edge Workers | 130+ | | Pages projects | 95+ | | Domains | 48+ | | Git repos | 1,326+ GitHub + 100+ self-hosted Gitea | | Shell scripts | 400+ | | Node.js projects | 240+ | | Docker configs | 100+ Dockerfiles, 35+ Compose | | Agent modules | 14 Python, 9 roles | | Services | 20+ persistent | | Storage | 1.25TB+ distributed | | Financial sales | $23M+ (Securian) | | AUM identified | $18.4M (Ameriprise) |