Katleho Khutsoane

Full-stack product developer with proven ability to conceptualize, architect, and ship production-grade SaaS applications from inception. Specialized in building AI-powered intelligent systems that synthesize multiple data sources into meaningful user experiences. Strong technical foundation across frontend, backend, database design, payment systems, and deployment infrastructure.

Methodology: Leverage AI as a force multiplier for reasoning and code generation, but retain full ownership of architecture, design decisions, and engineering discipline. Produce work that passes enterprise standards for security, scalability, and user experience.

Founder & Full-Stack Product Developer - PRODIG - Cape Town, South Africa An AI Chief of Staff that synthesizes Calendar, Email, Tasks, and Contacts into unified daily briefs. Live at www.prodig.co.za. Users sign in with Google, ask PRODIG questions, and receive cross-system intelligence with 4 free messages/month (Free tier) or 60/month (Pro at $17/month).

• Built PRODIG from scratch using React/Vite (frontend), Node/Express (backend), Supabase (auth + database), and Railway (deployment). Single-founder ownership of all layers — frontend UI, API design, database schema, deployment pipeline.
• Integrated Google Calendar (read), Google Tasks (read), Google Contacts (lookup), and Gmail (read + send). Implemented OAuth2 flows with partial-grant detection and clean error handling for missing scopes. All integrations live and verified against real user data.
• Engineered full payment infrastructure using Lemon Squeezy as payment processor. Built checkout flow, webhook handling for subscription events (created/updated/cancelled/failed), and seamless plan downgrade on failed payments. System tested and working; identity verification pending (5-10 business days).
• Designed and implemented usage-based billing model with two tiers: Free (4 messages/month, 5-hour cooldown) and Pro (60/month, no cooldown). Backend enforces hard caps via middleware. Frontend displays paywall modals, plan status, and upgrade prompts. Plan state syncs from Supabase to UI in real-time.
• Created tier comparison page with feature breakdowns, dropdown user menu with plan badge, Settings modal with plan details, and PaywallModal with countdown timer. All components follow a cohesive design language (Crimson Velvet: #2C0F12 background, #6B1E23 accent). No component libraries; built from scratch using Tailwind CSS.
• Integrated PostHog for event tracking (user signups, account connections, feature usage). Live dashboard showing 200+ active users, session metrics, and custom event funnels. Used data to validate product hypotheses and track user retention.
• Built WebGL shader backgrounds (animated mesh drift) ported from GLSL to React/WebGL2. Implemented selective staging for commits (manage uncommitted code without losing work). Responsive design across mobile and desktop (320px overflow checks). Accessibility features (Reduce Motion preferences).
• Designed Supabase schema with Row-Level Security policies.

Tables include: auth.users (Supabase native), usage_limits (metering + plan tracking + subscription ID), conversation logs (chat history). Queries are performant and permission-locked.

• Conducted end-to-end testing of payment flows using Lemon Squeezy's test-mode sandbox. Verified webhook delivery, Supabase updates, and frontend re-rendering. Deployed via selective-staging commits to production without interrupting unrelated in-progress work.