> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://withseismic.com/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# Doug Silkstone - Full-Stack Engineer

> Full-stack engineer with 10 years of production experience across React, TypeScript, Node, and Python. Built systems for Contra, Groupon, Motley Fool, and MIT. Available for founding engineer roles and technical consulting.

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# Full-Stack Engineer for Greenfield Projects & Startups

I'm Doug Silkstone, a British software engineer based in Prague. I specialize in **Greenfield Projects** and **Early-Stage Startups**, helping founders build their first production systems, MVPs, and AI workflows.

Over the past 10 years, I've built production systems for companies like Contra, Groupon, Motley Fool, Sky, and MIT. I combine full-stack engineering with growth, product, and marketing experience to build software that drives revenue.

<CardGroup cols={2}>
  <Card title="Book a Discovery Call" icon="phone" href="/contact">
    Ready to build? Let's discuss your project.
  </Card>

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    Explore engineering partnerships and packages.
  </Card>
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**My background:**

* Built my first business in 2016, scaled to \$100k ARR, and sold it twice
* Worked across engineering, growth, and product with teams at Contra, Sky, Groupon, The Motley Fool, and MIT
* Helped early-stage startups collectively raise \$20M+ USD
* Course contributor for MIT's Generative AI & LLM course
* Previous Head of Growth, managing systems that drove \$10M+ in spend and over 1 billion product sessions
* Open-source contributor to TanStack, Mastra, and various tools

**What makes me different:**

I don't just write code - I understand how software drives revenue. Whether it's building Chrome extensions that double marketplace inventory, creating AI workflows that process thousands of hours of content, or architecting MVPs that scale to thousands of users, I focus on business impact.

On YouTube ([@dougsilkstone](https://www.youtube.com/@dougsilkstone)), I teach practical operator engineering - how to use code to create revenue. I'm an early adopter of Cursor/Claude Code and agentic workflows, and I share what I learn as I build.

## Companies I've Worked With

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## Services & Investment

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  **Quick Answer**: Premium engineering sprints at \*\*$7,000 per two-week sprint**. Typical engagement $21-28k over 6-8 weeks. Full team: UX designer, growth manager, and fullstack engineers.
</Info>

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  <Card title="Premium Engineering Sprints" icon="rocket">
    **\$7,000 per two-week sprint**

    Full team (UX, growth, engineering) focused on your project. MVPs, Chrome extensions, automations, and internal tools.
  </Card>

  <Card title="Typical Engagement" icon="building">
    **$21,000 - $28,000 over 6-8 weeks**

    3-4 sprints to go from idea to production. Discovery, build, and launch with a dedicated team.
  </Card>
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## How It Works: The Greenfield Process

<Steps>
  <Step title="Discovery">
    We identify your core revenue problems and technical requirements. No lengthy specs - just clear business goals.
  </Step>

  <Step title="Sprint">
    I build your MVP, automation, or workflow in focused 2-week sprints. You get working code, not just updates.
  </Step>

  <Step title="Launch">
    We deploy to production. I handle the infrastructure, monitoring, and handoff so you can focus on growth.
  </Step>
</Steps>

## Specialized Engineering

I build systems that give startups an unfair advantage:

<CardGroup cols={2}>
  <Card title="LLM & AI Agents" icon="robot">
    Custom AI workflows that automate complex tasks. From content generation to data extraction and analysis.
  </Card>

  <Card title="Chrome Extensions" icon="puzzle-piece">
    Browser extensions that modify pages, scrape data, and automate user actions to double productivity.
  </Card>

  <Card title="Browser Automation" icon="globe">
    Headless browsers (Playwright) to automate any web-based task, from form filling to competitive intelligence.
  </Card>

  <Card title="MVP Development" icon="code">
    Rapid 0-to-1 development for greenfield projects. I build the full stack: frontend, backend, database, and infra.
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# What I've Built

**Contra's Indy.ai - Chrome Extension for Crowdsourced Job Discovery**
Built a [Chrome extension](/build/web-extensions) that turned 35,000+ Contra users into a distributed opportunity-finding network. The extension passively analyzes LinkedIn and X content while users browse, using [LLM workflows](/build/llm-workflows) to identify hiring signals. Result: 2x increase in marketplace inventory without hiring a single outbound recruiter.

* 30,000+ active users on Chrome Web Store
* 4.6 star rating
* Doubled job marketplace inventory
* Built with Plasmo, React, service workers, and LLM integration

[Read the full case study →](/case-studies/contra-linkedin-automation)

**Vouchernaut - Programmatic PPC Platform**
Built an [automated PPC platform](/articles/programmatic-acquisition-playbook) managing 100,000+ brands across affiliate networks. The system automatically generated campaigns, managed bids, and scaled to drive 60% of VoucherCloud's revenue. Contributed to their eventual Groupon acquisition.

* Managed £2M+ annual ad spend
* 100,000+ brands automated
* Drove 60% of company revenue
* Scaled from side project to \$100k ARR before acquisition

[Read the full case study →](/case-studies/vouchernaut-programmatic-ppc)

## AI & LLM Workflows

**Snacker.ai - AI Video Editing Platform**
Took a Lovable prototype and [turned it into production](/articles/from-lovable-to-production) with 5,000+ users. Built AI-powered video editing that removes gaps, mistakes, and produces polished content in 20 seconds. Productized GrowthMatch's video concierge service into a scalable platform.

* 5,000+ users in 3 months
* 20 paying customers
* 20-second video turnaround
* Built with TypeScript, React, Hono, Supabase, and Web Codecs API

[Read the full case study →](/case-studies/snacker-ai-video-platform)

## Recent Production Work

**Client Projects (2024-2025):**

* Contra.com's Chrome extension (35,000+ users)
* Snacker.ai video platform (5,000+ users, TechStars alumni)
* z3ro.tv content intelligence system
* STRV.com frontend engineering and AI marketing tools
* The Motley Fool automation and PPC systems (\$20M monthly budget)

**Previous Roles:**

* Lead Growth Engineer at Patrianna (iGaming, millions of monthly sessions)
* Head of Growth at Photologo.co (record-breaking \$1M+ BFCM)
* Built and sold Vouchernaut (PE acquired, exited 2022)
* Head of Digital at Reach Robotics (Apple Store worldwide launch)
* Performance Marketing at Groupon/VoucherCloud

[View all case studies →](/case-studies/introduction)

# Technical Capabilities

**Frontend:** React, TypeScript, Next.js, TanStack Start, Tailwind, Vite, Svelte, Qwik
**Backend:** Node, Hono, Express, NestJS, Python, Go
**Full Stack:** T3 stack, monorepo (Turborepo), serverless architectures
**Specialized:** Chrome extensions (MV3), LLM workflows (OpenAI, Claude), browser automation (Playwright, Puppeteer), MCP servers
**Infrastructure:** AWS, Kubernetes, Redis, BullMQ, Prometheus, Grafana
**Testing:** Jest, Vitest, Cypress, Playwright

I'm looking for opportunities where I can make a significant impact:

**Founding Engineer / First Technical Hire**
Early-stage startups that need someone who can wear multiple hats - build the product, set up infrastructure, and think about growth from day one. I thrive in 0-to-1 environments where speed and pragmatism matter more than perfect architecture.

**Technical Consulting & Contract Work**
Short-to-medium term engagements (2-12 weeks) where I can solve specific technical challenges, build MVPs, or create custom automation. I work in focused sprints with clear deliverables.

**Ideal Projects:**

* [Chrome extensions](/build/web-extensions) and browser automation
* [AI/LLM workflows](/build/llm-workflows) and content processing
* MVP development (6-8 weeks to production)
* Internal tools and automation systems
* Growth engineering and revenue-driving features

**What I bring beyond code:**

* Product sense from building and selling my own products
* Growth experience from managing multi-million dollar budgets
* Understanding of how engineering decisions impact business metrics
* Ability to work independently and ship quickly
* Strong opinions, loosely held - I'll push back when needed

## What Founders Say

<CardGroup cols={2}>
  <Card title="Snacker.ai" icon="star">
    "They're smart, fast, and trustworthy! Took our broken prototype to a revenue-generating platform."

    <br />

    **— Shelby Stevens, Founder**
  </Card>

  <Card title="Contra" icon="star">
    "Doug was incredible to work with. He operated quickly & efficiently, and even proposed ways to improve the feature to exceed our expectations. 10/10!"

    <br />

    **— Allison Nulty, Head of Product**
  </Card>

  <Card title="The Motley Fool" icon="star">
    "Doug is a pro. I'd hire him again for any future marketing & technology initiatives."

    <br />

    **— Brian Tighe, Head Of Technology**
  </Card>
</CardGroup>

# Featured Writing & Insights

I write about operator engineering, productization, and building revenue-generating software:

<CardGroup cols={2}>
  <Card title="From Lovable to Production" icon="code" href="/articles/from-lovable-to-production">
    Lessons from taking AI-generated prototypes to production systems with thousands of users
  </Card>

  <Card title="Programmatic Acquisition Playbook" icon="robot" href="/articles/programmatic-acquisition-playbook">
    How I built automated PPC systems managing 100,000+ brands
  </Card>

  <Card title="The Corner Cutter's Guide" icon="rocket" href="/articles/corner-cutters-guide-building-future">
    Building fast and smart - why speed beats perfection in early-stage products
  </Card>

  <Card title="Why Build a Documentation Site Without a Product?" icon="book" href="/articles/documentation-site-without-product">
    How this portfolio site became my most effective marketing tool
  </Card>
</CardGroup>

# Get In Touch

**For Founders & Recruiters:**
If you're looking for your first engineer hire or need someone who can build and ship production systems quickly, let's talk.

**Email:** [doug@withseismic.com](mailto:doug@withseismic.com)
**LinkedIn:** [linkedin.com/in/dougsilkstone](https://linkedin.com/in/dougsilkstone)
**GitHub:** [github.com/dougwithseismic](https://github.com/dougwithseismic)
**YouTube:** [@dougsilkstone](https://www.youtube.com/@dougsilkstone)

<CardGroup cols={2}>
  <Card title="View Case Studies" icon="folder" href="/case-studies/introduction">
    See detailed breakdowns of production systems I've built with real metrics and technical implementation details.
  </Card>

  <Card title="Check Out My Work" icon="github" href="https://github.com/dougwithseismic">
    Browse open-source projects and contributions on GitHub.
  </Card>
</CardGroup>

***

**Available for:** Founding engineer roles, technical consulting, contract development
**Location:** Prague, Czech Republic (open to remote)
**Rate:** Available upon request (project-based or monthly retainer)

***