Founder — ReadLoudly.com
Dec 2023 — PresentBuilding a listening platform that converts PDFs, EPUBs, DOCX and images into natural audio with 1200+ AI voices across 40+ languages — with synced highlighting, notes, and PDF tools built in.
Senior Software Engineer · Founder
Hey, I'm Awsaf.
I build & scale web products.
14+ years of turning ideas into fast, reliable software — from growing FreeConvert.com to 5M+ monthly users as its first engineer and later CTO, to modernizing document infrastructure at Paperturn, to founding ReadLoudly.com.
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Years of experience
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Monthly users served at FreeConvert
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Faster processing after AWS migration
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Startup founded — ReadLoudly
01. About
From freelancer to founder
I started writing code for clients on oDesk back in 2011, customizing WordPress themes and shipping small PHP scripts. Fifteen years later, I've been the sole developer behind a platform used by millions, led engineering teams as a CTO, and modernized legacy systems into serverless architectures that run in seconds instead of minutes.
At FreeConvert.com I built the product from the ground up — image resizers, GIF makers, PDF tools, MP3 cutters — and stayed with it as it grew from a part-time project into a service used by over 5 million people a month. At Paperturn I led the migration of a legacy PHP generator to AWS Step Functions, cutting flipbook generation from 15 minutes to about 40 seconds.
Along the way I founded ReadLoudly.com — a platform that turns PDFs, EPUBs and documents into natural-sounding audio with 1200+ AI voices in 40+ languages. It's my answer to a simple question: why should reading be limited to your eyes?
I care about performance, clean architecture, and shipping things that actually work. Whether it's Dockerizing an environment, untangling a CI/CD pipeline, or squeezing seconds out of a critical path — that's where I'm happiest.
These days I've made AI a core part of my workflow — for code generation, review, and automation — which lets me deliver in days what used to take weeks. The engineering judgment stays human; the repetitive parts don't.
02. Experience
Where I've worked
Senior Software Engineer — Paperturn
Jan 2023 — PresentLeading the modernization of the document generation system: migrated a legacy PHP generator to AWS Step Functions (15 min → ~40 s), moved the codebase from EC2 to App Runner, Dockerized local development, and rolled out unified CI/CD across all repositories.
Software Engineer — Turing.com
Mar 2022 — Dec 2022Worked in the Platform team on system performance, most notably the search feature. Built a gRPC microservices boilerplate that streamlined development of new services across the platform.
Senior SWE / CTO — FreeConvert.com (TransMedia Inc.)
Dec 2017 — Mar 2022First engineer and sole developer for three years — built the entire platform of conversion tools, then formed and led the engineering team as CTO while the site grew past 5M monthly users. Launched sister sites ImageResizer.com and Pro-PDF.com.
Full Stack Engineer — Geometrid (Singapore)
Apr 2018 — Apr 2021Sole developer of a SaaS platform giving construction stakeholders real-time supply chain visibility — interactive 3D environments (Three.js, Autodesk Forge), QR-code element tracking, and reporting, on a Node.js + Vue.js stack.
Full-stack Developer — Solar SpeedRack, Inc.
Apr 2015 — Aug 2017Led development of an interactive Bill-of-Materials tool where users drew solar setups on a D3.js-powered canvas and got instant BOMs, live pricing, and one-click ordering.
PHP Developer — OS CLiCKS (Dhaka)
Jan 2014 — Jan 2015Built and shipped CodeIgniter web applications — authentication, data management, custom APIs — for a range of business clients.
Freelance Web Developer — UpWork (oDesk)
Nov 2011 — Dec 2013Completed 50+ projects for clients worldwide — WordPress and Joomla customization, responsive frontends, and custom PHP integrations. Where it all started.
03. Projects
Things I've built
★ Founder
ReadLoudly.com
Read & listen to PDFs like never before. Upload any document — PDF, EPUB, DOCX, even images — and hear it read aloud in 1200+ natural AI voices across 40+ languages. Synced text highlighting, bookmarks, notes, adjustable speed (0.5×–3×), an AI chat for your documents, and a full suite of PDF tools. Built for students, professionals, and anyone who'd rather listen.
Visit ReadLoudlyFreeConvert.com
Built the entire file-conversion platform from scratch — image resizer, GIF maker, PDF tools, MP3 cutter — and scaled it to 5M+ monthly users.
Paperturn Flipbook Engine
Re-architected a legacy PHP document generator into AWS Step Functions — flipbook generation dropped from 15 minutes to ~40 seconds.
Geometrid 3D Platform
Real-time construction supply-chain tracker with interactive 3D building models and QR-code element tracking — used on projects like airport glass panel installations.
Solar BOM Designer
Interactive canvas tool where users draw their solar panel layout and get an instant bill of materials with live pricing and integrated ordering.
ImageResizer & Pro-PDF
Launched sister products expanding the FreeConvert ecosystem — focused single-purpose tools that broadened the platform's reach.
gRPC Microservices Boilerplate
A comprehensive starter kit built at Turing that standardized how new microservices were spun up — consistent architecture, faster shipping.
04. Tech stack
Tools I work with
Frontend
- JavaScript
- React
- Next.js
- Vue.js
- Tailwind CSS
- WebSockets
- HTML5 Canvas
- Three.js
- D3.js
Backend
- PHP
- Laravel
- Node.js
- NestJS
- Express.js
- Python
- gRPC
- Microservices
- PostgreSQL
- MongoDB
- MySQL
- REST APIs
Cloud & DevOps
- AWS Lambda
- Step Functions
- App Runner
- Aurora Serverless
- Kubernetes
- Docker
- Bare-metal servers
- Prometheus
- Grafana
- ElastiCache
- CloudWatch
- GitHub Actions CI/CD
Mobile & more
- React Native
- Flutter
- AI-assisted development
- Autodesk Forge
- WordPress
- Performance tuning
- System design
05. Contact
Let's build something
Whether you want to talk engineering, products, ReadLoudly, or an opportunity — my inbox is always open. Say hi.