About Me
Gonzalo Peña-Castellanos
AI Engineer · Building next-gen developer tools on Jupyter & Open Source | Python · TypeScript · Go · MCP · Claude
I'm a Colombian software engineer with 11+ years of professional experience, and entrepreneur working in Python, TypeScript and open source development. I currently work as an AI Engineer at Backblaze. Previously, I worked at Datalayer building tools at the intersection of Jupyter, AI, and collaborative computing, at Quansight contributing to the scientific Python ecosystem, and at Anaconda as Technical Lead for Anaconda Navigator.
My career spans from water resources engineering (MSc from IHE Delft and Erasmus Mundus) to becoming a core contributor to major open source projects including Spyder IDE, JupyterLab, and napari, conda-forge among others. I've created over 400+ conda-forge recipes and led internationalization efforts for JupyterLab and automating efforts in the Scientific Python Tranlsations project.
I also co-founded Trepa, a climbing gym in Bogotá, Colombia, where I have developed tools to manage the business and community by automating workflows with AI. These include scraping workflows, chatbots, automatic review and messaging system, and Data Analysis, all to support the Business decissions.
I'm deeply committed to the Latin American Python and open source communities. I co-founded PyCon Colombia, helped organize SciPy Latam, and serve on the Python Software Foundation Grants Working Group.
I believe in making technology accessible across languages and borders, and I'm passionate about mentoring the next generation of developers in Latin America.
I have been a hobby climber since 2021 and a musician, playing keyboards, guitar and choruses with a local band.
Skills & Technologies
Languages
Frontend
Backend
AI
Documentation
Data Science
Automation & Scraping
Version Control
Testing
DevOps
Databases
Desktop
Spoken Languages
Work Experience
Senior Software Engineer / Open Source AI
Backblaze
Apr 2026 – Present · Remote
- • Implement and maintain open source AI integrations, frameworks and example applications using Python, TypeScript, Go, and Rust.
- • Build and maintain public sample applications, SDK extensions, notebooks, and reference implementations demonstrating AI and cloud storage best practices.
- • Use AI-assisted development tools, including Claude Code, to accelerate implementation while validating correctness, security, and performance.
- • Contribute to open source projects through code contributions, issue triage, reviews, and ongoing maintenance.
- • Ensure all open source assets meet high standards for testing, documentation, reproducibility, and developer usability.
- • Maintain clean, well-structured GitHub repositories intended for external adoption and community contribution.
- • Collaborate with Product and QA to ensure integrations reflect real customer AI workflows and Backblaze B2 usage patterns.
AI Engineer
Datalayer
Jul 2025 – Mar 2026 · Bogotá, Colombia · Remote
- • Built VSCode Datalayer Extension providing Local and Remote Jupyter Notebooks and Rich executable Lexical editors. AI Copilot integration and MCP tools.
- • Maintaining and extending jupyter-react, improving stability and developer experience for interactive Jupyter components in React.
- • Developed the jupyter-mimetypes package, enabling richer rendering of data in Jupyter-based environments.
- • Designed and implemented Python SDK and TypeScript SDK for seamless integration with Datalayer's platform.
CEO / CTO
Cumbre Labs
Jun 2025 – Present · Remote
- • Developed a Gym Management system (GymPlus) with features for class scheduling, member management, mailing campaigns, payment processing, Social AI chat (Instagram, WhatsApp, Facebook), Google Business automatic review replies, using FastAPI, Pydantic-AI and React.
Founder Business Associate / CEO & Software Engineer
Trepa: La Casa De La Escalada
May 2023 – Present · Bogotá, Colombia · Hybrid
- • AI-powered Google Maps review reply agent with review workflow and approval using GitHub issues.
- • Building of automation pipelines with GitHub Actions. Browser automation with Playwright.
- • Scraping geographic information for marketing campaigns targeting.
Senior Software Engineer I
Quansight
Apr 2019 – May 2025 · Remote
- • Led Spanish internationalization efforts for the Scientific Python project, coordinating sprints and automating workflows to make tools accessible to 500M+ Spanish speakers.
- • Core developer for JupyterLab, driving i18n/l10n and accessibility improvements for the next-generation web interface of Project Jupyter.
- • Contributed to the conda ecosystem as an active community member, supporting the development and maintenance of tools and specifications.
- • Enhanced napari by implementing robust configuration and settings management, improving usability for the imaging and scientific community.
- • Authored and maintained setup-miniconda, a widely used GitHub Action simplifying conda environment setup for CI/CD workflows.
- • Served on Quansight's Diversity, Ethics & Inclusion Committee.
Grants Workgroup
Python Software Foundation
Apr 2019 – Sep 2024 · Remote
- • Reviewed proposals to the PSF for grants in support of conferences, training workshops, and related projects.
Guest Lecturer
Universidad Industrial de Santander
Apr 2019 – Sep 2019 · Bucaramanga, Colombia
- • Taught undergraduate courses in Numerical Methods and Applied Statistics, with a focus on problem-solving for engineering applications.
- • Designed lectures, assignments, and practical exercises to strengthen students' analytical and computational skills.
- • Guided students in applying mathematical models and statistical tools to real-world civil engineering challenges.
Software Engineer
Anaconda, Inc.
Aug 2015 – Mar 2019 · Bucaramanga, Colombia · Remote
- • Technical Lead for Anaconda Navigator, a cross-platform desktop application built with Qt/PyQt for managing conda environments and packages.
- • Designed and implemented backend services for anaconda.org using Flask and MongoDB, supporting package publishing and collaboration.
- • Collaborated across product and engineering teams to deliver reliable tools that streamlined package management and improved developer productivity.
Project Engineer
Sistemas Hidráulicos y Sanitarios Ltda
Sep 2015 – Feb 2023 · Bucaramanga, Colombia · Remote
- • Hydrological and river modeling: Conducted data collection, simulation, and analysis to support hydraulic infrastructure projects and water resource management.
- • Systems & IT management: Provided technical support, administered company databases, and managed network and infrastructure operations.
- • Software & web development: Designed and implemented the company website using Django CMS, integrating technical content and client-facing features.
Special Programme
IHE Delft Institute for Water Education
Aug 2012 – Sep 2012 · Delft, Netherlands · Hybrid
- • Contributed to the ColTemprana project, focused on river modeling of the Cauca River in Colombia to improve early flood-warning and water management systems.
- • Migrated core river models from MIKE11 to HEC-RAS, ensuring compatibility and efficiency across platforms.
- • Developed Python-based automation scripts to streamline model conversion and reduce manual processing time.
Intern – Fluvial Modeling
DHI France
Mar 2010 – Aug 2010 · Nantes, France
- • Designed and implemented hydraulic models using MIKE 11, MIKE 21, and MIKE FLOOD for river and floodplain simulations.
- • Evaluated a real-time flood forecasting tool (MIKE FLOOD WATCH) for the Vilaine River Catchment.
- • Developed custom Python mapping tools to automate data visualization and support model analysis.
Systems Administrator
Sistemas Hidráulicos y Sanitarios Ltda
Sep 2008 – Jul 2015 · Bucaramanga, Colombia · Remote
Guest Lecturer
Universidad Industrial de Santander
2007 – 2008 · Bucaramanga, Colombia
- • Delivered lectures for the undergraduate course Applied Hydraulics I, covering core topics in fluid mechanics, open-channel flow, and water resources.
- • Designed class materials, problem sets, and real-world case studies to strengthen students' technical and applied understanding of hydraulics.
- • Mentored students in hydrology and hydraulic modeling, bridging theory with engineering practice.
Laboratory Assistant
Universidad Industrial de Santander
2003 · Bucaramanga, Colombia
- • Supported laboratory sessions for undergraduate students, guiding experiments in fluid dynamics and hydraulic systems.
- • Assisted in setting up, operating, and maintaining hydraulic lab equipment to ensure accurate results and safe practices.
- • Provided hands-on coaching to students in experimental methods and data interpretation.
Education
Deep Learning Specialization
DeepLearning.AI
· 2021-2022
Data Science
DataCamp
· 2021-2022
MSc in Sanitary Engineering
IHE Delft Institute for Water Education
Delft, Netherlands · 2008-2010
With Distinction
MSc Hydroinformatics and Water Management EUOAQUAE (Erasmus Mundus)
Université de Nice, France | University of Newcastle, UK | Brandenburg University of Technology, Cottbus, Germany
Europe · 2010-2012
Erasmus Mundus Scholarship BSc in Civil Engineering
Universidad Industrial de Santander (UIS)
Bucaramanga, Colombia · 2000-2006
1st Place ECAES National ExamCommunity & Leadership
Python Software Foundation
Grants Working Group Member
conda-forge
Core Contributor
conda-forge Recipes (2016-Present)
Python Colombia
Co-founder & Organizer
PyCon Colombia
Co-Organizer
PyCon Colombia (2026), PyCon Colombia (2019), PyCon Colombia (2018)
SciPy Latam
Organizer
Volunteer Online event (2021), Co-Organizer Bogotá, Colombia (2019)
Django Girls Colombia
Co-organizer & Mentor
Mentor Virtual Workshop 1 (2021), Mentor Virtual Workshop 2 (2021), Co-organizer DG Pasto, Colombia (2019), Co-organizer DG Bogotá, Colombia (2018), Co-organizer DG Ibagué, Colombia (2017), Co-organizer DG Bucaramanga, Colombia (2017)
Python en Español
Coordinator
Python Bucaramanga
Founder & Former Organizer
Awards & Honors
MSc with Distinction
IHE Delft Institute for Water Education · 2016
Erasmus Mundus Scholarship
European Commission · 2014
1st Place ECAES National Exam (Civil Engineering)
Colombian Ministry of Education · 2012
Recommendations
“Working with Gonzalo is like adding a high-powered engine to your development team. He immediately understands what you need, asks the right questions to refine your vision, and consistently goes beyond expectations. With deep expertise in Python, TypeScript and AI, Gonzalo not only delivers on requirements but also brings additional features and improvements you didn't even know you needed. And last but not least, Gonzalo is simply a great human being.”
CEO / Founder at Datalayer
“It has been a pleasure working with Gonzalo during our time at Quansight and collaborating with him on contributions to the PyTorch-Ignite project. What makes Gonzalo's contributions exceptional is the fact that he is not only solving the required tasks but also he is looking broader and helps improve the existing codebase. I strongly recommend Gonzalo to any team looking for a skilled, reliable, and collaborative senior engineer who consistently delivers high-quality results.”
Software Engineer - Deep Learning Frameworks
“I had the pleasure of working with Gonzalo on several software projects, including the early architecture and development of PySWMM. His attention to detail and strong technical instincts were instrumental in shaping the project's foundation. Gonzalo has what it takes to think deeply about design decisions while still moving efficiently toward implementation. Over the years, he's continued to be a trusted collaborator — always reliable, thoughtful, and a genuinely great developer. I'd highly recommend Gonzalo to any team looking for someone who brings both precision and creativity to their engineering work!”
Hydroinformatics Innovation Lead at HydroDigital, LLC
“It is with utmost pleasure that I recommend Mr. Gonzalo Peña. I came to know Mr. Peña as my student and his undergraduate final project supervisor in the Civil Engineering Department at the Industrial University of Santander, Colombia. As a student, Mr. Peña exhibited outstanding qualities. He was always very critical, eager to learn and to explore new ideas. He was always an easy person to get along with when participating in group tasks and he did not hesitate to take the lead when needed. He can also work effectively alone. Mr. Peña topped the National Board examination for Civil Engineers. I am positive that Mr. Peña will be an excellent addition to your group and research challenges.”
Research Assistant Professor at University of Illinois - UIUC
“Gonzalo has shown strong skills at river hydraulics and hydrology as well as at flood modelling (MIKEbyDHI software) and programming. Gonzalo is trustworthy and very efficient.”
COO @ D-ICE Engineering