Latest Articles & Thoughts
Sharing my experiences and deep dives into backend architecture, distributed systems, and modern engineering practices.
The Man Behind the API: An Introduction (Finally)
So you've landed on my website. Maybe you were looking for something technical. Maybe a recruiter sent you here. Maybe you just clicked a link and now you're committed. Either way, welcome, I'm glad you're here, and I figured it's about time I introduced myself properly. Not just the resume version of me. The actual me. --- ## The Kid Who Wanted to Break Everything Let me take you back. I was in secondary school when someone showed me a computer for the first time. Normal kids probably thought "cool, games." I thought: *what is happening inside this thing?* I've always been that person. Phones, TVs, gas cookers, irons, if it does something I don't fully understand, I want to know what's going on behind the scenes. It's less curiosity, more compulsion. My brain simply refuses to accept "it just works" as a satisfying answer. So naturally, when I got my first laptop, I did what any completely reasonable person would do. I broke it. Not by accident either. It developed a fault, and instead of taking it to a repair shop like a sane human being, I thought, *I'll open it up and fix it myself.* Reader, I did not fix it. I made it significantly worse. I turned a repairable laptop into a very expensive paperweight. But here's the thing: I wasn't even that upset. I was *fascinated.* I had just seen what was inside. And that fascination never left. --- ## How Backend Engineering Became the Love of My Life When I got to tertiary school, I had to choose between two majors: network engineering and software engineering. I picked both, because apparently I enjoy suffering. Eventually I had to commit to one. Software engineering won, and the reason was APIs. I know, I know. Most people don't have an emotional origin story about APIs. But when I first understood that you could take raw data, manipulate it, store it, connect it to completely different services across the internet and have them talk to each other seamlessly, something clicked. It felt like magic with an instruction manual. And I've been chasing that feeling ever since. Backend engineering is perfect for me because it's all about what happens *behind the scenes.* The thing nobody sees. The thing that, when it works, nobody notices, and when it breaks, everyone notices immediately. It's thankless, high-stakes, and endlessly complex. I love it. --- ## The Flash Drive Incident of 20 Something Every engineer has a story they tell with a pained laugh at their own expense. This is mine. Early in my career at Superflux, I built a UI that I was genuinely proud of. We're talking *proud* proud. The kind of proud where you're mentally rehearsing how you'll present it to your engineering manager. You've already imagined his face lighting up. You've already accepted the imaginary applause. There was just one small problem. I hadn't pushed it to Bitbucket. It was sitting on a flash drive. Just vibing there. Completely safe. Nothing could possibly go wrong. I lost the flash drive before I got to work. And then, because the universe has a sense of humor, my laptop's drive also decided that was a good week to give up on life. The system engineer had to do a full reset. No recovery. No old files kept. Nothing. I had to walk in, sit down, and rebuild the whole thing from scratch with absolutely zero acknowledgment of what had just happened internally. I swallowed my shame so fast I barely tasted it. The lesson: **commit your code.** Push it. Push it again. Then push it one more time. Flash drives are not a deployment strategy. --- ## When I'm Not Writing Code Here's where it gets interesting. I am a food experimenter. Not a chef, an *experimenter.* There's a difference. A chef has training and technique. I have curiosity and confidence, which turns out to be an equally effective combination. I cook things I've never cooked before, combine ingredients based on vibes, and somehow *somehow* it always turns out well. I don't know why. I've stopped questioning it. The kitchen is my second terminal. I also have an opinion on football clubs despite not watching football. This confuses people. But here's my theory: you don't need to watch the matches to understand the culture, the history, the drama. Football is really just distributed systems with jerseys. There are nodes, there are failures, there are latency issues (looking at you, certain clubs' transfer windows). I can hold my own in any football conversation. I just can't tell you what happened last Saturday. And gadgets. Oh, gadgets. Not just any gadgets, *good* gadgets. If it's well engineered, satisfying to use, and solves a real problem elegantly, I want it. This is not a hobby. This is a lifestyle with a shopping cart. --- ## What I've Been Building These days I'm a Senior Backend Engineer with over 10 years of experience across fintech, Web3/DeFi, and AI-integrated systems. I've built infrastructure that serves millions of users, shipped production AI agents, and gone deep into agentic AI, including a live MCP (Model Context Protocol) server right here at mmolayemi.com, which lets AI assistants like Claude access real health intelligence tools directly. If you want the full technical picture, the rest of this site has you covered. --- ## One Thing I'd Tell My Younger Self You're going to want to quit. Many times. And honestly? You probably will, for a day, a week, maybe longer. That's okay. I'm not going to pretend I've been relentlessly driven every single day for ten years. I've given up on problems, on applications, on interviews, on nights where nothing compiled and nothing made sense. I gave up regularly. I just kept coming back. Persistence isn't the absence of quitting. It's the decision to come back after you do. And if you're just starting out: build something for yourself. Not because you need it for a portfolio. Not because someone told you to. Build it because one day you'll look at it and it'll remind you of who you were when you made it, and what you were capable of even then. It becomes a keepsake. It becomes proof. That means more than any interview result ever will. --- Anyway. That's me. I'm glad you stopped by. Look around, explore the MCP API if you're technically curious, and if you want to build something together, the contact form is right there. *— Michael*
AI Is No Longer the Future, It’s the Advantage
Artificial Intelligence is no longer something reserved for tech companies, sci-fi movies, or large corporations with massive budgets. It is already here, and it is quietly transforming how people live, work, buy, learn, and build. For the public, AI is becoming part of everyday life. For businesses, it is becoming one of the most powerful tools for growth, efficiency, and innovation. The real question is no longer “Will AI matter?” It is now “How quickly can we adapt and use it well?” AI for the Public: Making Everyday Life Smarter Most people are already using AI without even realizing it. When you get personalized recommendations on Netflix or Spotify, use Google Maps to avoid traffic, ask ChatGPT a question, or unlock your phone with facial recognition, AI is already working in the background. But beyond convenience, AI is opening up something even more important: access. AI is helping everyday people: Learn new skills faster Get instant help with writing, research, and problem-solving Automate repetitive tasks Improve productivity at school or work Access tools that once required specialists A student can now get help understanding difficult topics in minutes. A job seeker can improve their CV, write better applications, and prepare for interviews. A creator can generate ideas, captions, designs, and content faster than ever before. A small business owner can respond to customers, manage operations, and market their brand more effectively. In many ways, AI is becoming a personal assistant, tutor, strategist, and productivity partner all in one. AI for Businesses: From Optional Tool to Competitive Edge For businesses, AI is not just a trend, it is becoming a business multiplier. Companies that use AI effectively are not simply replacing manual work. They are improving decision-making, reducing wasted time, increasing customer satisfaction, and unlocking new revenue opportunities. AI can help businesses in areas such as: 1. Customer Support AI-powered chatbots and support systems can handle common questions instantly, reduce response times, and improve customer experience while allowing human teams to focus on more complex issues. 2. Sales and Marketing Businesses can use AI to: Write marketing copy Generate content ideas Personalize customer outreach Analyze customer behavior Improve advertising performance This means better communication, faster execution, and smarter targeting. 3. Operations and Workflow Automation Many businesses still lose hours every week to repetitive admin work. AI can automate: Data entry Reporting Scheduling Document generation Internal workflows Follow-ups and reminders That is not just efficiency, that is recovered time and reduced operational cost. 4. Smarter Decision-Making AI can process large amounts of information quickly and identify patterns humans might miss. Businesses can use this to: Forecast demand Understand customer trends Monitor performance Detect risks earlier Make faster, data-backed decisions 5. Product and Service Innovation AI is also helping businesses create entirely new experiences, products, and digital services. From recommendation engines to intelligent assistants, AI is making products more useful, more personalized, and more scalable. The Biggest Misunderstanding About AI One of the biggest myths about AI is that it is only for big companies or technical teams. That is no longer true. Today, even small and medium-sized businesses can use AI tools to improve how they work without needing a huge engineering department. The businesses that will win are not necessarily the biggest. They will be the ones that are fastest to understand where AI creates value. AI does not have to replace people. In fact, the most effective use of AI is often this: AI + Human Intelligence = Better Results AI is excellent at speed, pattern recognition, repetition, and assistance. Humans are still essential for: Judgment Creativity Context Emotional intelligence Strategy Trust The goal is not to remove people from the process. The goal is to make people more effective. That is where real transformation happens. What This Means Going Forward We are entering a time where AI literacy will matter just like digital literacy once did. The people who learn how to use AI well will have an advantage. The businesses that integrate AI intentionally will move faster and compete better. And the organizations that ignore it completely may find themselves falling behind. This does not mean adopting every new tool. It means understanding where AI can solve real problems. Because in the end, AI is not valuable simply because it is advanced. It is valuable because it can help people and businesses do more, do it better, and do it faster. Final Thought AI is no longer just a conversation about the future. It is a conversation about right now. For the public, it offers empowerment. For businesses, it offers scale. For both, it offers a new way to work, create, and grow. Those who embrace it thoughtfully will not just keep up with change — they will help shape what comes next.