Jul – Sep 2026
incomingMicrosoft
Software Engineer Intern, AI/ML · Remote
Working on telemetry, statistics, and search quality for Azure Search.
C++PythonAzure Search
I study computer science, electrical engineering, and math.
I'm Peter Zhao, a student engineer at UW–Madison. Right now I'm at NVIDIA working on GPU simulation infrastructure, and later this year I'll be at Microsoft working on Azure Search. Last summer I was at Amazon.
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Work
May – Jul 2026
currentNVIDIA
Systems Software Engineering Intern · Santa Clara, CA
Building simulators so GPU systems can be tested without the hardware.
C++PythonGPU simulation
May – Aug 2025
Amazon
Software Development Engineer Intern · Seattle, WA
Built an AI pipeline that automated thumbnail localization across 15+ languages.
JavaAWS LambdaDynamoDBTypeScript
Sep 2024 – May 2025
Linectra
Founding Systems Software Engineer · Madison, WI
Firmware for a 480V power-control system at an early-stage startup.
Embedded C++STM32RS-485I2C
Sep 2024 – May 2025
Morgridge Institute for Research
Optimization Software Researcher · Madison, WI
Real-time synchronization of distributed sensors for neuroscience research.
PythonNumPyPandas
Projects
Battleship, Embedded
Nov 2025Multiplayer Battleship on hardware I designed the PCB for.
Multiplayer Battleship in C with modular, layered firmware: FSM-driven game logic, inter-device communication protocols, and real-time synchronization. PCB designed in Altium.
CFSMAltium
Segway Balance Control
Nov 2025A self-balancing Segway controller, running on real hardware.
Real-time balance control on real hardware: PID feedback, UART/SPI interfaces, and sensor-fusion logic implemented in Verilog and C.
VerilogCPID
ROT.AI
Nov 2024Predicts how long internet slang will survive, trained on 500K posts.
Forecasting engine for how long internet slang survives, using 500K+ Reddit, Quora, 4chan, and YouTube posts through PyTorch LSTM + Transformer models. 87% accuracy, Top 5 at Cheesehacks.
PyTorchLSTMTransformers
STAR Scholars Dev Lead
2023 – 2026Rebuilt the scholarship program's website with a team of four.
Led a 4-person team refactoring the STAR Scholarship site into modular React, with 40% faster page loads and responsive across devices. Mentoring included.
ReactLeadership
The arcade
I built a small arcade for this site, and each game runs in a different language in your browser. The map game's engine is Rust compiled to WebAssembly, the physics and math sims are written in C++, the board game Go is written in Go, and Snake is real Java bytecode running on a small JVM that I wrote for this site.
21 machines · pick one
Benchmarks
The same workload runs in each language so you can compare them.
Same function, three languages
the engine's haversine, hand-written in C++, Rust, and JS with the exact same math. C++ and Rust compile to bare wasm; JS doesn't. all three run 1,500,000 times in your browser, right now.
About
I grew up in rural Wisconsin, in a trailer park.
I worked at my parents' restaurant. I was one of the only Asian students in my school, got held back in kindergarten, and still ended up valedictorian of my high school.
I study three majors because the things I want to build need all three of them. GPU systems, firmware, and control systems all sit between computer science and electrical engineering.
Outside of school I like history, film, photography, grand strategy games, and hiking.
Education
University of Wisconsin–Madison
B.S. Computer Science, Electrical Engineering & Mathematics · May 2027
STAR & PEOPLE Scholar
What I work with
Languages
C/C++, Python, TypeScript, Java, Rust, Bash, MATLAB, R, Julia
Embedded & Systems
FPGA (Verilog/VHDL), STM32, ARM Cortex, I2C / SPI / RS-485, Raspberry Pi, Arduino
ML & Data
PyTorch, TensorFlow, NumPy, Pandas, SQL, OpenSearch
Tools
Git & GitHub, Docker, Linux, AWS (Lambda, CDK, DynamoDB), CI/CD pipelines, Altium Designer, React, VS Code
National parks, ranked
All 63 U.S. national parks.
I ranked all 63 national parks based on the ones I have visited and photos of the rest. You can drag a park to where you think it belongs.
S
YellowstoneYosemiteGlacierBlack Canyon of the GunnisonGrand CanyonGrand TetonTheodore Roosevelt
A
OlympicMount RainierRocky MountainBryce CanyonGreat Smoky MountainsDenaliSequoiaArchesCrater LakeAcadiaHawaiʻi VolcanoesKenai Fjords
B
CanyonlandsDeath ValleyJoshua TreeRedwoodShenandoahNorth CascadesBig BendBadlandsCapitol ReefKings CanyonHaleakalāKatmaiGlacier BayMesa VerdeWhite SandsGreat Sand Dunes
C
EvergladesMammoth CaveCarlsbad CavernsPetrified ForestSaguaroLassen VolcanicChannel IslandsPinnaclesNew River GorgeGreat BasinVoyageursIsle RoyaleWind CaveGuadalupe MountainsZionWrangell–St. EliasLake ClarkDry TortugasVirgin IslandsBiscayne
D
Gateway ArchIndiana DunesCuyahoga ValleyHot SpringsCongareeKobuk ValleyGates of the ArcticAmerican Samoa
drag a park to a different tier (or tap it, then tap a tier)
Watching
From Letterboxd.
Playing
From Steam.
By the numbers
Live data.
The restaurant
My parents run a Chinese restaurant.
It is called China Wok, and it is back home in Wisconsin. Working there taught me most of my work ethic, and it helped pay for school. If you are ever near Green Bay you should order the General Tso's.
4.7★ on Googlenear Green Bay, WI$10–20
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