Why Your RAG Pipeline Needs a Re-Ranker

If your RAG pipeline returns chunks that are close to your question but not quite right, a re-ranker is probably the fix.

May 23 • Shaikh Quader

April 2026

How I Grew as a Technical Leader by Learning From My Mistakes Leading Major AI Projects at IBM Db2

The five lessons that came from leading AI projects from concept to delivery — and how they reshaped my technical leadership.

Apr 30 • Shaikh Quader

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I Spent One Hour Showing Engineering Students How to Use AI. This Is That Talk.

How I use AI to run a full-time role at IBM and a PhD at the same time, and the free AI tools every engineering student can start with today.

Apr 14 • Shaikh Quader

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1:00:31

I Joined IBM With No Personal Operating System. So I Built One.

For students stepping into their first engineering role, this is the roadmap I wish I had on day one at IBM.

Apr 7 • Shaikh Quader

The Step Most AI Portfolios Skip

If you are preparing for an AI role, you have likely built something solid. Here is what to add that shows you can think like a professional engineer.

Apr 3 • Shaikh Quader

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March 2026

How to build an AI portfolio project by extending someone else's tutorial

A step-by-step approach that produced three publishable assets from a single LangChain tutorial, and what engineering students can take from it.

Mar 31 • Shaikh Quader

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How to Benchmark Your Embedding API and Find the Batch Size That Maximizes Throughput

A practical guide to batch size tuning, throughput benchmarking, and the failures that only surface at production scale

Mar 15 • Shaikh Quader

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December 2025

My 2025 Conference Talks: What I Learned From 16 Sessions Across 4 Continents

Two hours before my Sydney talk in March, I was walking around the harbor - practicing my entire presentation out loud, without looking at slides.

Dec 16, 2025 • Shaikh Quader

Understanding Machine Learning Model Types

How to pick the right one for your task

Dec 12, 2025 • Shaikh Quader

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What It Actually Takes to Become an AI Product Architect — Part 1: Discovery to Specification

How experienced engineers can lead AI initiatives end-to-end

Dec 8, 2025 • Shaikh Quader

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From Java Developer to AI Architect at IBM

After 11 years of Java, I switched to AI. I did not have to start over as a junior.

Dec 5, 2025 • Shaikh Quader

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October 2025

Setting Up llama.cpp on macOS: What Actually Worked for Me

My Python 3.12 setup for Apple Silicon with text generation and embedding models

Oct 29, 2025 • Shaikh Quader

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