Fezekile Xalaba
Fezekile Xalaba

AI/ML Engineer and Software Engineer

Open to offers · Member since 19 Oct 2026
Location
Kempton Park, South Africa
Desired salary
Unspecified
Work preference
Hybrid
Experience level
Mid

About

Professional summary

I am an AI/ML Engineer and Software Engineer with hands-on experience designing, developing, and deploying AI-powered applications and production software systems. I build solutions spanning data preprocessing, model training, API development, deployment, monitoring, and cloud integration.

I specialize in machine learning, generative AI, large language models, retrieval-augmented generation, NLP, AI agents, prompt engineering, and model deployment. I have worked with frameworks and platforms including Python, FastAPI, Flask, TensorFlow, PyTorch, Scikit-learn, IBM watsonx.ai, Google Gemini, and OpenAI APIs.

I bring a strong software engineering background across backend development, REST APIs, databases, mobile applications, distributed systems, and cloud-native architectures. I enjoy translating business requirements into scalable, production-ready intelligent applications.

My experience includes developing AI chatbots, identity-verification workflows, machine learning classification and recommendation systems, content-prioritization models, and RAG-based knowledge assistants. I apply disciplined validation, feature engineering, model evaluation, monitoring, and human-review processes to build reliable ML systems.

I have experience working with AWS, Azure, Google Cloud, IBM Cloud, Docker, CI/CD pipelines, relational and NoSQL databases, vector databases, and MLOps workflows. I am motivated by building practical AI products, intelligent automation, and high-quality software that delivers measurable value.

Skills

39 capabilities

Tech stack & tools

Working toolkit

Experience

Career history

Software & AI/ML Engineer Introteq Pty Ltd

I designed and developed end-to-end AI and software solutions, including data preprocessing pipelines, model-training workflows, deployment APIs, and production monitoring systems. I built machine learning models for classification, prediction, recommendation, and automation using Python, TensorFlow, PyTorch, and Scikit-learn.

I developed and deployed AI-powered chatbots using Google Gemini for natural-language interaction, customer-support automation, and information retrieval. I also implemented AI-driven identity-verification functionality using selfie-to-profile image matching to improve user authenticity and trust.

I maintained scalable RESTful AI inference services with FastAPI and Flask, integrated LLM capabilities through API-driven architectures and prompt engineering, and managed application persistence with PostgreSQL, Redis, and cloud services. I collaborated with cross-functional teams on AI product features, model evaluation, performance tracking, and production-drift monitoring.

Machine Learning Engineer Intern FlyRank AI

I built an end-to-end content-refresh prioritization system using production-scale search data and a Random Forest model to identify content that could require refreshing. I developed a human-reviewed action playbook using reason codes such as STALE_CONTENT, STRIKING_DISTANCE, and LOW_CTR_HIGH_VIS.

I designed and evaluated a grouped-client validation strategy that exposed a generalization gap between random and client-grouped evaluation. I conducted feature-leakage and validation audits to separate genuine model performance from client-specific memorization.

I documented human-review rules, no-go cases, monitoring triggers, retraining criteria, limitations, and reproducibility artifacts in an academic-style ML research paper. The project positioned the model as decision support rather than an autonomous content scheduler.

Machine Learning Engineer Intern Coding Atom

I developed machine learning solutions as part of an industry-focused internship. I applied data preprocessing, exploratory data analysis, feature engineering, model development, and model evaluation practices.

I built and evaluated practical ML models with Python, Pandas, NumPy, and Scikit-learn. I worked across the machine learning lifecycle, from dataset preparation through training, optimization, and evaluation.

Artificial Intelligence Engineer Intern Decode Labs

I developed AI and machine learning solutions during an industry-focused Artificial Intelligence Engineering internship. I built a rule-based conversational AI chatbot in Python with intent recognition, decision logic, date and time processing, conversational handling, and chat-history persistence.

I developed an end-to-end supervised classification pipeline for e-commerce order-status prediction. The workflow covered preprocessing, missing-value handling, categorical encoding, feature preparation, train/test splitting, and model serialization.

I trained and compared Logistic Regression and Random Forest models using Scikit-learn, evaluating them through accuracy measures, classification reports, and confusion matrices. I used Pandas, NumPy, Joblib, Matplotlib, and Seaborn for analysis, development, evaluation, and visualization.

Generative AI Developer (Job Simulation) BCG (via Forage)

I completed a Generative AI consulting job simulation focused on developing an AI-powered financial assistant for a global consulting use case. I built a financial chatbot capable of interpreting company financial reports, including 10-K and 10-Q filings, and generating user-friendly insights.

I used Python and Pandas for financial-data processing, transformation, and analysis. I also developed Django backend components to provide personalized financial insights and user-specific data views.

Education

Learning history

Goldfields TVET College

Engineering & Related Design (NCV), Engineering and Related Design

Completed an NCV qualification in Engineering and Related Design.

South-Eastern Finland University of Applied Sciences

Introduction to Video Games Creation (IVGC), Video Games Creation

Completed studies in introductory video game creation.

This professional hasn’t added portfolio projects yet.

This professional hasn’t listed any services yet.

Jobs Talent AI Tools Salaries
Menu