Software Engineering & AI Consultant

Consultancy in Software Engineering and Artificial Intelligence • PhD in AI for Software Engineering • Expert in Programming Languages • Research-Driven Solutions

Marco Edoardo Palma

About Me

I am a scientist in software systems, experienced software engineer, and PhD in Artificial Intelligence for Software Engineering, and I offer consultancy collaboration on cutting-edge research and practical industry applications. My expertise spans programming language design, compiler technology, distributed systems, and cloud infrastructure.

My research focuses on indeterministic program compilation, deep abstraction models, and novel interpreter technologies that achieve state-of-the-art performance in verifiable program execution. This work has been published in top-tier venues including ESEC/FSE and IEEE TSE, with multiple A* publications.

Beyond academia, I bring this research-driven approach to real-world problems through consultancy services. I've collaborated with leading platforms like LocalStack to develop AWS service emulators that outperform AWS's own offerings, and delivered comprehensive technical solutions for businesses ranging from holiday rentals to enterprise cloud infrastructure.

Currently working as a Scientist at Hitachi Energy, I continue to apply my expertise in software systems architecture, distributed systems, and AI for software engineering to solve complex technical challenges in the energy sector.

Research & AI Excellence

PhD in AI for Software Engineering with publications in top-tier venues. Expert in indeterministic compilation and deep abstraction models.

AWS & Cloud Expertise

Deep expertise in AWS services, custom emulator development, and cloud infrastructure. Contributed to LocalStack's core AWS service implementations.

Full-Stack Development

Proven track record in Python, Java, Kotlin, React, Haskell, ANTLR4, and full-stack development. Experience at JetBrains, and custom business solutions.

Infrastructure & Systems

Complete network infrastructure design, security systems, and business software development. From Wi-Fi networks to custom invoicing systems.

Education & Research

Education

PhD in Artificial Intelligence for Software Engineering

University of Zurich

09/2021 - 03/2025 • Zurich, Switzerland

BEng & MEng in Computer Science with Artificial Intelligence

University of Southampton

09/2017 - 09/2021 • Southampton, United Kingdom

GPA: First-Class Honours, 4.0

Selected Publications

Trustworthy Distributed Certification of Program Execution

A Wolf, ME Palma, P Salza, HC Gall

IEEE Transactions on Software Engineering, 2025

On-the-Fly Syntax Highlighting: Generalisation and Speed-Ups

ME Palma, A Wolf, P Salza, HC Gall

IEEE Transactions on Software Engineering, 2024

On-the-fly syntax highlighting using neural networks

ME Palma, P Salza, HC Gall

Proceedings of the 30th ACM Joint European Software Engineering Conference, 2022

Synthetic end-user testing: Modeling realistic agents based on behavioral examples

P Salza, ME Palma, HC Gall

arXiv preprint arXiv:2208.12261, 2022

Professional Experience

Scientist as an Industrial Researcher in Software Systems

Hitachi Energy

Current • Zurich, Switzerland

  • Working on software system architecture and distributed systems
  • Developing systems automation solutions for energy infrastructure
  • Researching and implementing AI for software engineering applications

PhD in Artificial Intelligence for Software Engineering

University of Zurich

09/2021 - 03/2025 • Zurich, Switzerland

  • Indeterministic Program Compilation & Deep Abstraction (Top-tier/A* Publications at ESEC/FSE 2022 & IEEE TSE 2024)
    • Researched into indeterministic compilation methods, enabling developers to focus on baseline implementations while statistical tooling automates constraint-driven execution
    • Pioneered the Deep Abstraction model that automatically transpiles programs into efficient statistical machines
  • Research in Programming Language Concepts (Top-tier/A* Publication at IEEE TSE 2025)
    • Introduced novel interpreter technology for efficient program execution, pioneering concepts such as the Halt&Resume approach and memvar
    • Achieved state-of-the-art performance gains in verifiable program execution by integrating interpreter technology into a distributed certification protocol

Software Developer (Intern)

JetBrains GmbH

06/2020 - 09/2020 • Munich, Germany

  • Developed a proprietary grammatical syntax highlighter capable of distinguishing correct and incorrect language derivations
  • Implemented UI rendering support for Jupyter Notebook files within JetBrains' team management tool, Space
  • Worked primarily with Kotlin and Kotlin/JS for frontend and backend development
  • Recognized for contributions with an offer for a full-time software developer position

Java Software Developer (Intern)

Akixi Ltd

06/2019 - 09/2019 • Crawley, United Kingdom

  • Full-stack contributions to a JavaEE web application for telephony services management and analytics
  • Notably responsible for the development of a novel ternary-tree data structure for fast computation of concurrent event peaks

Consultancy Services

I offer specialized consultancy services in Software Engineering and Artificial Intelligence, with extensive experience in AWS development, network infrastructure, and business solutions:

AI for Software Engineering

Leverage cutting-edge AI research to improve software development processes, from code analysis to automated testing.

AWS Development & Cloud Solutions

Expert AWS service development, including Lambda functions, StepFunctions, CloudFormation, and custom AWS service emulators for local development.

Network Infrastructure & Setup

Complete network installation and configuration, including distributed Wi-Fi systems, security camera networks, and local infrastructure management.

Business Website Development

Custom website development for businesses, including booking systems, property management interfaces, and professional business presentations.

Programming Language Design

Expert guidance on language design, compiler technology, and interpreter development for optimal performance.

Research-Driven Solutions

Apply state-of-the-art research findings to solve complex technical challenges in your organization.

Top Clients & Collaborations

LocalStack

Lead Platform for Local Cloud Development

Collaborated on multiple core AWS service emulators, delivering state-of-the-art implementations that outperform AWS's own local offerings.

AWS StepFunctions Service Emulator

First native implementation of an emulator for AWS StepFunctions service, now the top emulator available, outperforming AWS's own StepFunctions Local offering.

  • Built from the ground up as an interpreted language using ANTLR4 parser generator
  • Achieved state-of-the-art parity with the original AWS service
  • Delivered superior performance compared to AWS StepFunctions Local
AWS CloudFormation Engine Rewrite

Contributed to the rewrite and engineering of the AWS CloudFormation engine, helping LocalStack compute accurate template updates and deployments.

  • Increased accuracy of update computation and performance of updates dispatched per unit time
  • Achieved through novel tree representation of CFn templates with multiple versions
  • Implemented tree and updated tree data structures tracking template changes
  • Currently the best local emulator for AWS CFn templates development
LocalStack Lambda Debug Mode

Collaborated on developing the Lambda Debug Mode feature that enables local users to debug their AWS Lambda functions running in containers locally on their computer.

  • Enables full remote debugging with lifted timeouts for uninterrupted debugging sessions
  • Supports debugging single and multiple concurrent Lambda function invocations
  • Provides hot reload capabilities for immediate code changes without redeployment
  • Features step-through debugging in VS Code and other IDEs

Villa Poggio Ulivo

Holiday Home Rental Company

Developed comprehensive technical infrastructure and custom software solutions for a holiday home rental business, including network infrastructure, security systems, and business management tools.

Distributed Wi-Fi Network Infrastructure

Designed and implemented a complete distributed Wi-Fi network system for the property.

  • Individual connections for each apartment with dedicated bandwidth
  • Public Wi-Fi access throughout the property for guests
  • Network management and monitoring capabilities
Security Camera System & Management

Installed and configured local security camera setup with custom management interface.

  • Local security camera installation and configuration
  • Custom website interface for camera management and recording review
  • Local storage and management of security footage
Custom Invoicing System

Developed a tailored invoicing system to meet the unique requirements of the holiday rental business.

  • Java backend with React frontend architecture
  • Local deployment on property computers
  • Customized to fit specific business requirements and workflows
Business Website Development

Collaborated on the development of their professional business website.

  • Custom website showcasing property amenities and booking information
  • Integration with booking platforms and property management
  • Professional presentation of holiday rental services

Ready to Discuss Your Project?

Let's Explore Custom Solutions Together

These are just a few examples of the diverse technical solutions I've developed for clients. I've worked on many other projects spanning different industries and technologies.

Interested in learning more?
  • Custom software development for your business needs
  • AI and machine learning integration
  • Cloud infrastructure and AWS solutions
  • Network and security system design
  • Full-stack web applications

Reach out to discuss how I can help bring your technical vision to life!

Get In Touch

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