Muhammad Shafqat Ashraf
Embedded Firmware & Edge AI Engineer
I help product teams build, debug, optimize, and productionize connected embedded systems — from MCU firmware and RTOS architecture to DSP, Edge AI, BLE, and cellular connectivity.
Featured Case Study
Real-Time Edge AI Vibration Anomaly Detection
System Workflow:
• Signal Processing: Vibration signal filtered, windowed, and
transformed via FFT for spectral analysis.
• Feature Extraction: Seven engineered vibration features computed
per window.
• On-Device Inference: A compact 7-16-3 MLP, quantized to INT8,
classifies machine condition.
• Validation: Cross-language golden-vector testing keeps the Python
reference and embedded C implementation in agreement.
How I Approach Firmware
Principles that shape how I design and deliver embedded systems.
Fault-Aware Architecture
Designing firmware with deliberate fault handling — watchdogs, defined recovery paths, and deterministic state machines — so failure modes are anticipated instead of discovered in the field.
Resource-Conscious Optimization
Profiling memory, power, and CPU budgets on constrained microcontrollers before optimizing — so effort goes toward changes that actually move the numbers.
Maintainable Architecture
Modular drivers, clear interfaces, and documented decisions, so the firmware I hand off can be extended and maintained by your team, not just by me.
What I Can Build For You
Engineering support across the firmware stack — from a new product's first line of code to a production system that's misbehaving.
Embedded Firmware Development
Modular C/C++ firmware for ARM Cortex-M and connected embedded products — drivers, RTOS architecture, state machines, peripherals, and communication interfaces.
Firmware Debugging & Rescue
Diagnosing firmware crashes, timing issues, peripheral failures, communication problems, memory constraints, and difficult integration bugs.
Embedded AI & DSP
DSP pipelines, FFT processing, feature extraction, anomaly detection, and lightweight ML inference for resource-constrained devices.
Hardware Bring-up & Integration
Firmware/hardware integration, peripheral validation, board bring-up, and system-level debugging.
Connectivity & IoT
BLE, cellular, MQTT, CAN, UART, SPI, and I2C communication layers for connected embedded products.
Optimization & Production Readiness
Improving memory usage, execution efficiency, deterministic behavior, fault handling, and testability ahead of production.
Hardware & Software Arsenal
Tap any domain for a full engineering specification.
Firmware Engineering
Low-level driver development (UART, SPI, I2C), memory optimization, and board bring-up for ARM Cortex-M and nRF series.
RTOS & Multitasking
Zephyr RTOS task scheduling, interrupt handling, and inter-task communication for multi-threaded embedded applications.
Connectivity & Cellular IoT
NB-IoT and BLE connectivity, secure inter-MCU authentication, and cloud device-management integration.
Embedded AI & TinyML
On-device feature extraction and quantized model inference for sensor-driven embedded products.
DSP & Communication
Digital Signal Processing fundamentals, FFT spectral analysis, digital filtering, and PSK/FSK modulation — with a focus on SDR and SATCOM signal processing.
How I Work With Engineering Teams
I don't treat embedded work as an isolated coding task — each step is built to plug cleanly into your existing hardware, firmware, and product workflow.
Understand
Requirements, hardware constraints, existing architecture, and the specific problem you're trying to solve.
Plan
Firmware architecture, interfaces, risks, and deliverables — agreed before code gets written.
Build
Firmware, drivers, RTOS components, DSP, connectivity, or Edge AI — implemented against the plan.
Validate
Testing, debugging, integration checks, and resource analysis before anything is called done.
Deliver
Clean source code, documentation, and validation results your team can pick up directly.
Support
Available for maintenance, optimization, and follow-on work as the product evolves.
Built to Work With Your Team
I don't treat embedded development as an isolated coding task. I work across firmware, hardware, AI, connectivity, testing, and documentation so that the subsystem I deliver integrates cleanly with the rest of your product.
Ways to Work Together
Project-Based Development
Build a defined firmware feature, subsystem, prototype, or communication layer.
Firmware Debugging & Optimization
Investigate difficult existing firmware and performance problems.
Embedded AI Integration
Develop and optimize DSP/ML pipelines for embedded devices.
Engineering Team Collaboration
Work alongside an existing firmware, hardware, AI, or product engineering team.
Long-Term Firmware Support
Maintenance, optimization, integration, and future product development.
Technical Stack
What I work with directly, day to day.
Embedded Firmware
RTOS & Systems
DSP & Edge AI
Connectivity
Engineering Tools
Additional Experience
Professional Background
I am an Electrical Engineer working at the intersection of embedded systems, firmware, and Digital Signal Processing. My hands-on experience spans ARM Cortex-M platforms, real-time firmware development on Zephyr RTOS, and embedded communication protocols — bridging embedded systems and real-time data processing.
Alongside formal engineering roles, I've run a freelance embedded firmware and electrical engineering practice since 2021 — working directly with clients on Upwork and Fiverr and delivering 30+ projects without an agency in between.
Beyond writing firmware, I care about how a subsystem fits into the rest of a product: clear interfaces, documented decisions, and code a team can maintain after I hand it off. I have a growing focus on DSP algorithm development and communication systems, with a strong personal interest in SDR and SATCOM platforms.
Reusable Foundations
Building modular HAL and RTOS abstractions that shorten iteration time on the next feature instead of being thrown away after one project.
Deliberate Fault Handling
Designing watchdog supervision and deterministic task scheduling so failure modes are handled on purpose, not discovered after deployment.
Practical Edge AI
Adding on-device intelligence with quantized TinyML models sized to fit existing hardware, rather than defaulting to a hardware upgrade.
4+
Years Engineering Experience
30+
Freelance Projects Delivered
Work Experience
Embedded Firmware Engineer
Techanzy Limited - Lahore, Pakistan
- Developed real-time embedded firmware in C/C++ for ARM Cortex-M platforms (nRF52 DK, nRF9160).
- Designed and implemented Zephyr RTOS-based applications including task scheduling, interrupt handling, and inter-task communication.
- Developed low-level peripheral drivers (UART, SPI, I2C, GPIO, ADC).
- Implemented secure UART-based authentication protocol between ESP32 and nRF platform to ensure data privacy and device validation.
- Integrated BLE and NB-IoT communication stacks for IoT connectivity.
- Performed board bring-up, firmware debugging, and hardware validation using J-Link debugger and lab instrumentation.
- Optimized firmware for power efficiency in IoT applications.
- Maintained version control using Git.
AI Systems Deployment Engineer (Embedded + Edge AI)
Techanzy Limited
- Deployed AI voice agents using ElevenLabs API integrated with Raspberry Pi 4.
- Designed physical AI interaction system combining embedded hardware with cloud-based voice AI.
- Implemented secure communication between edge device and AI processing module.
- Managed full system deployment including configuration, testing, and client demonstration.
- Ensured stable real-time voice response performance.
Process Engineer
Xiaomi Mi Technology - Lahore, Pakistan
- Supported embedded hardware testing, PCB validation, and electronic system troubleshooting.
- Assisted in firmware bring-up activities and peripheral-level validation.
- Prepared technical documentation, feasibility notes, and system improvement reports.
- Coordinated with cross-functional teams for smooth technical operations.
Electrical Engineer (Manufacturing Excellence)
Challenge Apparels Limited - Lahore, Pakistan
- Coordinated cross-functional engineering teams to optimize manufacturing processes, technical workflows, and system efficiency.
- Performed system-level analysis and troubleshooting to identify bottlenecks and support continuous process optimization.
- Developed and maintained technical, process, and compliance documentation aligned with operational and quality standards.
Freelance Embedded Firmware & Electrical Engineer
Upwork & Fiverr - Remote, Direct Clients
- Delivered 30+ freelance embedded firmware and electrical engineering projects for direct clients via Upwork and Fiverr.
- Managed the full client relationship directly — scoping, delivery, and communication — without an agency in between.
- Applied the same embedded firmware and electrical engineering skill set described throughout this site across a range of client problems.
Smart IoT Monitoring System
Low-power industrial telemetry via NB-IoT & Zephyr RTOS.
Read the write-upSecure Multi-MCU Smart Access
Multi-MCU access-control platform with an authenticated protocol, validated with fault injection and fuzzing.
Smart Foot Analytics
Gait analysis research prototype: FSR sensing, real-time firmware, and on-device ML.
Read the write-up
The AEyes Assistive AI
Deploying conversational AI agents into physical hardware nodes.
Have a Firmware Problem to Solve?
Whether it's a new product's firmware architecture or a bug in an existing one, I can help you work through it.
Discuss Your ProjectWho I Work Best With
Hardware Startups
Building their first embedded product.
Product Engineering Teams
Needing additional firmware expertise.
IoT Companies
Developing connected devices.
Industrial Teams
Working with sensing, control, or connectivity.
R&D Teams
Exploring DSP and embedded intelligence.
Education
Bachelor of Electrical Engineering
University of Engineering and Technology Lahore
2020 - 2024Intermediate (Pre-Engineering)
Punjab Daanish Boys School DG Khan
2018 - 2019Language Proficiency
English
Professional working proficiencyUrdu
Native proficiencyChinese
Beginner levelStart a Technical Discussion
Have an embedded product that needs firmware, optimization, connectivity, DSP, or Edge AI? Tell me what you're building, where you're stuck, and what platform you're using.
Direct Communication
I'm open to new projects, contract work, and technical collaborations. Expect a response within 24 hours.