Carl Gao 高世钦

Builder and founder. Frontend, design, and video.

Projects

carlgao.com

design + code
  • Personal site built as an interactive desktop: windows, a dock, a terminal, and a real-time 3D ASCII rendering of my name.
  • Plain HTML, CSS, and JavaScript with no framework or build step. Every folder and project has a shareable link, and it respects reduced motion.

tai

founder, design + build
  • A consumer app that helps people stop wasting time on their phone.

VaultBix

co-founder
  • Developer-security startup that kept API keys and passwords out of AI tools.
  • Shipped a CLI on npm that wraps Claude Code to catch secrets in real time, and an open-source Chrome extension with 33 detection patterns that runs 100% locally.
  • Cold-emailed engineers and founders; a YC founder's feedback moved us to a CLI.
  • Built with Next.js, Tailwind, shadcn/ui, Node, Chrome MV3, and Vercel.

YouTube

creator
  • Started a channel. First episode out October 2026, shot on GoPro and iPhone, edited in DaVinci Resolve. Next up: vlogs on building tai in public.

Education

Hopkinton High School

Hopkinton, MA

UC Berkeley Pre-College Scholars, CS Academy

  • Seven weeks on campus. Beauty and Joy of Computing in Snap!: higher-order functions, Markov chain text generators, a 2048 clone, and recursive drawings.

Leadership

Entrepreneurship club

founder

Volunteering, 120+ hours

food bank, and tutor at a Chinese school

Recognition

Hong Kong national ice hockey team

also played at a hockey academy

Art awards

  • Silver Key (regional), Scholastic Art & Writing Awards.
  • 2nd in Massachusetts, Art of Conservation Fish Art Contest.

Skills

code
TypeScript, React, Next.js, Tailwind, Node, Python, HTML, CSS, Canvas
video
DaVinci Resolve, GoPro, iPhone
into
Design, augmented reality, TouchDesigner, art, hockey