Andy Tarpley
Andy Tarpley's AT monogram

Software Engineer

I'm Andy Tarpley. For more than twenty years I've been turning “wouldn't it be cool if…” into software that works.

I'm deeply curious, and I get invested in the teams I'm on. I like practical problems, small working steps, and systems that stay simple to run, across backend services, cloud infrastructure on AWS, and full-stack web applications. These days I work AI-first: AI gives me speed and leverage, and experience decides what's worth building and whether it's right.

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Currently building BudgetBucks, in invite-only beta

About

Two things have stayed true through more than twenty years of writing software: I'm deeply curious, and I get invested in the teams I'm on.

Curiosity is what gets me started. I once wired a text message into an AWS Lambda function using nothing but free services, partly to see if I could and partly to show my kids what you can build once you start connecting the dots. The same itch has me chasing a race condition back to the double-submitted request that caused it, or sketching how pharmacies could be made to compete on prescription prices.

The team is what keeps me going. I care about the people I build with: demos early enough that nobody gets surprised, feedback that teaches rather than bulldozes, and making sure nobody stays stuck for long. When I join a new team I listen, take notes, and ask a lot of questions. Even after all these years I ask for help often, and I think that's a strength.

Outside of work I'm a husband and a dad, and I've been writing about the craft on Medium since 2019.

20+ years
building software professionally
Since 2019
writing about the craft on Medium
AI-first
with experience doing the steering

“If you've ever had the thought ‘Wouldn't it be cool if…’, I highly recommend chasing it down.”

From SMS to AWS: Personal Automation, 2025

Selected work

budgetbucks.app

Personal product Invite-only beta

BudgetBucks

A zero-based budgeting app that keeps up with you. Sort spending into simple folders; with real-time transactions (beta), card purchases land in your budget seconds after you pay, and simple rules file the regulars for you. Currently invite-only beta.

It's for people who want a clear plan for the month without spending an evening keeping it up to date.

Built AI-first. I set the direction, the product calls, and the architecture, and I reviewed and tested the work. AI agents handled much of the implementation.

Visit budgetbucks.app
The BudgetBucks landing page on desktop, headlined “BudgetBucks makes the right thing the easy thing.”
The BudgetBucks landing page on a phone.

  • Real-time purchases

    With real-time on (beta), card purchases land in your Inbox seconds after you pay.

  • Auto-file rules

    It learns your regular stores and offers to file them for you. Every auto-filed purchase says why, with one-tap undo.

  • Splits

    One purchase, several folders. Split a mixed shopping trip so each folder gets exactly its share.

  • Private by design

    No bank login. It only sees the purchase alerts you choose to forward.

What I bring

  • Product judgment

    Deciding what's worth building, what to leave out, and what the smallest useful version looks like.

  • Backend & distributed systems

    Services that stay correct under concurrency, with data models that hold up as products grow.

  • Cloud on AWS

    Pragmatic architectures built from managed services, kept simple to operate and inexpensive to run.

  • Full-stack web

    From the data model to the interface, with attention to how it feels on a phone.

  • Delivery & teams

    Iterative delivery, regular demos, and helping a team find a rhythm that works for everyone.

  • AI-leveraged development

    Using AI for speed and leverage while keeping the design, the review, and the quality bar in experienced hands.

What I'm like to work with

Curious
I want to know how things work and why they break. I'd rather learn the system than guess at it, so I ask a lot of questions.
Invested in the team
I care how the people around me are doing. I review generously, share what I learn, and count a teammate getting unblocked as a win.
Small, working steps
Get the simplest version working, lock it in, then add the next most important piece. Demo early and often.

Working with AI

AI is part of how I build every day. It drafts and implements quickly; I own the brief, the architecture, and the review, and I check the result against tests, real data, and the running product. Experience is what spots the plausible-looking mistake.

Writing

All articles on Medium

Contact

I'm always glad to talk about software, product ideas, or putting AI to work well. The best way to reach me is LinkedIn.