Shaun Esau
  • Edmonton, Canada · Remote
  • 20 years in software
  • Senior Developer, FUTR

Hi, I’m Shaun. I build software, and these days I lead the AI work behind it.

I’m a software developer and engineering lead with 20 years of experience shipping B2B and consumer products. Today I lead AI tooling and product development at FUTR, and I’m still hands-on with the fintech engineering behind it.

View my résumé Get in touch

I work full time at FUTR, so I take on only the occasional part-time consulting engagement, considered case by case. Tell me about your project.

Shaun in ski gear on a mountain summit, with snow-covered peaks behind him
Photo · Shaun Esau

What I do

20 years in, still the person who wants the hard problem.

  1. AI products & tooling

    At FUTR I built a real-time AI voice caller that now makes calls every day, and a multi-specialist assistant for financial advisors, with guardrails that keep what the AI says and does in bounds.

  2. Full-stack development

    I’ve been writing software since elementary school and I still love it. Web apps, data pipelines, integrations and infrastructure: bring me an idea and I’ll help build it, or a puzzle and I’ll find the answer.

  3. Light at the end of the tunnel

    Abandoned codebases, stalled migrations, “impossible” recoveries. I specialize in pulling struggling projects over the finish line on a budget that can sustain them.

  4. Remote by default

    Two decades of fully remote work with distributed teams and developers around the world. Clear writing, steady communication and no need to set aside an office.

Photo · Shaun Esau

Recently

Where I’ve been

From automotive market intelligence to consumer fintech, I’ve spent the last decade-plus owning the technology behind growing companies.

  1. 2026–Present FUTR Toronto-based fintech building AI-driven consumer finance products, which acquired Planswell’s financial planning platform.
  2. 2020–2026 Planswell Toronto-based fintech offering free, personalized financial plans connected to investment, insurance and mortgage services.
  3. 2012–2020 Custom Programs Inc. (InteliChek & Blitzify) Fully virtual company providing automotive-industry market intelligence to Fortune 100 clients across the US and Canada.
Full experience

Beyond the day job

You might know me from Kerbal Space Program.

My fan trailer Build Fly Dream went viral and was later the acknowledged inspiration for the KSP 2 announcement trailer, and I built Kerbal Multi Player, the first working multiplayer mod for the game.

More about me See my work

Let’s build something together

Hiring, or looking for part-time help with an AI initiative or a project that needs rescuing? I’d like to hear about it.

Get in touch shaun@sesau.ca