7 Questions with Daniel Radev, 15toGO’s iOS Lead Developer
Daniel is an experienced Software Developer with more than 35 years of track record, having gained substantial expertise in iOS, Software management and robotics over the years.
Check his LinkedIn profile
1. What is your background and why did you join 15toGO?
I actually have 35 years experience in software development, my entire life has revolved around writing software. I created my first program in 1984… honestly, I still cannot believe it’s been that long ago. The first computer I operated on was a basic Pravetz 82, a communist’s copy of Apple II and the most sophisticated tech we had an access to (my phone today is tens of thousands of times more powerful). Back then, our access to technologies was restricted, so the regime would just steal them from the West and replicate them.
Since this ancient machine, I’ve come a long way. Throughout the years I’ve worked on virtually everything — Windows, Linux, iOS… Due to my background, I have been invited to be a speaker in the past at some notable tech conferences, such as MobCon Europe, VarnaConf and Droidcon Bucharest. In the meantime, I was also invited to be a mentor to the teams of Eleven Accelerator Venture Fund programme, which was a great honor to me and a chance to meet many young bright people!
As for the second part of your question, the reason is quite simple. The people in the project were the main factor for me because they made a great impression on me. I was convinced after only two conversations with Peter Lozanov (the CEO). The tech changes, it always does, but the people are the most fascinating part of every company — and of life in general.
2. What is your role in the 15toGO team?
I am involved in writing the mobile app for iOS. I also play the CHO or the Chief Hater Officer (Laughing). This is the person who expresses his doubts about every single solution that needs to be considered, about the order of executing them and the timeframes. Every team needs someone like this, who speaks out his mind. Having been in contact with people with all types of background throughout the years has helped me become constructively critical and I am trying to contribute to the project with that experience of mine as much as I can.
3. What gets you most excited about the project?
As a tech guy, I’d definitely say the blockchain and the smart contracts. They can lead to something unbelievably meaningful for the end-users and the service providers. It’s truly a fascinating technology — the rest of the platform development is something that others before us have done and will be doing. Exploring new paths is always enthralling.
Another thing that excites me when it comes to 15toGO is the fact that we will be including later on, in a few months, machine learning, user behaviour analytics — technologies that can benefit all the users of the platform.
4. Where do you see the project in the next few years?
This is the most difficult question of all. I’d say the most optimistic scenario would be obtaining 50 million active users. Hiring 25 developers for each platform. Another 25 for the machine learning as well. And from there on we can keep on expanding. At the end, who knows, we may get to buy Booking.com (Laughing).
Realistically speaking, I expect between 100 and 150 thousand users within the next 2–3 years, who help us sustain the business. Peter Lozanov is way more optimistic when it comes to this and maybe he’s right.
5. Which do you think are the main challenges that the project and the team will face?
First of all, the deadlines. We are trying to accomplish a lot of tasks in a very short amount of time. To create something of great quality we need a lot of time. So, in order for us to manage with the deadlines, we will be facing a lot of sleepless nights.
The second aspect of such a project that should not be neglected even one bit is security. There are malicious parties who will try to encounter a weakness in our system. They always do, but that’s especially true when money is involved. There will be multiple attempts to hack us. In fact, they are already unsuccessfully trying to do so.
The third challenge that I need to mention would be scalability — it’s one thing to have 1000 users, another thing 100 000 and 50 million users is a whole different story. We’d need to adjust to the changes quickly and constantly if we want to always offer the best possible product and services with the help of the most scalable blockchain solutions and robust infrastructure out there.
6. How would you describe the atmosphere around 15toGO?
Optimistic (Laughing). There are people on the team who have known each other for a really long time and have established great relationships. There is a lot of friendliness, which is intertwined with a professional attitude and a lack of the suffocating corporate feeling. We are a startup after all and our mindset needs to be completely different. In this sense, the way of working is quite distinct. In a corporation, there are a lot more strictly defined structures. We need to be a lot more wary of what everyone is doing and help each other with the tasks when needed.
7. Tell us one interesting thing about yourself?
My first startup, I didn’t even know that it was called startup at the time, was in 1988 and I initiated it with a friend of mine. Back then there wasn’t even any world wide web. With the help of a computer and a printer we were issuing a numerology horoscope and we were earning 20 levs (the official Bulgarian currency) per day, which is equal to 1000€ today! This venture existed for one summer, but the profit from it was astronomical (pun intended)! The funny thing is that even though I was making money, it was difficult to purchase my own personal computer because they were not sold back then. The Party would decide where and how to distribute them. It took me another 4 years until I had the opportunity to actually buy one.
