Thomas Makkink

Thomas Makkink has a diverse work experience in various technical roles. In 2018, they worked as a Penetration Tester at MWR InfoSecurity. Later that year, they interned at SilverStag Consulting as a Software Developer, focusing on mobile application and web development. In 2018, they also represented Rhodes University at the SANReN cyber security competition. In 2019, Thomas worked part-time as a Software Engineer at ThoughtExpress, where they gained experience in full-stack web development and cross-platform application development. Thomas also made architecture design decisions and gained DevOps experience. In 2020, they continued their journey at InstaDeep Ltd as a Research Engineer, where they investigated the role of transformers and attention architectures in reinforcement learning and conducted research on multi-agent AI systems. Currently, Thomas continues their work at InstaDeep Ltd as a Research Engineer.

Thomas Makkink pursued their education with a focus on computer science and artificial intelligence. Thomas first attended Rhodes University from 2015 to 2018, where they earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in Journalism and Computer Science. Their performance in this program was outstanding, as they received a distinction for their achievements. In 2019, Makkink continued their studies at the University of Cape Town, obtaining a Bachelor of Science Honors degree in Computer Science. Lastly, from 2020 to 2021, they pursued a Master of Science degree in Artificial Intelligence at the University of Cape Town.