Gokay

Gokay

Building Automation Systems for Science

Software engineer and scientist. I build hardware-software automation, control systems, and data pipelines that power modern scientific manufacturing.

About Me

I am a software and automation engineer with a PhD in science. My focus lies at the intersection of physical science, hardware control, and distributed software systems, building the core infrastructure that powers scientific manufacturing and automated laboratory R&D.

My work spans developing real-time instrument control software, designing high-throughput data pipelines, and integrating complex physical hardware into reliable, scalable production workflows.

$1.5M+
Annual Savings from AI Inspection
Saved via custom vision & YOLO defect detection systems
45X
CI/CD Efficiency Boost
GitHub Actions quota & pipeline optimization
100+
Instruments Integrated
Raw data streaming to S3 & Snowflake
100 TB
Data processed
Data amount processed through my pipelines

Technical Capabilities

Languages & Frameworks

PythonTypeScript/ReactSQLBash/LinuxVBA

Image Processing

PyTorchYOLOOpenCVComputer VisionObject Detection

Data & Infrastructure

SnowflakeAWSDockerPostgreSQLGitHub Actions CI/CDSentryTableau

Hardware & Lab Systems

SCADAIgnitionMotion Control SystemsRobotic Liquid Handlers

Experience & Key Achievements

10X Genomics10X Genomics

Senior Automation Engineer

10X GenomicsCurrent Position
2022 — Present
PythonYOLO / AIAWSSnowflakeIgnition
  • Designed and deployed computer vision inspection systems (custom YOLO classification, detection, and segmentation), eliminating manual inspection across multiple product lines and saving over $1.1M/year.
  • Architected an end-to-end data pipeline streaming raw instrument data from >100 devices via Box and EC2 into S3 and Snowflake for automated analytics and visualization.
  • Built hardware communication interfaces for power meters, cameras, wavefront sensors, actuators, and motion control systems.
  • Created an executable building and cross-platform distribution system for Python GUIs, incorporating Sentry error tracking and telemetry.
  • Optimized CI/CD pipelines via GitHub Actions, reducing storage costs and improving quota efficiency by 45X.
Emerald Cloud Lab

Scientific Infrastructure Engineer & Scientific Developer

Emerald Cloud Lab
2020 — 2022
Hardware ControlAutomated WorkflowsNIST/GLPPython
  • Resolved real-time hardware/software issues across >120 laboratory instruments, including synthesizers, HPLC, robotic handlers, mass spectrometers, and NMRs.
  • Engineered software interfaces to automate chemical/biological experiments, parameter calculations, data retrieval, and NIST/GLP verification testing.
  • Designed an internal root-cause tracking system to log laboratory hardware and software failure rates and resolution times.
Northwestern University

Graduate Research Assistant

Northwestern University
2013 — 2020
High-Throughput ScreeningMachine LearningNanomedicineSNAs
  • Led a team of 4 scientists to build a high-throughput synthesis and machine learning pipeline screening 3,000 spherical nucleic acid (SNA) constructs for cancer vaccines.
  • Managed research efforts across 7 laboratories that secured an $11.7 million NIH cancer nanotechnology center grant.
  • Coordinated pre-clinical studies for biocompatible SNAs targeting retinal disorders and ocular tissue barriers.

Patents & Publications

Patents

  • US-12702719-B2 — Hairpin-like oligonucleotide-conjugated spherical nucleic acid
    Mirkin, Chad A. et al. (2026-08-11)
  • US-20220010302-A1 — Addressing Nanomedicine Complexity Through Novel High-Throughput Screening and Machine Learning
    Mirkin, Chad A. et al. (2022-01-13)
  • US-20220175956-A1 — Hairpin-like oligonucleotide-conjugated spherical nucleic acid
    Mirkin, Chad A. et al. (2022-06-09)

Selected Publications

  • Hairpin-like siRNA-Based Spherical Nucleic Acids
    Vasher MK, Yamankurt G, Mirkin CA — Journal of the American Chemical Society (2022)
  • The effector mechanism of siRNA spherical nucleic acids
    Yamankurt G, Posedas DM, Stawicki RJ, Carthew RW, Mirkin CA — Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (2020)
  • Exploration of the Nanomedicine-Design Space with High-Throughput Screening and Machine Learning
    Yamankurt G*, Berns EJ*, Xue A, Lee A, Bagheri N, Mrksich M, Mirkin CA — Nature Biomedical Engineering (2019)
  • Rational Vaccinology with Spherical Nucleic Acids
    Wang S*, Qin L*, Yamankurt G, Skakuj K, Huang Z, Chen PC, Dominguez D, Lee A, Zhang B, Mirkin CA — Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (2019)

Education & Honors

Northwestern University
Ph.D. in Interdisciplinary Biological Sciences
Northwestern University
2020
Awarded Northwestern Outstanding Thesis Award (2020)
Kellogg School of Management, Northwestern University
Certificate in Management for Scientists & Engineers
Kellogg School of Management, Northwestern University
2017
University of Houston
B.S. in Chemistry & B.S. in Biochemical/Biophysical Sciences
University of Houston
2011

Honors & Awards