Chief Technology Officer (CTO)
Khaled joined CanterVR as a Senior macOS Developer and was promoted to Chief Technology Officer within four months, recognizing his technical leadership capabilities. As CTO, he architected and built a complete four-component system spanning macOS desktop software, Unity-based VR mobile applications, a React/Next.js marketing website, and Firebase cloud infrastructure. He pioneered industry-first features including ARKit-powered spatial tracking in VR, mixed reality passthrough mode, and Bluetooth peripheral support. Leading teams that scaled from 2 to over 20 developers, Khaled established documentation practices, implemented Agile methodologies, and created modular architectures enabling efficient collaboration with rotating freelancers. The platform reached market-ready status and began receiving acquisition offers, validating five years of intensive research and development.
Why I Joined
The opportunity presented itself as what seemed like a straightforward contract role building macOS applications. The CEO quickly recognized Khaled's leadership potential during initial one-on-one meetings, leading to the unexpected but welcome transition into executive leadership.
- •Architected and developed a complete four-component technical ecosystem: Swift-based macOS desktop application, Unity/C# VR mobile apps for iOS and Android, React/Next.js web platform, and TypeScript Firebase backend services
- •Led technical teams scaling from 2 to over 20 developers, implementing modular architecture patterns that enabled efficient onboarding and management of rotating freelance contributors
- •Pioneered breakthrough VR features with no existing technical roadmap, including ARKit spatial tracking achieving sub-10ms latency and XR passthrough mode at 60 FPS
- •Established comprehensive documentation practices producing 46 UML diagrams and over 100 technical documents, creating institutional knowledge that multiplied team effectiveness
- •Made strategic technical decisions determining company direction, including the critical pivot from App Store distribution to direct DMG delivery when VNC SDK proved incompatible with sandbox requirements
- •Implemented Agile/Scrum methodologies and CI/CD pipelines across four distinct codebases, ensuring consistent quality and deployment practices
- •Designed thermal management solutions enabling sustained 60-minute VR sessions with triple 4K screen streaming, solving performance challenges unique to mobile VR hardware
- ✓Promoted from Senior macOS Developer to Chief Technology Officer within 4 months (July to November 2020), demonstrating rapid recognition of leadership capabilities
- ✓Built complete four-component technical platform from scratch over 5+ years: macOS Swift server, Unity VR mobile app, React/Next.js website, and Firebase TypeScript backend
- ✓Pioneered ARKit spatial tracking in VR with sub-10ms latency - a capability no competitor has achieved, providing 6DOF head movement tracking with customizable sensitivity
- ✓Implemented XR Passthrough Mode at 60 FPS for mixed reality viewing - a unique feature in the VR remote desktop market enabling users to see their physical environment
- ✓Created first VR remote desktop with Bluetooth keyboard/mouse support achieving sub-50ms end-to-end latency, solving the critical input problem for productivity VR applications
- ✓Designed Central Operation Manager (COM), a custom asynchronous queue system treating Unity as an enterprise platform rather than a game engine - an unprecedented architectural approach
- ✓Produced 46 comprehensive UML Mermaid diagrams documenting complete system architecture, enabling effective team scaling and knowledge transfer
- ✓Overcame RealVNC SDK and macOS App Sandbox incompatibility after 4 failed integration attempts, making the strategic decision to pivot to DMG distribution
- ✓Engineered thermal management solution enabling 60-minute sustained VR sessions with triple 4K screen streaming through multi-tier fallback and dynamic quality scaling
- ✓Led platform to market-ready status, now receiving acquisition offers before public launch - validating years of first-of-its-kind technical development
Technology Stack
Situation
CanterVR was attempting to create something that had never existed: a VR remote desktop platform that would allow users to access and control computers in virtual reality, using affordable mobile headsets rather than expensive professional equipment. The existing CTO was underperforming, and the company needed technical leadership capable of solving novel problems with no existing solutions to reference.
Task
Khaled was brought in initially as a Senior macOS Developer to build the desktop server component. However, the CEO quickly recognized broader leadership potential and tasked him with taking over complete technical direction of the company - architecting the entire multi-component system and leading teams of varying sizes through years of pioneering development.
Action
Khaled designed and built a comprehensive four-component architecture from scratch: a Swift/AppKit macOS application integrating RealVNC SDK, a Unity/C# mobile VR app for iOS and Android with custom ARKit integration, a React/Next.js marketing and management website, and a Firebase/TypeScript backend coordinating all services. He invented the Central Operation Manager (COM) to treat Unity as an enterprise platform, pioneered ARKit spatial tracking in VR achieving sub-10ms latency, and implemented XR passthrough mode at 60 FPS. When facing the critical challenge of RealVNC SDK incompatibility with macOS sandbox after four failed attempts, he made the strategic decision to pivot to DMG distribution. He established comprehensive documentation practices, created 46 UML diagrams, and implemented Agile/Scrum across all codebases. He managed teams scaling from 2 to over 20 developers, using modular architecture to enable effective collaboration with rotating freelancers.
Result
After five years of intensive development solving problems no one had solved before, the platform reached market-ready status and began receiving acquisition offers. The system delivers industry-first capabilities: ARKit spatial tracking (no competitor has this), XR passthrough mode (unique in the market), and Bluetooth peripheral support (first VR remote desktop to achieve this). The journey transformed Khaled from a developer expecting a quick contract into a battle-tested CTO with deep expertise in VR, Unity enterprise architecture, and technical leadership.
Size: 20 people
Structure: Dynamic teams with rotating freelancers working on isolated modules under centralized technical leadership
Reported to: CEO
Direct reports: 19
Skills Gained
Skills Deepened
- 💡Unity can be treated as an enterprise platform rather than just a game engine, requiring custom architectural patterns like the Central Operation Manager
- 💡VR development demands unique solutions for thermal management, user comfort, and sustained performance that have no existing patterns to follow
- 💡Documentation serves as a force multiplier, enabling team scaling and knowledge transfer even with rotating freelance contributors
- 💡System architecture must support modular development to enable parallel work by freelancers who may not understand the complete system
- 💡AI agents can augment development workflow, providing assistance for complex technical challenges and documentation
- 💡Being the only person who understands the complete system architecture creates isolation but also invaluable expertise