AHUITZ ROJAS, PHD
Researcher, Software Engineer & Full-Stack Data Scientist
Email: ahuitzrojas91@gmail.com
Supporting computational social science research and building data-driven products across platforms. Previously, built success metrics and experiments for Reddit Pro, developed international market insights, and led user studies that boosted engagement. Also, engineered scalable ETLs for Reddit Recap and optimized data pipelines for faster insights.
WORK
OPTIMIZING DATA PIPELINES FOR REDDIT RECAP
Engineered and optimized ETLs to ensure reliable and scalable data pipelines for Reddit’s yearly Recap event. Strengthened data integrity, improved processing efficiency, and enabled seamless delivery of personalized user insights at scale.
ROLE
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Data Engineering & Pipeline Optimization
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End-to-End Data Processing & Automation
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Scalability & Performance Optimization
User recaps
Community recaps
DEFINED SUCCESS METRICS FOR REDDIT PRO
Led the development of success metrics and experimentation frameworks for Reddit Pro, aligning cross-functional teams to measure impact and optimize growth strategies. Delivered data-driven insights that informed product decisions and improved user engagement.
ROLE
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Product Analytics & Experimentation
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Success Metrics & Performance Measurement
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Market Insights & User Research
OPTIMIZED AIRFLOW PERFORMANCE FOR SCALABILITY
Led the optimization of Airflow performance by modeling delays and enhancing DAG connectivity, driving scalability and efficiency across large-scale data pipelines. Collaborated with cross-functional teams to improve processing speed and reduce bottlenecks, enabling smoother workflows in complex environments.
ROLE
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Airflow Optimization & Performance Enhancement
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Delay Modeling & DAG Connectivity
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Scalability & Workflow Efficiency
PRESS
RESEARCH, TALKS AND GRANTS
My research bridges data science with social psychology, focusing on topics like weight stigma and its impact on physical activity. I also strive to share my findings with the academic and professional community through talks, workshops, and grant-funded projects.
HIGHLIGHTS
Speaker at Airflow Summit 2023 on optimizing Airflow performance in large organizations​
Keynote speaker on weight stigma at the I Coloquio Internacional de Práctica Clínica
Recipient of multiple grants, including the SPSP 2020 Diversity Travel Award and Travel Grants for Stanford Medicine X and ACAPS
Speaker at the European Health Psychology Society (EHPS) and 6th Annual Weight Stigma Conference
Research on weight stigma and physical activity across cultures (France and Mexico), published in International Journal of Sport and Exercise Psychology
Founder of The Stigma Gallery, a platform for analyzing weight-stigmatizing content using AI and machine learning
Conducted research on implicit and explicit weight stigma in exercise professionals, presented at multiple international conferences
Mentored emerging data scientists and researchers through pro-bono sessions and academic talks
Awarded the prestigious CONACYT International Scholarship for doctoral studies in cognitive science
Presented insights in 3 empirical research papers and 20+ presentations at scientific conferences across 15+ countries, in 3 languages
COLLABORATION
Effective collaboration is at the core of impactful work. I prioritize clear, strategic communication to drive results, align cross-functional teams, and translate complex insights into actionable decisions. Here’s what colleagues from my work in research, public health, and tech have said about my collaboration style and communication.
Jolene Mork, Ph.D.
Data Science Manager, Reddit
"Ahuitz always has a great can-do attitude, even during difficult projects, which makes him a pleasure to work with. He trained the rest of my DS team in how to create Airflow DAGs and deploy PRs in Reddit’s complex prod ecosystem, which increased output for my team and helped him scale his impact.
As an IC, Ahuitz has worked on a number of DE and DS projects, including: creating and QAing foundational data tables for analytics, improving robustness and alerting for data pipelines, defining success criteria for new product investments, and creating reporting to measure new product performance. Ahuitz is quick to respond when there are issues, and always does his best to ensure success for the team."
Henry Wong
Senior Data Scientist, Reddit
Ahuitz is a great addition to any data engineering or data science team. Not only was he able to dig deep and understand the details of the data engineering infrastructure, he was also able to teach and train others who were not as familiar. Ahuitz's work was also very proactive, creating many alerts and reporting that allowed to better identify issues at scale, rather than waiting until there was a widespread problem.
Sanjay Kairam, Ph.D.
Technical Staff, OpenAI
Ahuitz was an invaluable partner during my time at Reddit, helping me to navigate data engineering and infrastructure issues on several occasions. I often found myself referring others to Ahuitz when they had tricky problems to which they couldn't find solutions.
I was also happy to learn about Ahuitz's PhD research -- I think his data engineering skills combined with his prior work in understanding human motivation and behavior made him a really thoughtful and well-rounded scientist in the context of Reddit.