About

I’m Joe Curlee, a Denver-based software engineer and the owner of Capsize LLC. Through Capsize, I build desktop applications, web systems, developer tools, and games.

How I work

I like taking a product from a rough idea to something people can use: deciding how it should work, writing and testing it, then keeping it useful after release. My professional work has included healthcare data systems, e-commerce integrations, analytics, and internal tools. I have worked as both an individual contributor and an engineering lead.

Independent projects are where I combine programming with interface design and visual work. Graphic design coursework still informs how I approach an application’s shape, its interface, and the details that make it feel finished.

Selected projects

The projects below are a good cross-section of the work I do independently.

AI Runner

A desktop application for local AI art and conversation workflows.

See the project

Cowboy Casino

A retro-styled game made end to end, from programming and UI to art, music, sound, and release work.

See the project

Systems and tooling

Current work ranges from developer tools and neural-network research software to a C++ game engine.

See the projects

For more detail, browse my projects, experience, skills, and writing.

Writing

I also publish fiction and essays. The writing section currently includes Endless Silence, a short story, and The Consciousness Gradient, an essay on consciousness and intelligence.

Endless Silence

A short story about autonomous systems at work after the people who made them are gone.

Read on this site

The Consciousness Gradient

An essay on consciousness, qualia, integration, and intelligence.

Read on Zenodo