I'm Colin Taylor. After more than 25 years in software development and technology leadership, I created Futureproof Developer to share the insights I've gained and accelerate the growth of developers and teams.

I began my career in 1999, building e-commerce and financial applications in New Zealand and London. During the dot-com era, I gained extensive startup experience as a lead engineer before becoming the technical lead for IBM's UK National Lottery online subscriptions launch.

Returning to NZ, I co-founded Right Context, where we built an e-commerce SaaS platform powering millions in sales, including the NZ Herald's Newspix and Presspix services. After Right Context was acquired by SMX in 2009, I became VP of Development and later CTO, leading the architecture and operations of a global SaaS email security platform serving government and enterprise clients.

Spark NZ, the country's biggest telco, outsourced its business and Xtramail consumer platforms to SMX. To quote the marketing campaign, we "brought NZ'ers email home" after years of Yahoo Mail security compromises and outages. I designed the architecture for a new Service Provider platform, which was the first to successfully migrate off of Yahoo, and later adopted by several telcos in the US and Asia-Pacific region.

Spark NZ, the country's biggest telco, outsourced its business and Xtramail consumer platforms to SMX. To quote the marketing campaign, we "brought NZ'ers email home" after years of Yahoo Mail outages and security breaches. I designed the architecture for a new Service Provider platform, which was the first to successfully migrate off of Yahoo, and later adopted by several telcos in the US and Asia-Pacific region. The platform featured advanced threat detection systems, integrating AI classifiers to improve phishing detection and reduce false positives.

In early 2022, I began developing a course to help developers level up their technical skills and actively manage their careers. When AI emerged as a transformative force, my clients turned to me for research on AI workflows and integration opportunities. I spent over 1,000 hours researching AI frameworks, testing capabilities across different domains, and developing practical systems for effective AI collaboration. I'm currently working on a project to provide AI-driven insights and analysis on a large national dataset, leveraging multi-modal models to extract patterns from previously unstructured information.

SMX's success in government IT security (we protected the Ministry of Defence and Inland Revenue amongst many others) led to my involvement in cybercrime initiatives with the Ministry of Internal Affairs. I was responsible for reporting on the state of New Zealand's email security, analyzing billions of threat detections for trends and insights.

In 2021, I founded Colt Consulting (hire me as a Fractional CTO), working with teams across Australia, New Zealand, the US, and Southeast Asia, specializing in network security, media, advertising, data analytics, and financial services. As AI technologies advanced, I helped numerous clients implement AI-augmented workflows, integrate LLMs into existing products, and develop AI governance frameworks to ensure safe and responsible deployment.

In early 2022, I began developing a course to help developers level up their technical skills and actively manage their careers. When AI emerged as a transformative force, my clients turned to me for research on AI workflows and integration opportunities. I'm currently working on a project to provide AI-driven insights and analysis on a large national dataset.

Now in 2025, I'm excited to share my experience and insights with you through Futureproof Developer. I offer two courses, one for individual developers and another for teams.

Developer Level Up focuses on core software engineering excellence and career growth for individuals, equipping them with the skills to thrive in an evolving industry. It provides a structured path for mastering fundamental principles while engaging with a like-minded cohort.

AI Team Power Up provides teams with practical strategies for integrating AI into their development workflow and products, ensuring they stay competitive in an AI-driven landscape.

Both courses help developers and teams future-proof their careers and businesses through a research-backed, pragmatic approach to software development and AI adoption.