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Hello, I'm Rhishikesh

Two decades in engineering. Four years building ventures. One growing body of writing that connects the two.

I'm currently an Audio Team Lead at Joynext in Dresden, Germany, where I work on the technology that shapes how a car sounds and listens — acoustic echo cancellation and active noise cancellation (via Cerence), DSP tuning, equalizer and fader systems, early audio for parking assistance, microphone arrays, and in-vehicle infotainment integration on modern automotive DSP platforms.

Over 20+ years in embedded systems and automotive audio engineering, I've learned that the hardest problems are rarely purely technical — they're about which capabilities to build in-house, which to license, and which partner can get you there faster than you could alone. That question sits behind almost everything I write here.

Embedded Systems Automotive Audio AEC / ANC DSP Tuning IVI Integration
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Beyond the Day Job

Building, inventing, and writing on the side

Alongside my engineering career, I've spent four years building ventures of my own — exploring ideas across consumer utility, stock market analysis, and automotive domains. That entrepreneurial streak has also produced five filed patents, with two more currently in progress.

I'm also a published science-fiction author. My first novel, Snippets of Tomorrow, is available on Amazon, and I'm currently working on the follow-up. Writing fiction and writing business analysis turn out to draw on the same muscle: taking a complex system and making it legible to someone who wasn't in the room when it was built.

Why I Write

The thesis behind this site

Most companies overestimate what they can build alone, and underestimate what a well-structured partnership can unlock. I write for the executives and founders making that call — and I'm available to help them make it well.

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For Executives

Clear-eyed analysis of technology and partnership decisions, written for people who don't have time for hype.

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For Founders

Practical frameworks for deciding what to build versus what to partner on, drawn from two decades of engineering reality.

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For Job Seekers

Perspective on where embedded systems, automotive tech, and product strategy careers are heading.

Have a technology or partnership decision on your plate?

I take on a limited number of advisory engagements each quarter with startups and small-to-medium businesses.

Get in Touch