Nikhil Rao
// uc_berkeley_eecs
// epic_lab_docetl_13k
// bargain_model_cascade

About Me

freshman @ uc berkeley eecs

i am an eecs student at uc berkeley with 7.5+ years of software development experience across generative ai, llm system optimization, full-stack applications, and native mobile development.

photos

Nikhil Rao
Nikhil Rao
Nikhil Rao
Nikhil Rao
Nikhil Rao
Nikhil Rao

what i work on

epic-lab ~ docetl & bargain
# UC Berkeley EPIC Lab Research

Lead Research Assistant on DocETL, restructuring package operators to cut runtime by 50% (code used by 13k+ engineers on GitHub). Researched model cascade frameworks for BARGAIN, reducing LLM costs by 35.2% while keeping 90%+ baseline accuracy.

Preprint Research

PromptPilot Agent

Engineered prompt-optimization algorithm for LLMs and documented methodology in a research preprint. Built a background desktop agent that dynamically intercepts and refines prompts in real-time.

Venture Founder

VertexStudy LLC & Trav

Co-founded VertexStudy (AI student app, 1,500+ users, $25,000 IdeaToIPO investment award). Co-founded Trav (iOS travel app with CoreML & Apple Maps API reaching 5,000+ viewers).

skills & tools

TypeScriptPythonJavaC++SwiftReact / Next.jsNode.jsGraphQLSQLPrompt EngineeringClaude & AntigravityCursor (Bugbot)Whisper