Hi!
I'm Nic Hammonds

Cyber Security & AI Governance Leadership

I blend offensive threat detection, defensive architecture, and comprehensive security governance. I bring hands-on expertise in cyber analytics, fraud detection, network security, and implementing defense-in-depth strategies aligned with the MITRE ATT&CK Framework and NIST AI RMF.

Key Professional Achievements

• BAE Systems Applied Intelligence: Designed and delivered a multi-million-dollar enterprise cyber analytics platform utilizing Hadoop, YARN, and Big Data technologies to actively track potential cyber threats across the MITRE ATT&CK kill chain.
  • Developed advanced detection analytics, including identifying long-beaconing malware via low-variance analysis of IP connections over extended timeframes.
  • The system combined anomaly detection and NLP techniques to provide SecOps teams with actionable intelligence via custom Kibana dashboards.
• Singapore Nationwide Fraud Detection: Served as senior tech lead for the delivery and integration of a nationwide fraud detection platform, leveraging Spark, MapReduce, and distributed computing to detect and mitigate fraud at scale, requiring close collaboration with government agencies and senior decision-makers.

Core Philosophy & Technical Depth

• Nevis Security (Lead Engineer & AI Governance): Currently leading the engineering of an Agentic AI suite that empowers security integrators with real-time configuration tools for robust cybersecurity systems.
  • Established rigorous security protocols for the full AI/ML model lifecycle—from secure data ingestion and adversarial training simulations to secure deployment and post-production monitoring.
  • As a senior member of the AI Governance board, I drive compliance with the EU AI Act and integrate best practices from the NIST AI RMF.
  • I adopt a security-first mindset working with highly sensitive data across finance, insurance, and healthcare sectors.

AI/ML Engineering Vision

I spearhead enterprise-grade AI strategy with focus on Large Language Models, Retrieval-Augmented Generation (RAG), and Agentic AI systems. My expertise spans the complete AI/ML lifecycle—from data preprocessing and model training to secure deployment and governance—using technologies including VertexAI, PyTorch, TensorFlow, Langchain, Google ADK, and Model Context Protocol (MCP).

Key Professional Achievements

• Nevis Security: Designed, implemented, and delivered the company's first RAG-powered Knowledge System, leveraging data science preprocessing, vector embeddings, and LLM prompt engineering to create an intelligent assistant handling highly sensitive data. As acting lead engineer on an AI security co-pilot, I'm building agentic systems that provide real-time configuration guidance for security integrators. The solution is cloud-agnostic, with primary architecture on GCP and VertexAI, alongside prototypes on AWS and Azure to manage cost, performance, and vendor independence.
• Raiffeisen Bank International: Led a cross-functional team to prototype a hybrid recommender system for ESG portfolio selection using AWS SageMaker, combining matrix factorization with content-based and collaborative filtering techniques. The system integrated predictive analytics to guide investment decisions.
• Content Garden Technologies (CTO): Implemented data science and ML technologies into the advertisement purchasing process using Sentiment Analysis, Linear Regression, and XGBoost, enabling sales staff to negotiate up to 20% more ad space. Built predictive models for advertisement performance optimization, combining Big Data Analytics with machine learning to drive revenue.

Core Philosophy & Technical Depth

My work demonstrates the intersection of AI/ML and cybersecurity through NLP techniques and anomaly detection in cyber threat analytics. I serve on the AI Governance board, ensuring compliance with the EU AI Act, and adopt best practices from the NIST AI RMF for risk management in high-stakes domains including finance, insurance, and healthcare.

Software Development Leadership

With over 25 years of hands-on software development experience, I've built mission-critical systems for tier-one financial institutions, telecommunications providers, and enterprise clients worldwide. My development expertise spans Java, Python, SQL, and modern frameworks, combined with deep knowledge of software engineering best practices, code quality, and team mentorship.

Key Professional Achievements

• Patsystems/Ion Trading: Led engineering teams delivering a post-trade risk platform in Java to major financial institutions including JP Morgan and Deutsche Bank. Wrote the technical proposal and prototype that won Nomura Bank as a new client, and implemented Java-based variants of the Black-Scholes algorithms to calculate theoretical prices and Greeks for option trades—features that helped reduce customer churn during contract renegotiations.
• Raiffeisen Bank International: Optimized poor-performing Python code into streamlined, well-documented classes and functions, leveraging NumPy and Pandas libraries to fine-tune complex ESG calculations. Simultaneously mentored the development team to adopt better coding practices and deployment via GIT-based CI/CD pipelines, significantly improving code quality and team productivity.
• Content Garden Technologies (CTO): Responsible for hiring and mentoring a multidisciplinary team of developers, data scientists, testers, and scrum masters. Established development standards, code review processes, and agile practices that resulted in faster delivery cycles and more maintainable codebases.

Core Philosophy & Technical Depth

My development approach emphasizes clean code, comprehensive testing, documentation, and knowledge transfer. I'm proficient in modern DevOps practices including Docker containerization, Kubernetes orchestration, GitLab CI/CD pipelines, and continuous integration/deployment workflows that enable teams to deliver high-quality software rapidly. My experience includes work at Siemens, THUS Plc./Cable and Wireless, Sungard, and Fujitsu Telecom, building telecommunications and enterprise software systems.