Chetan
Upadhyay

Tech Evangelist  ·  Driving AI Adoption  ·  Android  ·  VR  ·  Meta, London

19+ years designing and shipping products that reach millions of users worldwide — from Android's earliest days to Meta Quest VR and AI-driven engineering transformation at Meta. Distinguished Engineer. Technical Manager. Architect. Mentor. Built teams and platforms.

Pioneered AI-powered Productivity, at Meta — leading org-wide AI adoption leveraging multi-LLM orchestration using Claude, Llama, Gemini and GPTs, automated code generation, integrating AI-driven metrics analysis, and championing a culture of AI productivity across engineering teams.
19+ Years Experience
Meta Reality Labs, London
Millions Users at Scale
AI+VR Frontier Platforms
Chetan Upadhyay — Technical Leader at Meta

Engineering that Delivers.
Leadership that Scales.

Currently, at Meta Reality Labs in London — building Android and VR & Mobile products that connect hundreds of millions of people worldwide. Over nearly two decades, I've moved from crafting multi-lingual Android apps in the platform's infancy — before Android and iOS had even conquered the world — to shipping immersive Meta Quest VR experiences and spearheading the AI-driven transformation of how engineering organisations operate.

I offer the rare combination of hands-on technical mastery and the leadership instinct to build systems and teams. I founded and scaled a mobile division at a startup, led a Mobile Center of Excellence with a team of architects at Pitney Bowes — earning the title of Distinguished Engineer, one of the most selective technical recognitions company-wide — and have mentored engineers throughout.
I believe — Better engineering is a culture, not just a goal. The best engineers build for longevity: prioritizing principled architecture, intelligent automation, and a relentless focus on performance and reliability.

Core Expertise
Android Platform Engineering
VR / Meta Quest Development
AI Adoption & LLM Integration
Technical Architecture & System Design
Engineering Leadership & Mentoring
Mobile Center of Excellence
AOSP & Custom Android Devices
Enterprise IoT & Mobility
Kotlin, Java & More
Performance, Reliability, Efficiency, Quality
Open to What's Next
Drawn to opportunities at the intersection of deep technical leadership and AI-driven product ambition — from principal engineering and platform architecture to AI transformation roles. Also open to advising or consulting early-stage startups on mobile foundations, engineering culture, and AI productivity.

Career Highlights

Defining chapters of a career built on shipping technology that matters — at scale, with craft, and with measurable impact.

AI & Engineering Productivity
Turning AI Models into Engineering Velocity
Beyond shipping features, I drove strategic AI adoption across engineering organisations — delivering fully automated code modernisation pipelines, embedding LLMs into developer workflows, and building intelligent data analysis systems that gave engineering leaders real-time insight into team health and product quality.
Automated Code Modernisation Claude AI Llama 3 AI Metrics Pipelines Team Upskilling Google Workspace Integration

Android, VR & AI Engineering at Meta

Software Engineer / Technical Lead  ·  Meta Reality Labs, London  ·  Feb 2021 – Present

The Challenge

Build, scale, and constantly improve Android and VR social products for hundreds of millions of global users — while driving engineering velocity through AI adoption and maintaining world-class PREQ (Performance, Reliability, Efficiency, Quality) standards across the organisation.

Innovative Products

Worked on Meta Portal — smart calling features on a custom Android device, delivering next-generation collaborative video experiences. On Meta Quest (custom Android VR), drove improvements to social engagement and interaction models, helping people connect in immersive environments at scale.

AI & Engineering Productivity

As an AI Champion, designed and delivered a fully automated AI-based code modernisation system using LLMs — migrating legacy mobile components at a scale and speed impossible with traditional approaches. Built AI-driven metrics analysis pipelines integrated with Google Workspace, enabling engineering leaders to surface quality, performance, and delivery insights automatically. Drove org-wide adoption of Claude and Llama — running enablement programmes that helped engineers integrate AI into their daily workflows for code generation, review, testing, and documentation.

Impact
Millions Global Users Reached
Automated Legacy Code Modernisation
AI Champion Org-Wide LLM Adoption
Portal + Quest Custom Android & VR
Android Virtual Reality Meta Quest Meta Portal AI Code Modernisation Claude AI Llama LLM PREQ Kotlin Social Products

Distinguished Engineer & Enterprise Transformation

Technical Manager & Distinguished Engineer / Technical Manager & Architect  ·  Pitney Bowes, Pune  ·  Jul 2017 – Dec 2020

The Challenge

Modernise and transform the digital posture of a 100-year-old global enterprise — overhauling mobile and IoT engineering from the ground up, while establishing standards and a Centre of Excellence that could scale and endure independently.

My Contribution

Founded and led the Mobile Center of Excellence (CoE) and IoT engineering team, managing a team of architects and senior engineers. Delivered end-to-end architectural solutions for enterprise mobility, drove the transformation from ideation through execution across complex cross-functional programmes, and represented mobile technical strategy at the highest levels of the organisation.

Impact
Distinguished Elite Engineering Title
CoE Founded Mobile & IoT Practice Built
Enterprise Century-Old Org Transformed
2× Awards Excellence + Hackathon Win
Android AOSP IoT Enterprise Mobility Technical Architecture Team Leadership Digital Transformation

Heading Mobile Division — Startup: Founding 0→1 Ride-Hailing Platform

Technical Manager & Architect  ·  47Billion / TukTuk, Indore  ·  Aug 2014 – Jul 2017

The Challenge

Build an entire mobile engineering capability from scratch at a fast-growing funded startup, competing with Uber in the Indian ride-hailing market — with full ownership of architecture, hiring, delivery, and product strategy from day one.

My Contribution

Sole architect and division lead of the mobile platform. Designed the complete system architecture for TukTuk across Android and iOS, recruited and grew the engineering team, and drove the product from a blank canvas to market launch — delivering a real-time geo-dispatch platform built to compete at scale.

Impact
0 → 1 Product Built from Scratch
Full Division Built & Led End-to-End
Android + iOS Dual-Platform Launch
Android iOS System Design Startup Product Development 0-to-1 Delivery Engineering Leadership

The Journey So Far

From building multi-lingual mobile apps in the years before Android dominated the world, to shipping VR social platforms and pioneering AI-driven engineering at Meta — a career defined by being early to every wave that mattered.

● Current (AI – Transformational)
Feb 2021 – Present

Software Engineer / Lead — Android, VR & AI

Meta Reality Labs  ·  London, UK

AI Champion · Code Modernisation · Portal · Quest · PREQ

▲ Leadership Era
Dec 2019 – Dec 2020

Technical Manager & Distinguished Engineer

Pitney Bowes  ·  Pune, India

Highest technical recognition · Enterprise strategy & innovation

Jul 2017 – Nov 2019

Technical Manager & Architect

Pitney Bowes  ·  Pune, India

Mobile CoE · IoT · Team of architects · Digital transformation

Aug 2014 – Jul 2017

Technical Manager & Architect

47Billion / TukTuk  ·  Indore, India

Founded mobile division · 0-to-1 product delivery · Startup build

◦ Foundations
Oct 2010 – Jul 2014

Lead Software Engineer

Impetus India Pvt. Ltd.  ·  Indore, India

Kronos Mobile · Intuit QuickBooks · J2ME · BB · Android · iOS

Jan 2010 – Oct 2010

Senior Software Engineer

Wipro Technologies  ·  Hyderabad, India

Nokia B2B/B2C · Early Android adoption · Mobile mentoring

Jul 2006 – Dec 2009

Software Engineer — Mobile & Web

Webdunia Pvt. Ltd.  ·  Indore, India

9 regional languages · Lingual rendering engine · Pre-Unicode mobile

Awards & Honours

Distinguished Engineer

Pitney Bowes  ·  Jan 2020

Stamford, USA — one of the most selective technical titles awarded company-wide globally

Spot Award — Hackathon Champion

Pitney Bowes  ·  Apr 2018

Noida, India — recognised for high-impact rapid innovation and prototyping

Engineering Excellence Award

Impetus Technologies  ·  Jun 2012

Indore, India — outstanding technical contribution and team leadership

Beyond the Code

AI & Hacks
Mentoring
Photography
Poetry
Community Service
TV Series

Let's Build Something Exceptional

If you're working on something that calls for deep technical leadership, AI-driven engineering transformation, or mobile platform ambition at scale — I'd genuinely enjoy the conversation. Equally, if you're an early-stage startup looking for guidance on building your mobile foundation, engineering culture, or embracing AI productivity from day one, I'm open to advising and mentoring those journeys too.