Skip to content
Hands-on CTO · Software Architect

Hands-on CTO for SaaS, Cloud & Engineering Leadership

I build engineering organizations, scalable SaaS platforms and high-performing software teams.

With more than 16 years of experience, I combine engineering leadership, software architecture and hands-on development to help companies build, modernize and scale complex digital products.

Contact me View LinkedIn Profile View GitHub
  • 16+ Years Experience
  • CTO / VP Engineering
  • SaaS · Cloud · AI
Tobias Knaus, hands-on CTO and software architect

Currently

CTO · Zazoon AG

Core Strengths

Where I create the most leverage

Leadership and architecture, backed by code. The combination that turns engineering into a business advantage.

Engineering Leadership

Building and leading high-performing engineering teams with clear processes, strong ownership and a focus on delivery.

Software Architecture

Designing scalable, secure and maintainable software platforms across backend, frontend and cloud infrastructure.

Cloud & Kubernetes

Building cloud-native systems with Kubernetes, Azure, AWS, CI/CD and DevSecOps practices.

AI-assisted Engineering

Using AI-assisted development and automation to improve engineering productivity, code quality and delivery speed.

Business Impact

Aligning technology decisions with product strategy, customer value and measurable business outcomes.

About

A technical executive who never stopped building

16+

Years of experience

6

Industries delivered in

Industry experience

  • GRC
  • FinTech
  • Mobility
  • Healthcare
  • E-Commerce
  • EdTech

I build engineering organizations, scalable SaaS platforms and high-performing software teams.

For more than 16 years, I have helped companies build, modernize and scale software platforms — from startups to enterprise organizations. My experience spans GRC, FinTech, Mobility, Healthcare, E-Commerce and EdTech, where I have led engineering teams, designed cloud-native architectures and delivered enterprise software.

Unlike many engineering leaders, I remain deeply hands-on. I enjoy solving complex technical challenges, writing production code, reviewing architecture and helping teams deliver high-quality software faster through modern engineering practices and AI-assisted development.

Throughout my career, I have been trusted to join organizations during periods of growth and transformation — building engineering teams, modernizing technology stacks, scaling cloud platforms and aligning technology with business strategy.

I enjoy mentoring engineers, building high-performing teams and creating engineering cultures where people can do their best work. My passion is solving complex technical and business challenges while turning technology into measurable business value.

Experience Highlights

Selected leadership roles

From global mobility platforms to NHS healthcare and enterprise e-commerce — building, scaling and modernizing engineering.

  1. CTO

    Current

    Zazoon AG

    Leading engineering, architecture and product development of a cloud-native GRC SaaS platform.

    • Engineering strategy, software architecture and product development
    • Cloud-native platform on Azure with Kubernetes
    • Angular, Node.js, Prisma and modern SaaS architecture
    • Security, CI/CD, DevSecOps and compliance-focused engineering
    • AI-assisted software development and automation

  2. Hands-on CTO & Co-Founder

    Current

    Viamor GmbH

    Co-founded and technically lead Viamor — a real-time dating and community platform on web, iOS and Android.

    • Own platform architecture end-to-end on Ruby on Rails, Vue and Elasticsearch
    • Built real-time messaging and matching with WebSockets and geo-search
    • Shipped native iOS and Android apps from a single Flutter codebase
    • Unified Stripe, PayPal and app-store billing with automated reconciliation
    • Run the cloud-native platform on Kubernetes — and still write production code

  3. Founder & CTO

    C85 GmbH · Munich's TechHouse

    Founded and built a software consultancy focused on cloud platforms, SaaS applications and digital products.

    • Supported startups and enterprises as Software Architect, Tech Lead and Interim CTO
    • Designed scalable cloud architectures and modern web platforms
    • Led technical consulting, architecture reviews and engineering enablement
    • Delivered end-to-end solutions with Ruby on Rails, Node.js, TypeScript, Azure and AWS

  4. Vice President Engineering

    EVA Global

    Led the Engineering and Product organization for a global EV mobility platform.

    • Led Engineering and Product organization with 42 people
    • Defined and executed technical strategy
    • Represented engineering in investor presentations
    • Successfully launched the C3 EV charging platform
    • Delivered custom OCPP proxy integration
    • Introduced scalable engineering processes and architecture governance

  5. Head of Technology

    Diligram

    Led the technical strategy and development of MyStaff, a document management platform used by the NHS.

    • Took ownership of the Flutter mobile application
    • Improved architecture and delivery
    • Introduced AI-powered document classification and workflow automation
    • Defined software architecture and engineering standards
    • Delivered enterprise-grade healthcare technology

  6. Director of Technology

    ada Learning

    Built and led the internal engineering organization during a period of rapid company growth.

    • Migrated the platform from Ruby on Rails 5 to Rails 7
    • Improved scalability using GraphQL, Sidekiq and WebSockets
    • Introduced modern engineering workflows and CI/CD
    • Partnered with product teams to deliver scalable learning experiences

  7. Senior Software Architect

    MediaMarktSaturn Technology

    Designed and evolved large-scale e-commerce platform architecture for one of Europe's largest retailers.

    • Introduced TypeScript and Apollo GraphQL within a large monorepo
    • Improved platform scalability and maintainability
    • Designed backend services, APIs and frontend architectures
    • Mentored engineering teams and contributed to architecture decisions

Technology & Leadership Stack

Depth across the full stack

Leadership and architecture first — with the hands-on technical range to back every decision.

Leadership

  • Engineering Leadership
  • Technical Strategy
  • Team Building
  • Mentoring
  • Agile Leadership
  • Architecture Governance

Architecture & Backend

  • Software Architecture
  • Ruby on Rails
  • Node.js
  • TypeScript
  • GraphQL
  • Prisma
  • REST APIs
  • Microservices

Frontend & Mobile

  • Angular
  • React
  • Vue
  • Flutter
  • React Native
  • Design Systems

Cloud & Infrastructure

  • Azure
  • AWS
  • Google Cloud
  • Kubernetes
  • Docker
  • Linux
  • CI/CD
  • DevSecOps

Databases & Systems

  • PostgreSQL
  • MySQL
  • MongoDB
  • Redis
  • Elasticsearch
  • Cassandra

AI & Automation

  • AI-assisted Development
  • Code Review Automation
  • Developer Productivity
  • Document Classification
  • Workflow Automation

Selected Career Highlights

Impact, measured

16+ Years

building and scaling software platforms across startups and enterprises.

42 People

Engineering and Product organization led as VP Engineering at EVA Global.

6 Industries

Cloud-native SaaS across GRC, FinTech, Mobility, Healthcare, E-Commerce and EdTech.

100% Hands-on

A CTO with deep coding, architecture and engineering-leadership experience.

AI In production

AI-assisted development and automation applied in real production workflows.

Featured Project

Building Viamor, hands-on

Not just leading engineering — co-founding and building a product I co-own. Proof that I still ship, architect and scale in production.

Hands-on CTO & Co-Founder · Viamor GmbH

Viamor

A subscription dating & community platform · web, iOS & Android

A modern, real-time dating and community platform serving members across Germany, Austria and Switzerland — with matching, live chat, social feeds, groups and events, and a freemium subscription model.

I co-founded Viamor through my own company, C85 GmbH, and drive it technically end-to-end — from platform architecture and the Elasticsearch matching engine to the real-time messaging layer, the Flutter apps and the multi-provider billing system. A product I own, and still write production code for.

Visit viamor.de Live on iOS & Android

Under the hood

  • Real-time messaging

    Live chat, typing indicators and notifications over WebSockets, powered by AnyCable for many concurrent connections.

  • Search-driven matching

    Geo-aware profile discovery and swipe matching powered by Elasticsearch at scale.

  • AI-assisted onboarding

    LLM integration that helps members write and complete their profiles, powered by large language models.

  • Native mobile apps

    iOS and Android from a single Flutter codebase — push notifications, deep linking and in-app purchases.

  • Subscription billing

    Stripe, PayPal, Apple and Google unified behind one billing layer with automated reconciliation.

  • Observability & reliability

    Full Datadog observability with 50+ synthetic monitoring and API test flows across critical journeys, plus CI/CD.

  • Ruby on Rails
  • Vue 3
  • Flutter
  • Elasticsearch
  • PostgreSQL
  • Redis
  • WebSockets
  • Kubernetes
  • Datadog
  • CI/CD
  • Stripe

Open Source

Still building, in the open

I contribute to open source, experiment with new technologies and stay deeply hands-on as an engineering leader. My GitHub is where that work lives — a window into how I think about code, architecture and modern engineering.

github.com/Paradoxor

Contact

Let's connect

I am always interested in ambitious teams, complex technical challenges and opportunities to build products that create real business value.

LinkedIn GitHub Email
Name
Tobias Knaus
Location
Munich · Bavaria · Remote
Website
tobias-knaus.de
LinkedIn
in/tobiasknaus
Email
knaus@c85.de