Damian Gathan

Lead AI App Recovery & Production Optimization Developer

May 2026 - Present • 1 mo

Led the recovery, security hardening, and production deployment of an AI-powered SaaS platform originally built using Lovable, Supabase, OpenAI, Stripe, and custom API integrations. The client faced critical launch-blocking issues including authentication failures, broken Stripe webhooks, inconsistent database permissions, deployment instability, API rate-limit errors, environment variable conflicts, and poor application performance under real-user traffic. Conducted a full application audit covering frontend architecture, backend services, database security, API workflows, authentication systems, payment processing, and production infrastructure. Identified and resolved Supabase Row Level Security (RLS) vulnerabilities, repaired user session management, implemented secure role-based access control, optimized database queries, and rebuilt critical API integrations. Integrated OpenAI-powered workflows, improved prompt execution reliability, enhanced error handling, configured webhook monitoring, and established production-grade deployment pipelines. Implemented logging, monitoring, scalability improvements, and security best practices to reduce system failures and improve user experience. Project Deliverables: • AI SaaS application recovery and stabilization • Lovable application optimization • Supabase database architecture improvements • RLS policy implementation and security hardening • OpenAI API integration optimization • Stripe payment and webhook troubleshooting • Authentication and authorization fixes • API integration and workflow automation • Production deployment support • Performance optimization and scalability improvements • Security audit and vulnerability remediation • Error tracking and monitoring setup • SaaS launch readiness review • MVP-to-production transformation Results achieved: Successfully transformed a non-functional AI-generated MVP into a secure, scalable, production-ready SaaS platform.

AI SaaS Migration & Platform Modernization Specialist

Mar 2026 - Present • 3 mos

Managed the migration and modernization of an AI-powered SaaS application experiencing platform limitations, deployment failures, security concerns, and vendor lock-in challenges. The application was originally built using low-code and AI-assisted development tools and required a complete transition to a scalable production architecture. Performed a comprehensive system audit covering frontend components, backend services, database structures, authentication flows, payment systems, API integrations, deployment pipelines, and security controls. Migrated critical business functionality, rebuilt authentication systems, optimized Supabase database architecture, implemented secure Row Level Security (RLS) policies, and restructured API workflows to improve maintainability and performance. The project included: • Base44 migration support • Lovable application optimization • Replit application restructuring • Supabase migration and optimization • Stripe subscription migration • OpenAI API migration • Authentication redesign • Production deployment setup • Database security implementation • Infrastructure hardening • API architecture improvements • Performance tuning • Monitoring and logging implementation • Error recovery systems Resolved common founder pain points including deployment failures, authentication loops, broken webhooks, API timeouts, database permission errors, environment configuration issues, and production scalability bottlenecks. Results: Successfully migrated the platform to a secure and scalable architecture, reduced operational issues, improved application performance, strengthened security posture, and enabled the business to support significantly higher user activity while maintaining stability and reliability