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Charlie Chen

charliechen@college.harvard.edu

About Me

Hi! I'm a junior at Harvard studying Electrical Engineering and Computer Science.


I recently conducted research at the Harvard Ability Lab, where I combined cutting-edge machine learning models and accessible hardware to create assistive devices.


I'm passionate about developing technologies that not only push the boundaries of innovation but also make a meaningful difference in people's lives.


When I'm not in the lab or working on personal projects, I enjoy going on runs, hiking, and cooking.

Education

Harvard University

Bachelor of Science in Electrical Engineering

Minor in Computer Science

GPA: 3.97/4.0

Expected May 2027

Relevant Coursework

  • Semiconductor Electronic Circuits (MIT)
  • Computing Hardware
  • Circuits, Devices, and Transduction
  • Signals & Communications
  • Systems and Control
  • Physics Electromagnetism
  • Systems Programming
  • Data Structures and Algorithms
  • Intro to Machine Learning (MIT)
  • Intro to Distributed Computing
    • Experience

    Undergraduate Researcher

    Harvard Ability Lab

    2025

  • Enabled human-in-the-loop experiments by prototyping stable wearable mounting system for supernumerary arm
  • Designed task protocols varying complexity & motion to evaluate system behavior under realistic human movement
  • Collected 10,000+ frames of egocentric video & actuator states to support VLA training & control analysis

    • Skills

    Digital & Embedded

    FPGA Programming
    SystemVerilog
    Vivado
    Digital Circuit Design
    Arduino
    GPIO
    Linux

    Hardware & Circuits

    PCB Design
    Schematic Capture
    KiCad
    LTSpice
    Analog Circuit Design
    Op-Amps
    Soldering
    Board Bring-Up
    Oscilloscopes
    Multimeters
    Function Generators
    Power Supplies

    Programming

    Python
    C
    MATLAB
    Git

    Featured Projects

    NAND-Only Logic Gate Demo PCB

    NAND-Only Logic Gate Demo PCB

    Designed and assembled a NAND-Only Logic Gate Demo PCB using KiCad.

    KiCad
    PCB Design
    +2 more

    Multicycle MIPS Processor

    Multicycle MIPS Processor

    Created a Multicycle MIPS processor in Vivado supporting R-, I-, and J-type instructions.

    SystemVerilog
    RTL Design
    +4 more

    Reverb Karaoke Machine

    Reverb Karaoke Machine

    A karaoke machine that adds compression and reverb to the audio of the singer.

    Analog Signal Conditioning
    Op-Amps
    +2 more

    Mask Detector

    Mask Detector

    A covid-era machine that sprays you with water if you aren't wearing a mask.

    Embedded Systems
    Arduino
    +2 more

    VLA Robot Arm

    VLA Robot Arm

    Developed a vision-language-action model powered robotic arm system.

    Embedded Systems
    Robotics
    +2 more

    Ray Tracer

    Ray Tracer

    Ray tracer in C++

    C++

    Client-Server Chat App

    Client-Server Chat App

    A distributed client-server chat app with socket-based custom wire protocol, JSON, and gRPC implementations.

    Distributed Systems

    32-bit Arithemtic Logic Unit (ALU)

    32-bit Arithemtic Logic Unit (ALU)

    Created a 32-bit ALU in Vivado supporting arithmetic, logical, and shift operations.

    SystemVerilog
    FPGA
    +1 more

    Personal Website

    Personal Website

    A clean, modern personal website built with Next.js and shadcn/ui.

    Web Development
    Next.js
    +1 more