Michael JacotData science & software · Halifax, NSBook a call

For ops leads and founders

I build software for messy, real-world operations.

I’m a data scientist and software builder for marine, energy, and property teams. I turn the problem that’s costing you time or money into a tool your people actually use.

Book a 20-min callSee the work ↓

Recent problems

Optimizing vessel biofouling management.AIS · weather · fuelRecipes using what’s on sale right now.12 grocers · weekly flyersBuildings paying demand charges.kW peaks · battery + PV
Services

Have a messy problem? Good.

I build software, data systems, and analytical tools for problems that don’t have an off-the-shelf solution.

From an initial idea to a working product, I handle the engineering, modeling, and implementation. No unnecessary complexity. No elaborate strategy decks that never turn into software.

I like getting close to the hardware, running models locally, and building systems that don’t depend on someone else’s cloud. But the right tool is always the one that solves the problem.

Ways to work together

  • ProjectsDefined problems, working solutions.
  • PrototypesTest an idea before committing.
  • OngoingDevelopment, research, and technical advisory.

You don’t need a specification.

Tell me what’s taking too long, costing too much, or not working properly. I’ll help figure out whether software can solve it.

Book a 20-min call
Selected work

2023–presentVessel Analytics Lead → Head of Digital & Data · GIT Coatings

Advisory Services Platform

Problem
Vessel owners burn fuel (and millions a year) when biofouling is mis-timed against drydock and trade routes.
Approach
Geospatial + time-series stack that fuses AIS, weather, fuel, and coating telemetry into a per-vessel maintenance & financial model.
Result
Productized as a paid aftercare offering. Drives recurring revenue and underwrites GIT’s technical claims.
  • Python
  • ML
  • Geospatial
  • Simulation
  • LCA
Advisory Services · When to clean
Clean on · best
Day 182
Extra fuel
$186k/ yr
Cleaning
$40k
Saved vs never
$418k
0%10%20%30%40%090180270365DAYS IN SERVICE · EXTRA FUEL BURNNEVER CLEANDAY 182
Scrub to move the cleaning date · optimum shown
Illustrative model · not client data

2024–presentFounder · sole dev

Flyer to Fork

Problem
Grocery flyers go up Thursday. Most home cooks never line up the deals with what they actually plan to eat.
Approach
Weekly data pipeline over the flyers of 12 grocers → LLM-built recipes anchored on what’s on sale → SEO-indexed pages per store, per week, per recipe.
Result
Weekly store-specific menus with price-per-serving. A self-sustaining SEO funnel, monetized with Google AdSense and affiliate links.
  • Python
  • AWS
  • LLMs
  • Data pipelines
  • SEO
  • AdSense
Flyer to Fork · A week of dinners
Mon
$3.12/ serving
On sale
3 of 5items
Saves
$6.40vs regular
| marks a regular-price dinner, $5.80week for 4: $84
Sample menu · illustrative prices

2023–presentFounder · sole dev

Argos

Problem
Small-portfolio real estate operators juggle deal-finding and asset management across spreadsheets, MLS tabs, and memory.
Approach
Pulls new listings into a market-intelligence feed, underwrites each one automatically, and tracks every property’s operating performance after acquisition.
Result
A single workbench from listing → underwriting → operating data.
  • Django
  • Postgres
  • Data Viz
  • Automation
Argos · Deal scorecard
14 Maple St · 6-unit walk-upNOI $74.0k
$1.24Masking
Cap rate · target 6%5.97%
DSCR · target 1.251.08
Cash on cash · target 6%1.6%
VerdictPASS
Sample deal · not a real listing

2021–2023DS Intern → Consultant · NSCC AER

Battery Demand Reduction

Problem
Commercial buildings in Nova Scotia get walloped by demand charges. Batteries + solar can shave the peaks, if you size them right.
Approach
Time-series simulator on metered loads, NS tariff schedules, and PV generation curves. Sweeps battery/PV configurations for payback.
Result
Sizing recommendations used in active AER research and consulting engagements.
  • Python
  • Time Series
  • Simulation
  • Solar PV
Building F · 63-day analysisn = 89,281 · scrub the plot
Target
30.0%
Capacity
27kWh
Savings
$70/ mo
Backup
72.7%
Power
6kW
Cycles
20.5/ mo
02550751001251501750510152025102030405060KWH · CAD · %KW · CYCLESDEMAND REDUCTION LEVEL (%)30%
Flyer to Fork · store rollout

Stores, by the week they came online.

Every store on Flyer to Fork, in the order its first weekly flyer parsed cleanly. Blue markers are rollouts outside Atlantic Canada.

Visit flyertofork.com ↗
Unique visits / week
1,979
Recipes generated
1,890
Flyers parsed since 2024
210
Grocery items parsed
34,120

Updated weekly

2024

  1. Gateway Meat MarketJun 2024 · NS
  2. La ComerSep 2024 · MX
  3. AldiDec 2024 · UK

2025

  1. Market BasketFeb 2025 · US
  2. Farm BoyMar 2025 · ON
  3. Walmart CanadaJun 2025 · CA
  4. Sobeys AtlanticSep 2025 · NS
  5. Food BasicsOct 2025 · ON
  6. Gateway webinar ↗Dec 2025 · Talk · YouTube

2026

  1. Atlantic SuperstoreFeb 2026 · NS · NB · PEI
  2. No FrillsJun 2026 · CA
  3. Country GrocerAug 2026 · BC
  4. H-E-BOct 2026 · TX
Gateway Meat Market
Jun 2024 · NS
La Comer
Sep 2024 · MX
Aldi
Dec 2024 · UK
Market Basket
Feb 2025 · US
Farm Boy
Mar 2025 · ON
Walmart Canada
Jun 2025 · CA
Sobeys Atlantic
Sep 2025 · NS
Food Basics
Oct 2025 · ON
Webinar
Gateway webinar ↗
Dec 2025 · YouTube
Atlantic Superstore
Feb 2026 · NS · NB · PEI
No Frills
Jun 2026 · CA
Country Grocer
Aug 2026 · BC
H-E-B
Oct 2026 · TX
2024
2025
2026
Atlantic Canada Out-of-region rollout Talk / webinarStack: Python · AWS · LLMs · static SEO pages
About

Hi, I’m Michael Jacot.

Data scientist and software builder for messy, real-world operations: marine, energy, and property. I turn complex, real-world problems into reliable software, models, and dashboards that people actually use.

Role
Head of Digital & Data, GIT Coatings
Base
Halifax, Nova Scotia
Study
BSc Physics, CS minor, Dalhousie
Future of AI in transportationPanel · 2024
Future of AI in transportationTransport Canada / NRCC · ITS Living Labs

I am a data scientist and software developer with 5+ years of experience building decision tools for marine, energy, and property operations. I specialize in Python, machine learning, time series, and modern web stacks that make insights measurable and repeatable.

I studied Physics and Computer Science at Dalhousie University. Professionally, I lead and ship analytics at GIT Coatings, where I went from Data Scientist to Vessel Analytics and Software Lead to Data Science Lead, and now run the company’s digital and data function as Head of Digital & Data. My work spans data infrastructure, forecasting, model validation, and productizing analytics for internal teams and clients.

Outside of tech, I play squash, manage and invest in real estate, and work in the garden, spending hundreds of dollars and days of my summer producing strawberries I could have bought from the grocery store for $4.

What I believe

  1. Software should survive contact with reality.
  2. Tools should reduce chaos, not add to it.
  3. Good systems are built around the people who actually use them.
  4. I care about useful, durable, practical software more than polished nonsense.

Talks and panels

AI-driven innovation in Atlantic CanadaPanel · 2025
AI-driven innovation in Atlantic CanadaCOVE · H₂O Conference
Presenting vessel performance at GIT Coatings’ global HQ openingInvestor presentation · 2025
Presenting vessel performance at GIT Coatings’ global HQ openingGIT Coatings

How the work gets built

  • User-centered designBuild tools around real workflows and decisions.
  • Measurable outcomesDefine success metrics, test against reality, iterate.
  • Performance and reliabilityOptimize for speed, robustness, and traceability.
  • Accessible by defaultClear visuals, keyboard-friendly, readable at a glance.
  • Tested and versionedAutomate checks, document assumptions, keep data lineage.
Experience
PeriodOrganizationRoleNotes
Nov 2025 – PresentGIT CoatingsHead of Digital & DataConsulting engagement. Runs GIT's digital function end to end: data, software, analytics products, and the systems behind Advisory Services.
Aug 2024 – Oct 2025GIT CoatingsData Science LeadLed the DS team. Strategic direction on analytics + ML across marine-coatings validation.
Oct 2023 – Aug 2024GIT CoatingsVessel Analytics & Software LeadHeaded the vessel analytics + software division. Tools for internal teams and clients.
Oct 2022 – Oct 2023GIT CoatingsData ScientistBuilt the foundational data infra. Reporting pipelines now in daily use; validated coating efficacy.
May 2022 – Dec 2023NSCC Applied Energy ResearchData Science ConsultantOn-call DS for AER. Demand-reduction work on NS commercial buildings.
May 2021 – May 2022NSCC Applied Energy ResearchData Science InternBattery + solar demand-reduction simulations under the Clean Internship Program.
May 2019 – Sep 2019PEJK Property ServicesLandscaping ManagerRan ops on a 45-property book. Crews, scheduling, equipment.
2017 – 2022Dalhousie UniversityBSc Physics, CS minorDean’s List. Howe Hall house president. Dalhousie IMPACT Award.
Contact

Let’s build something unglamorous.

Send a message

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20-minute intro call

Pick “Book a 20-min call” as the subject and I’ll reply with a few times. Replies go out within 48 hours, Mon–Fri, 9–5 Atlantic.

Elsewhere

Based

Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada

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