Daniel Zeller

About

Team CarbonCart at UWB Hacks 2026

>

I like building things people actually use.

I'm studying Computer Science & Software Engineering at UW Bothell and graduate in spring 2027. Right now I'm getting better at C++, data structures, computer architecture, and databases while building full-stack apps on the side. I also use AI when I'm building, but I still want to understand how my code works and why. Eventually, I want to work my way up as a software engineer and start my own company.

I've been at AMC Theatres since I was 16 and became a manager the day I turned 18, so I've learned how to take ownership and figure things out when stuff goes sideways.

Outside of coding, I'm usually at the gym, playing video games, hiking, or finding another way to lifemaxx.

Selected
work

Chrome extension · UWB Hacks 20262026

CarbonCart

A Chrome extension my team of four built at UWB Hacks 2026. It estimates a product's emissions while you shop on Amazon, Target and Walmart and suggests lower-impact alternatives. I built most of the backend, the product scraper and the Gemini integration, plus some frontend features.

Problem

Nobody looks up the carbon cost of something in the few seconds before they hit buy. CarbonCart scrapes the product page, sends it through Express endpoints that use Gemini to classify the product and suggest alternatives, and shows the estimate right there. I added response validation and fallbacks so it still works when a lookup comes back empty.

TypeScript

React

Node.js

Express

Source ↗

More projectsclick to open

The story
so far

2022
AMC Theatres · Crew Member
My first job, working alongside a few of my friends. It's where I learned how to work on a team, and that if I wanted to move up, I'd have to actually earn it.
- —Employee of the Month, which made me want to work even harder.
2023
AMC Theatres · Crew Lead
My first time leading people, a lot of them older than me. I rotated through every department and every shift, and learned to take ownership of the people around me instead of just my own station.
2024
AMC Theatres · Manager · Kitsap 8, Woodinville 12, Alderwood Mall 16
AMC doesn't let you manage until you're 18, so I got promoted the day I could. That's when I started taking it seriously.
2024
Running Start → University of Washington Bothell
Running Start meant finishing high school and an associate degree at the same time, while playing varsity soccer and working full-time. It taught me how to work hard and balance a lot at once. Started at UW Bothell that fall.
2025
University of Washington Bothell · B.S. Computer Science & Software Engineering
Admitted to Computer Science & Software Engineering in winter quarter. Coursework so far includes data structures & algorithms, software engineering, database systems and computer architecture.
2025
AMC Theatres · Manager · Woodinville 12
Saved $12,000 in staffing in my first quarter running HR.
2026
AMC Theatres · Manager · Kitsap 8, Woodinville 12, Alderwood Mall 16
Built CarbonCart with a team of four at UWB Hacks, benchmarked sorting algorithms in C++, and started building my own apps, all while still managing at AMC.
- —Lead teams of up to 20 employees per shift across three theaters.
- —Work across HR, operations, food & beverage, the projection booth and performance scheduling.
- —Selected as one of 25 managers, out of roughly 2,000 companywide, for AMC's Leadership Institute for Tomorrow (LIFT).
- —Manager Spotlight program winner.
Now
Building full-stack apps, getting HabitsForFree ready for the App Store, experimenting with a paper-trading bot, and finishing my degree (spring 2027). Still managing at AMC, and heading to headquarters for LIFT in November.