Augustin Chan
I'm the CTO and founder of Digital Rain Technologies. My work asks one question: how do we build AI systems that expand human capability without quietly eroding human agency?
I approach it three ways — enterprise AI architecture, published research on how symbolic frameworks alter model behavior, and surgical software: small, high-leverage tools built to solve exactly one problem well. Read how this introduction came together.
I also produce and co-host the Hong Kong AI Podcast, a conversation series with practitioners building Hong Kong's AI future.
Previously, I was a Development Architect at Informatica, leading enterprise architecture for Fortune 500 customers — a global role with an APAC focus, with a lot of remote support for US customers. Before that, I was a Senior Consultant at Dun & Bradstreet.
I hold a B.S. in Cognitive Science with Specialization in Computation from UC San Diego.
Essays
- Risk Isn't a Number. It's a Fingerprint. (2026)
- Why I'm Building Crawl (2026)
- Teaching Taste to an Agent (2026)
- The Junzi Hypothesis (2026)
- Memory Systems and the Graph That Wasn't (2025)
- LLM Reasoning Patterns and Failure Modes (2025)
Short posts
Research
- Symbolic Reasoning Frameworks Modulate LLM Risk Aversion in Multi-Agent Strategic Settings (arXiv:2606.07552)How symbolic reasoning prompts (I-Ching, Tarot) reshape competitive dynamics and risk aversion among LLM agents in a 7-player Warring States Diplomacy variant.Code & data (doi:10.5281/zenodo.20338937)
- Statistical Properties of the King Wen Sequence: An Anti-Habituation Structure That Does Not Improve Neural Network Training (arXiv:2604.09234)A negative-results study: the I-Ching King Wen sequence has statistically distinctive anti-habituation properties, but they destabilize rather than improve gradient-based training.Code & data (doi:10.5281/zenodo.14679537)
Building
Enterprise migration & readiness
- Crawlopen-sourceMigration intelligence — automated discovery, risk scoring, and planning for legacy system modernization.
- Graftopen-sourceAI-native BI report translation — parses Tableau, JasperReports, and FineReport into a vendor-neutral IR, then analyzes and translates report logic across platforms.
- ARA Evalopen-sourceFramework for decomposing autonomous AI risk into 7 dimensions, so practitioners can evaluate whether agents can act without human approval.
Symbolic systems & classical computing
- 8-Bit OracleThe I-Ching through the lens of retro computing and science fiction — tech-noir art and commentaries. Presented at Taipei Blockchain Week.
- Six LinesiOS app for learning the I-Ching as literature and philosophy — bilingual hexagram reference with classical commentary and public domain masterwork art.
- Plum Blossom Computer (GitHub)Cosmological computation terminal — I-Ching divination (梅花易數) fused with on-chain commitments and real-time astronomical data. Built at the EasyA x Consensus HK 2026 hackathon.
- seeded-iching-engine (GitHub)
Research platforms
Podcast
- Hong Kong AI Podcast15 episodesI produce and co-host real conversations with AI practitioners building in Hong Kong — covering research, fintech, robotics, spatial computing, healthcare, culture, and the local AI scene.
Speaking
- AI in Business: Practitioner Panel — Snowball Asia, with Alexander Payne, moderated by Tanya Chou (2026)
- 5-minute group divination demo — AI Tinkerers HK (2025)
- AI Agent technology discussion — with fullvaluedan (2025)
- 8-Bit Oracle deep-dive — with Eddylive (2024)
Consulting
People App, Travelbox