Hi, I'm Mukhtar Otarbayev
Senior QA Automation Engineer (SDET) & AI-Driven Testing Specialist
Senior SDET and QA Team Lead with 5+ years in high-scale FinTech and E-commerce at Rakuten Group. ISTQB Advanced Level certified. Led a PoC integrating LLM APIs (OpenAI/Claude) into test workflows, reducing manual regression effort by 30%. Also a former Senior Geologist with 15+ years in international mining across Kazakhstan. Permanent resident of Japan.
About Me
I started my career as a geologist, spending 15+ years in international uranium mining joint ventures (Canadian/French) across Kazakhstan — managing SQL geological databases, leading feasibility studies, and preparing NI 43-101 reports for the Toronto Stock Exchange. That work taught me rigour, precision, and systems thinking.
In 2020 I completed a Full Stack Engineering bootcamp at Code Chrysalis in Tokyo and joined Rakuten as a QA Automation Engineer. I now lead a team of 11 engineers, drive AI-augmented testing using LLM APIs, and have achieved 88% automated deployment for QA releases. I'm passionate about quality, automation, and using AI to make testing smarter.
Quick Facts
Based in
Tokyo, Japan (PR)
Current role
QA Automation Team Lead
Speciality
AI-Driven Testing & LLMs
Technical Skills
AI & LLM Tools
Automation & Testing
DevOps & Cloud
Languages
Certifications & Languages
Key Certifications
- ISTQB Advanced Test Analyst (CTAL-TA) — ASTQB, Apr 2023
- Algorithms for Searching, Sorting & Indexing — U. of Colorado, 2022
- IBM Data Engineering Foundations — Coursera, 2021
- Linux Commands & Shell Scripting — IBM/Coursera, 2021
- TOEIC 895
Languages
- English — Business / TOEIC 895
- Japanese — Business / JLPT N2
- Russian — Native
- Kazakh — Native