David Knichel, PhD

Freelance secure AI & solution architect

Hi there!

Turn your AI ideas into secure, reliable systems. I help you choose suitable models, automate workflows, and integrate AI into your existing IT.

I’m David Knichel, with a Ph.D. in cybersecurity and applied cryptography.

Portrait of Dr. David Knichel
Dr.-Ing. David Knichel AI architecture, Applied cryptography
Ph.D.German IT Security Award (2022)German & EnglishBased in Germany

01 / How I can help

From a useful idea
to a working system.

01

AI architecture & integration

LLM applications, RAG, agentic workflows, and automation that fit your processes and existing enterprise environment.

02

Evaluation & optimization

Compare models and tools, evaluate quality and reliability, and find the right balance of cost, latency, and performance.

03

Security & confidential AI

Secure data flows, threat analysis, confidential computing, and deployment architectures for sensitive information.

04

Prototypes & implementation

Test the approach with practical prototypes, API integrations, and clear technical guidance for your engineering team.

Tools I work with

Integration & automation

LangChain, LangGraph, Open WebUI, n8n

Evaluation & observability

LangSmith, Langfuse, MLflow

Routing & model access

LiteLLM, OpenRouter

02 / Background

Research depth.
Engineering practice.

A foundation in cryptography and cybersecurity, applied to the AI systems companies use today.

Full experience in my CV

2026 to present

Solution Architect

Edgeless Systems

Secure enterprise AI, agentic workflows, model evaluation, and confidential AI integration.

2024 to present

Freelance AI & Security Consultant

Architecture, prototypes, technical evaluations, and documentation for AI and confidential computing.

2024

Enterprise Security Architect

Cymotive

Automotive security architectures and systematic risk analysis for OEM and Tier-1 environments.

2019–2023

Researcher & Ph.D., Dr.-Ing.

Ruhr University Bochum, summa cum laude

Formal verification and automated protection of cryptographic hardware. Research published at ACM CCS, CHES, and ASIACRYPT.

03 / Get in touch

What are you
working on?

Tell me what you want to build, improve, or understand.
We can start with a conversation.

Send me an email