Maanas Belambe

Senior at the University of Illinois, studying Computer Science, Statistics, and Economics.

Interested in using AI/ML, data science, and backend systems to solve problems where
data drives decision-making.

Currently working on electrical substation monitoring at Mitsubishi Electric Power Products Inc.

Born and raised in Pittsburgh, I'm a die-hard sports fan (Go Steelers, Pens, Bucs, and Illini!!!), and I'm always ready to talk sports, tech, or anything in between!

Career

Power-I Intern @ Mitsubishi Electric Power Products Inc.

May 2025 - current

Incredibly rewarding experience up to now. I've been building a computer vision pipeline that turns gauge images into live dashboard readings, cutting inference time and boosting accuracy. I'm also diving into how components and services interact, from edge cameras and robotic dogs to cloud APIs. This has given me a solid footing in system design and a clear view of how my work fits into the bigger picture.

Data Science Analyst Intern @ ServiceLink

May 2024 - August 2024

In my first corporate role, I used multimodal LLMs and computer vision to improve image captioning and property damage classification. I learned the nuances of prompt engineering, seeing how the right phrasing and ordering of instructions can dramatically improve model outputs. I also worked on QA scripts to automatically flag inconsistencies between our inspection reports and image analyses. Working alongside cross-functional teams helped me better understand the business side of things.

Front End Associate @ Walmart

May 2023 - August 2023

A crash course in adaptability amid chaos that taught me how to deal with diverse personalities and situations. Firm believer that everyone should experience a customer-facing job at least once.

School

University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign

Expected December 2025

B.S. in Computer Science & Statistics, Minor in Economics • GPA: 3.97

Enrolled in electives related to AI/ML, data science, databases, sports analytics, and statistical modeling.

Undergraduate Researcher @ Illinois Mathematics Lab: applying probability and game theory to study decision‑making, best-response strategies, and equilibrium behavior in Poker‑like models.

ex-Software Team Lead @ Ghost Electric Motorcycles: designed, built, and maintained the team website.

Projects

MLB Instant Replay Analysis

Explored instant replay data from the first few years of the expanded replay system. We used run expectancy matrices and other metrics to analyze the impact of challenges before and after a play. Also added in some visualizations and interactive filters to make it easier to explore and understand the data.

World University Ranker

Full-stack project with a backend database hosted on Google Cloud Platform. Cleaned and merged data from multiple sources to allow users to rank universities based on their preferences. Built a front end where users can filter results and log into to bookmark their favorite schools. Got hands-on experience in database design, data cleaning, and tying everything together into a seamless user experience.

Image Recognition Sudoku Solver

My first dive into computer vision. Used OpenCV preprocessing and contour detection to scan paper puzzles into playable digital puzzles on a Python/Pygame GUI. Also generated valid Sudoku boards in under a second with a backtracking algorithm.

NFL Game Prediction

Pulled and cleaned three seasons of NFL game data. Engineered custom metrics and ran my first machine learning experiments to see how well I could predict game outcomes. Learned how vital data preparation and feature selection are for reliable predictions.