CourseTable
Developer · Yale Computer Society
Developing course planning software used by thousands of students at Yale.
Visit CourseTable
Yuanrui (Ray) Zhao
Mathematician, programmer, pianist, calisthenics athlete.
CS & Math + Certificate in Data Science @ Yale '30
New Haven, CT
Right now
Working on
CourseTable, with the Yale Computer Society.
Learning
Probability theory, discrete math, options.
Exploring
The space between algorithms, math, and markets.
01 / About
My name is Yuanrui Zhao, but most of my friends call me Ray (like a ray of sunshine to brighten your day!). I grew up in Sammamish, Washington, and now study computer science, mathematics, and data science at Yale.
My professional interests lie primarily in quantitative finance and big tech, particularly AI/ML research and engineering. Outside of academics, you'll often find me playing the piano or practicing calisthenics.
02 / Projects
Frostbyte
Co-founder · Frostbyte Technologies
Co-founded Frostbyte Technologies to develop an autonomous sidewalk de-icing robot designed to make winter maintenance more thorough, efficient, and affordable. I helped design and refine the prototype, targeting a cost of under $1,000 per unit—roughly 80% less than comparable commercial products.
Our team was named the Washington State Winner of Samsung Solve for Tomorrow, earning $12,000 in Samsung technology for our school, and was later invited to present our project at the Gates Foundation.
Read the Sammamish Independent articleInscight Education
Co-founder & board director · September 2022–April 2026
Co-founded and directed Inscight Education to make hands-on STEM learning more accessible to elementary students. I led program design, volunteer coordination, and outreach for 15+ public-library workshops serving 350+ children across two Washington counties, and helped organize online STEM summer programs.
Visit Inscight Education03 / Research
Sums of squares & polygonal numbers
PROMYS 2025 · Alumnus
Completed PROMYS, a rigorous six-week program in proof-based number theory for approximately 80 high school students selected from across the U.S. and abroad. During a four-week exploration lab, I collaborated with fellow students to investigate sums of squares and polygonal numbers, culminating in a jointly authored research paper and presentation.
04 / Accomplishments
- USA Mathematical Olympiad (USAMO)
- Qualifier · 2025
- USA Junior Mathematical Olympiad (USAJMO)
- Qualifier · 2024
- 2x USA Computing Olympiad (USACO) Platinum Division
- Certified · 2025, 2026
- Codeforces
- Candidate Master · 1961 peak rating
- LeetCode
- 2780 peak rating · Top 0.06%