Top expert inGeospatial Technology and Web Mapping
Matthias Kuhn is a CTO and co-founder of OPENGIS.ch with 13 years of experience building full-stack geospatial software and tools that bridge field work and desktop GIS. A geographer by training with a background in cartography and computer software engineering, he blends domain expertise with hands-on development from embedded systems to server backends. Matthias is a long-time QGIS contributor and technical writer who has improved core geometry validation, documentation, and cross-platform packaging, and has worked on high-profile projects like QGIS and microsoft/vcpkg. He champions open source as both a development model and a way to make powerful spatial tools accessible, and he pairs that ethos with practical UX-minded improvements to installation and documentation. Less obvious: his path from hobbyist coder to entrepreneur is rooted in actively shipping fixes across build systems and libraries, ensuring geospatial software runs reliably on desktops, mobile, and even constrained platforms.
13 years of coding experience
Master's degree, Geography, Master's degree, Geography at University of Zurich
High School, Computer Software Engineering, High School, Computer Software Engineering at Kantonsschule Büelrain Winterthur
QGIS is a free, open source, cross platform (lin/win/mac) geographical information system (GIS)
Role in this project:
Back-end Developer
Contributions:1456 reviews, 5931 commits, 3441 PRs in 10 years 7 months
Contributions summary:Matthias primarily worked on improving the geometry validation feature within the QGIS project, focusing on core functionality and underlying data structures. Their contributions involved implementing several geometry check types, refining existing ones, and optimizing the processing of geometric data. They also addressed memory management issues and improved error handling within the geometry validation service.
Contributions:11 reviews, 73 commits, 43 PRs in 9 years 5 months
Contributions summary:Matthias primarily contributed to the QGIS website by updating documentation and installation instructions across various operating systems. Their work included adding and modifying installation steps for Fedora, Ubuntu, and RHEL/CentOS, ensuring users had up-to-date information. They also focused on improving the user experience by updating download links, fixing UI elements like favicons, and modifying text to ensure that the website provides clear and accurate information to users. Additionally, the user made visual changes and improvements to the website's aesthetics and usability, such as styling documentation sections.
wpsqgiswfs
Find and Hire Top DevelopersWe’ve analyzed the programming source code of over 60 million software developers on GitHub and scored them by 50,000 skills. Sign-up on Prog,AI to search for software developers.
Request Free Trial
Matthias Kuhn - Chief Technology Officer at OPENGIS.ch