Welcome

New York, NY

Howard Dean Watts

Founding Staff Software Engineer at Chronograph.peCreator of WordTree and Lex

Hey there. I am a software developer based in New York, currently at Chronograph Private Equity, where I lead the development of tools to automate the extraction of unstructured data from our clients.

Technical Experience

With over a decade of professional experience as a software engineer, I've had the opportunity to work with a wide range of cutting-edge technologies.

I'm passionate about continuously learning and applying new technologies to build innovative solutions. Here's a selection of tools I've worked with throughout my career.

Curious how I built this animation? Read the full breakdown in this blog post!

"[Dean] has helped me develop as an engineer more than he probably realizes."

JUNIOR ENGINEER POST PROMOTION

"A strong sense of humility, which when paired with [his] incredible technical skills, is the winning combo that defines the "Dean" brand."

FORMER ENGINEERING MANAGER

"Dean excels in working on large projects, no matter the complexity he is on top of it and gets it done well."

SENIOR COWORKER

"Dean always makes time to help out with questions as they come up and lend a hand."

SENIOR ENGINEER

"Hard to imagine anyone who's attitude is better, to be honest. Positive, energetic, and consistent every day."

ENGINEERING MANAGER

"Really appreciate all the help [Dean] gave but more importantly am thankful for the laughs and for making the transition into my first real job pretty seamless."

FORMER COWORKER

"[Dean has] set the baseline for what it means to be a good coworker. I have found myself thinking "What would Dean do?""

FORMER COWORKER

Soft Skills & Testimonials

Working in software is not an individual sport. It requires empathy, communication, and collaboration. Strong technical skills are important, but the ability to listen, adapt, and work effectively with others is what truly drives impactful software development and team growth.

In that vein, I believe that soft skills are a key to being a force multiplier. Whether through mentorship, clear documentation, or refining developer workflows, I work hard to raise the floor so that every engineer can contribute at their best. Great teams aren't just built on individual talent but on the systems and support that help everyone thrive. By investing in people as much as in code, we can ensure long-term success for both the team and the software we create.

WordTree

WordTree is a word puzzle played one letter at a time. Players fill a tree of five rows, from a one-letter word at the top to a five-letter word at the bottom, without knowing which letter comes next.

First built in 2023 as an experiment in cross-platform development, the original grew to over 1,000 active users. In 2026 I did a ground-up rewrite for iOS and Android with a shared Daily Puzzle, an Endless mode, live head-to-head duels, verified leaderboards, and replays.

Under the hood, a deterministic TypeScript engine runs unmodified on the phone and in a Cloudflare Worker, so the server can replay every move to verify scores. That one property powers the anti-cheat, multiplayer fairness, and replays. Give it a try!

Lex

Lex is a wordbuilding roguelike that combines Scrabble and Poker into one experience. Players spell words to score points, then craft synergies and stack absurd multipliers to survive an escalating gauntlet of Bosses.

With over 100 unique Editors that bend the rules, 14 starting Bags, and tile upgrades like Steel, Glass, and Stone, no two runs play the same. Spelling a word is easy. Breaking the dictionary is where the fun begins.

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