About Break the Build & Me

Engineering Quality at the Speed of Innovation

Hi, I’m Thomas Howard; a Quality Engineering leader redefining how teams build and ship software in the age of AI. With 15+ years in test automation and 9+ years leading QE at high-growth startups, I’ve turned brittle pipelines and flaky tests into high-confidence, scalable systems.

I don’t just test software; I engineer quality into the entire delivery lifecycle.

My Mission and Real Talk

To make modern Quality Engineering accessible, effective, and indispensable. Whether you’re:
🔹 An engineer breaking into automation
🔹 A leader buried under tech debt
🔹 A founder seeking release confidence at scale

You’ll find frameworks, tools, and real-world strategies that help you deliver quality faster; with less chaos.

I am not a guru; just a guy in the trenches.

I write code every day; and I happily admit that some of it is pure, glorious garbage. Why? Because every bad line gets me closer to the good stuff. I live by “fail fast, learn faster,” and Break the Build exists to share those lessons so others can level up in QA and QE while we push this industry into its next era.

I’m not just interested in AI; I’m obsessed with it. I tinker, break things, rebuild them, and wire them into CI/CD pipelines just to see what’s possible (ask my SDET Zoe, she’ll tell you). That obsession has fueled my next big project: a book that blends AI, automation, and quality engineering—coming to Amazon Kindle in January 2026.

What I Cover Here...In case you're interested.

AI-Augmented Testing
Test case generation from screenshots, flaky test triage, traceability with LLMs, and self-healing pipelines powered by GenAI.

CI/CD That Doesn’t Break
Fast, stable, intelligent pipelines using GitHub Actions, Allure TestOps, AWS runners, and container orchestration.

Quality Strategy & Team Design
From shift-left testing to AI agents in production; how to evolve from zero QA to a modern QE function in 12–24 months.

Emerging Trends in Testing
Stay ahead with breakdowns of the tools, techniques, and innovations transforming how we test software in 2025 and beyond.

Career Growth & Mentorship
From IC to QE leader: interview prep, resume strategy, visibility on LinkedIn, and growing into a high-impact career.

Stay in the Loop

No fluff, no filler, no guru—just real, battle-tested insights on building modern quality systems.

Have a question? I read every DM and email.
Email Me or Follow on LinkedIn + Subscribe to the Blog