I am Federico Rojo, the author of Ceibo. I started this project as a hobby and named the engine after the national tree of my home country.
Developing a modern chess engine has been, by far, the most challenging and rewarding project I have ever undertaken. It is a field where there is always something new to learn, another idea to explore, or another improvement to discover. From search algorithms and evaluation to NNUE training and performance optimization, the journey has been as enjoyable as the destination.
Ceibo is a long-term project. Although life occasionally limits the time I can devote to it, I always return with new ideas and a renewed desire to make it stronger. My goal is simple: to keep learning, keep improving the engine, and share the results freely with the chess community.
Like many hobby engine authors, I began this journey inspired by the excellent BlueFever Software videos on the Vice chess engine. They provided the motivation to get started and helped demystify many of the fundamental concepts. As the project evolved, the Chess Programming Wiki became an invaluable reference, while the TalkChess community has been an outstanding place to exchange ideas and learn from many talented engine developers.
I hope you enjoy using Ceibo as much as I enjoy developing it.