Dr. Zack Izham

Global AI technology leader with 20+ years spanning Manufacturing (Aerospace, Automotive), Financial Services, and Gaming. Built and scaled AI/ML practices delivering 20-30% operational efficiency gains. Expert in sensor technology (MEMS accelerometers, gyros, magnetic sensors), machine learning systems, predictive analytics, and C-level advisory—bridging hardware innovation with AI-driven insights.

Global Managing Director, AI Industrial Solutions at Cloudera Inc. (2025-06 – Present)

Built and scaled Cloudera's global manufacturing AI practice from inception, establishing end-to-end AI and agentic AI solutions. Led cross-functional initiative across 170+ sales and solutions professionals in North America, EMEA, and APAC.

• Developed comprehensive go-to-market training enabling teams to position AI solutions for Apple, Audi, Porsche, HP, Dell, ExxonMobil, Seat, Skoda, and Infineon
• Architected agentic AI prototypes for predictive maintenance combining machine risk classification, repair prioritisation, personnel allocation, and supply chain optimization—delivering 20-30% downtime reduction
• Leveraged Cloudera's open-source ecosystem (Data Services, AI, Observability) for scalable, production-grade AI infrastructure

Principal Solution Architect, Data & AI Practice at Fellowmind Germany (2024-08 – 2025-05)

Established comprehensive Data and AI practice with full-stack service portfolio. Served as de facto CTO on Nerd Council driving technology strategy.

• Developed end-to-end AI offerings and trained sales teams on Microsoft AI stack positioning
• Led all pre-sales, solution architecture, and technical advisory connecting AI solutions to business outcomes

Director at Stark International UG (2020-07 – Present)

AI strategy, pre-sales, and solution engineering consulting for startups serving enterprise clients. Technical direction for analytics, ML, and LLM initiatives. Executive education on AI strategy and deployment.

Senior Engineering Consultant at Kensu Inc. (2021-07 – 2023-06)

• Built end-to-end data observable cloud infrastructure for algorithmic trading platform with ML-driven data quality anomaly detection
• Developed executive education webinars on data infrastructure quality for AI/MLOps. Led pre-sales integration engineering for banking clients

Director, Operations & Manufacturing AI at Carbon Inc. (2019-04 – 2020-09)

• Led operations for 3D smart manufacturing in Germany. Built and led team implementing AI/ML predictive maintenance across Germany and China production sites
• Managed C-level relationships and delivered measurable equipment uptime improvements through predictive analytics

Portfolio Manager & AI/ML Operations, VW Group Datalab at Volkswagen AG (2016-10 – 2019-03)

Led operations for Volkswagen Group's innovation incubator, managing portfolio system for 30+ member AI/ML team. Established project methodologies that became VW Group standard for ML/AI projects (€60K-€300K range).

• Managed €600K annual budget for AI/ML startup initiative, fostering external partnerships and technology scouting
• Led data scientist and developer teams delivering production ML/AI projects: AWS cloud analytics platform, SAP HANA customer churn models, financial time-series predictors, computer vision for airbag deployment
• Developed executive training programs ("Introduction to Analytics and AI", "Extreme Project Management") for 25+ executives. Published two papers at Nvidia GPU Technology Conference

Principal Data Scientist EMEA at Hewlett Packard Inc. (2014-07 – 2016-08)

• Advised enterprise clients on data strategy, analytics technology, and ML implementation across insurance (premium pricing), automotive (failure prediction), and hedge funds (energy trading)
• Architected end-to-end ML pipelines and provided C-level advisory on analytics transformation

Quantitative Analyst Manager at bet365.com (2011-01 – 2014-05)

Led quantitative team constructing mathematical models for sports and financial betting pricing. Built trend and volatility models, backtesting infrastructure, and pricing validation frameworks.

Aerospace Data & Test Engineer at Airbus (2004-06 – 2010-12)

• Managed A350XWB wind tunnel test campaign (€1M budget) with full project planning and execution
• Designed and built computational tools for processing and mining large sparse datasets for A320, A350XWB, and A400M aircraft programs

PhD in MEMS Technology, Engineering Sciences – University of Birmingham (2000 – 2004)

MEng (Honours) in Engineering – University of Birmingham & Copenhagen (1996 – 2000)