Finance & Banking

Experienced individuals involved in financial services, including banking, investment, insurance, and real estate

Samia Durrani

Samia Durrani

Samia leads the pre sales and delivery of large scale and complex security projects across a diverse portfolio of financial services clients. Samia is passionate about encouraging people from diverse backgrounds into technology careers. She does this by providing mentoring sessions, guest lectures to university courses and helping to lead D&I initiatives.

Samia leads the pre sales and delivery of large scale and complex security projects across a diverse portfolio of financial services clients. Samia is passionate about encouraging people from diverse backgrounds into technology careers. She does this... Show more

Brenda Yazmín Bravo Urrutia

Brenda Yazmín Bravo Urrutia

Computer Engineer and Technology Consultant specializing in Enterprise Architecture, AI integrations, and data governance within the financial sector. Former IBM developer and business analyst at Grupo Carso, currently working on large-scale architecture and integration projects. Passionate about cybersecurity, artificial intelligence, and empowering the next generation of women in STEM.

Computer Engineer and Technology Consultant specializing in Enterprise Architecture, AI integrations, and data governance within the financial sector. Former IBM developer and business analyst at Grupo Carso, currently working on large-scale architec... Show more

Jammie Jelks

Jammie Jelks

Jammie Jelks has spent more than 10 years building AI and automation products in mortgage lending, where skepticism isn’t resistance—it’s survival. Starting his career as an underwriter before becoming a product leader, he’s seen technically perfect systems fail while imperfect ones succeed because they earned user trust. Now Director of Product at Prudent AI, Jammie focuses on bridging the gap between AI capability and real-world adoption in high-stakes environments.

Jammie Jelks has spent more than 10 years building AI and automation products in mortgage lending, where skepticism isn’t resistance—it’s survival. Starting his career as an underwriter before becoming a product leader, he’s seen technically perfect ... Show more

Steven Annegarn

Steven Annegarn

Steven started his career in finance and ventured into analytics around 2018. He is currently Co-owner and CTO of DATA KINGDOM, a scale-up in Data Analytics consultancy. Steven focuses mainly on building the Power BI architecture, Data Modeling and Governance. Trough this, he helps clients get more value out of their data.

Steven started his career in finance and ventured into analytics around 2018. He is currently Co-owner and CTO of DATA KINGDOM, a scale-up in Data Analytics consultancy. Steven focuses mainly on building the Power BI architecture, Data Modeling and G... Show more

Sri Hari Deep Kolagani

Sri Hari Deep Kolagani

Sri Kolagani is a Director of CRM Engineering at Elastic. He leads engineering teams and supports Sales, Service, Marketing, and Partner Operations, focusing on enabling internal stakeholders through the adoption of new technologies, including generative AI. He is responsible for shaping the application ecosystem by introducing innovative capabilities and delivering solutions that advance both productivity and operational effectiveness. Prior to joining Elastic, Kolagani held senior leadership positions across financial services, payments, healthcare, and cloud computing.

Sri Kolagani is a Director of CRM Engineering at Elastic. He leads engineering teams and supports Sales, Service, Marketing, and Partner Operations, focusing on enabling internal stakeholders through the adoption of new technologies, including genera... Show more

Alejo Krismancic

Alejo Krismancic

Passionate about technology and cybersecurity - Experienced IT consultant
un curioso insoportable

Passionate about technology and cybersecurity - Experienced IT consultant un curioso insoportable Show more

Sam Dengler

Sam Dengler

Sam Dengler is a Sr Principal Engineer at JPMorganChase, focused on AI-assisted developer experience, agentic systems, and high-scale event-driven architectures. He has spoken at AWS re:Invent, GOTO, Airflow Summit, and DevNexus on topics ranging from serverless patterns to distributed systems. Previously at AWS and Capital One, Sam has authored technical content on the AWS Compute, Architecture, and Database blogs, and designed official AWS training courses on event-driven and serverless architectures. When he's not building systems that refuse to die, he's probably debugging one that should have.

Sam Dengler is a Sr Principal Engineer at JPMorganChase, focused on AI-assisted developer experience, agentic systems, and high-scale event-driven architectures. He has spoken at AWS re:Invent, GOTO, Airflow Summit, and DevNexus on topics ranging fro... Show more

Gregory Thoke

Gregory Thoke

Gregory Thoke is an entrepreneur based in Fort Collins, Colorado, with over a decade of professional experience in finance, strategy, and business development. He applies a disciplined, data-driven approach to building and scaling ventures, focusing on long-term growth, operational efficiency, and calculated risk management.

After beginning his career in financial services, Gregory transitioned into entrepreneurship, where he leverages his financial expertise to evaluate opportunities, manage cash flow, and execute sustainable growth strategies. His background provides a structured foundation for decision-making while allowing flexibility to innovate and adapt in competitive markets.

He earned his degree in Finance from the University of Northern Colorado’s Monfort College of Business in 2012. He is currently pursuing his MBA at Colorado State University, further strengthening his expertise in leadership, operations, and strategic management.
Outside of business and academics, Gregory enjoys skiing, hiking Colorado’s mountains, volunteering, and spending time with his family — embracing the same resilience, preparation, and long-term mindset that guide his professional work.

Gregory Thoke is an entrepreneur based in Fort Collins, Colorado, with over a decade of professional experience in finance, strategy, and business development. He applies a disciplined, data-driven approach to building and scaling ventures, focusing ... Show more

Jason Paolasini

Jason Paolasini

Jason Paolasini drives RBC’s hybrid cloud strategy, integrating on-prem and public cloud infrastructures using CNCF projects and Kubernetes. As a Kubernetes-first organization and CNCF Silver sponsor, RBC leverages open source frameworks to streamline security and operational efficiency. Jason fosters open source contributions while scaling multi-cluster environments to hundreds of thousands of cores, positioning RBC as a leader in financial cloud infrastructure.

Jason Paolasini drives RBC’s hybrid cloud strategy, integrating on-prem and public cloud infrastructures using CNCF projects and Kubernetes. As a Kubernetes-first organization and CNCF Silver sponsor, RBC leverages open source frameworks to streamlin... Show more

Eric Bernstein

Eric Bernstein

Eric has helped thousands of people buy homes, build wealth, and feel confident about one of life’s biggest financial decisions. Since entering the mortgage industry in 2015, he’s closed over $1 billion in home loans and earned a reputation for solving complex financing scenarios with clarity, speed, and care. He also has extensive experience helping veterans use VA IRRRLs to reduce their monthly payments quickly with minimal documentation.

Eric’s approach is deeply shaped by the customer service philosophy in Raving Fans by Ken Blanchard—a book he credits as a major influence in his career. He believes every client deserves more than a smooth transaction—they deserve a standout experience that’s personal, consistent, and always better than expected. That mindset drives everything he does at LendFriend, from how his team communicates to how they show up when things get complicated.

While Eric works with a wide range of homebuyers and homeowners, he has deep expertise in helping clients who fall outside the traditional lending box—self-employed borrowers, real estate investors, crypto holders, and others with unique financial profiles. He specializes in VA, Conventional, and Jumbo loans, as well as Non-QM solutions like bank statement, DSCR, and asset depletion programs.

Whether you're buying your first home or financing your fifth, Eric brings the same thoughtful, personalized approach to every deal. He leads the LendFriend team with a focus on transparency, creativity, and making sure every client walks away feeling like they had someone in their corner from day one.

Eric has helped thousands of people buy homes, build wealth, and feel confident about one of life’s biggest financial decisions. Since entering the mortgage industry in 2015, he’s closed over $1 billion in home loans and earned a reputation for solvi... Show more

Raman Aggarwal

Raman Aggarwal

A globally respected Chartered Accountant with 35+ years of experience, Raman Aggarwal has been at the forefront of accounting, tax, legal, and cross-border advisory for clients globally. His vision goes beyond efficiency, aiming to make offshore accounting truly transformative.

He leads with clarity, compassion, and conviction, creating solutions that help businesses elevate. At Indian Muneem, his focus remains steadfast: driving innovation, delivering impact, and creating a legacy that empowers growth on a global scale.

A globally respected Chartered Accountant with 35+ years of experience, Raman Aggarwal has been at the forefront of accounting, tax, legal, and cross-border advisory for clients globally. His vision goes beyond efficiency, aiming to make offshore acc... Show more

Ben Francis

Ben Francis

With over 18 years of experience at Bridgeview Financial Partners, Ben Francis specializes in guiding clients through the complexities of retirement and distribution planning. A native of Chattanooga, Ben is an expert in Social Security strategies, Required Minimum Distributions (RMDs), Qualified Charitable Distributions (QCDs), income maximization, tax management, long-term care planning, and other critical areas affecting retirees.
He works closely with clients to address unique challenges during the transition from accumulation to decumulation, providing ongoing reviews of Social Security, distribution planning, income generation, investment strategies, and risk management to ensure their financial well-being.
In addition to his client work, Ben is a highly regarded speaker known for his engaging presentations at private companies, public events, and conferences. His ability to simplify complex retirement topics into understandable and actionable insights has made him a favorite among audiences.
Ben holds a Master of Science in Financial Services from The American College and a Bachelor of Science in Accounting & Finance from the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga. His professional designations include CFP® (Certified Financial Planner™), RICP® (Retirement Income Certified Professional), WMCP® (Wealth Management Certified Professional), ChFC® (Chartered Financial Consultant), and CLU® (Chartered Life Underwriter). He is also licensed with Series 7, 6, and 63.

With over 18 years of experience at Bridgeview Financial Partners, Ben Francis specializes in guiding clients through the complexities of retirement and distribution planning. A native of Chattanooga, Ben is an expert in Social Security strategies, R... Show more

Ben Lee

Ben Lee

Andersen LLP is an award-winning tax advisory firm with a specialist Web3 tax and accounting team. It offers a range of services, from international token structuring, token incentives, fractional CFO services and back-office financial support for businesses to personal income-tax planning and compliance.

Having advised crypto clients since 2018, Ben is a member of numerous digital asset working groups focussing on tax policy and financial reporting and was awarded Spears' 500 Top Recommended Cryptocurrency Advisor in 2022 & 2024 and City Wealth's Top 50 Professionals in Crypto in 2023.

Ben is a seasoned speaker and contributor for media outlets such as Bloomberg, the FT and Tax Journal, Ben is committed to the furtherance of the UK as a jurisdiction for crypto to thrive.

Andersen LLP is an award-winning tax advisory firm with a specialist Web3 tax and accounting team. It offers a range of services, from international token structuring, token incentives, fractional CFO services and back-office financial support for bu... Show more

Douglas Gillison

Douglas Gillison

For Reuters, I focus on securities regulation, consumer finance and prudential oversight. I was previously a Congo-focused anticorruption investigator for a transparency organization and have covered war crimes trials, resource corruption and human rights. My reporting sparked a foreign bribery probe of a publicly traded mining company.

For Reuters, I focus on securities regulation, consumer finance and prudential oversight. I was previously a Congo-focused anticorruption investigator for a transparency organization and have covered war crimes trials, resource corruption and human r... Show more

Santosh Durgam

Santosh Durgam

Santosh Durgam is a data engineering & analytics leader with 20+ years building governed, high-scale data platforms across retirement/401(k), broader financial services, and healthcare. He leads cross-functional teams that deliver production-grade data lakes, lineage-aware pipelines, and ML-enabled analytics on cloud—translating governance into measurable business outcomes.

Recent speaking includes SQL Saturday Minnesota 2025, where he presented “From Ingestion to Insights: Building Robust Data Pipelines in AWS” to an in-person community audience. He has also contributed to international research forums and science conferences, and is invited to speak at ICDPN-2025 (International Conference on Data Processing & Networking), engaging practitioners and scholars on data engineering, governance, and analytics at scale. Santosh actively publishes/curates work via Google Scholar and shares practical playbooks for data quality, metadata/lineage, and operating models that connect data platforms to financial decisioning.

Beyond delivery, Santosh serves the community as a peer reviewer of scholarly work on data/ML methodologies and as a judge/mentor for select industry and academic competitions, reinforcing peer validation and public recognition. He champions modern data culture—mentoring engineers and product leaders, and advocating automation (incl. AI agents) to elevate reliability, speed, and auditability in regulated environments. Santosh recently completed his Executive MBA, sharpening strategy and value-creation at the intersection of data, risk, and growth

Santosh Durgam is a data engineering & analytics leader with 20+ years building governed, high-scale data platforms across retirement/401(k), broader financial services, and healthcare. He leads cross-functional teams that deliver production-grade da... Show more

Lone Gru

Lone Gru

Worked 20 years in Finance before moving to the ERP Team at an end customer.
Then implemented D365FSCM for Danish customers.

Lately worked as a Technical Specialist for Microsoft. And now working for Arineo.

Proud to be from the same country as D365FO!!!

Worked 20 years in Finance before moving to the ERP Team at an end customer. Then implemented D365FSCM for Danish customers. Lately worked as a Technical Specialist for Microsoft. And now working for Arineo. Proud to be from the same country a... Show more

Seetaram Rayarao

Seetaram Rayarao

Seetaram Rayarao is a Vice President and Senior Lead Engineer at JP Morgan Chase with over 18 years of experience driving innovation in cloud computing, AI, and microservices. He leads transformative projects, including the LLM Suite, integrating Generative AI frameworks such as LangChain and LangGraph with enterprise cloud solutions to deliver scalable, AI-driven applications. A Delaware AWS Community Leader (AWS Builder), Seetaram is an invited speaker at the New York AI Summit, where he presented on real-world enterprise adoption of Generative AI and agent-based systems, sharing practical lessons on scaling, governance, and measurable business impact. He is also a speaker at AI4, contributing advanced insights on production-ready AI architectures, RAG systems, and evaluation frameworks used in regulated financial environments.

Seetaram Rayarao is a Vice President and Senior Lead Engineer at JP Morgan Chase with over 18 years of experience driving innovation in cloud computing, AI, and microservices. He leads transformative projects, including the LLM Suite, integrating Gen... Show more

V Sreenivas

V Sreenivas

V. Sreenivas is the CTO of CyberDefend, where he leads work at the intersection of cybersecurity, open source, and AI-driven tooling. His focus spans supply-chain security, eBPF-based integrity systems, and emerging questions around model-generated code. He speaks frequently on how modern security and developer workflows are changing and his current work explores how organizations can build trust, clarity, and resilience in an AI-shaped software ecosystem.

V. Sreenivas is the CTO of CyberDefend, where he leads work at the intersection of cybersecurity, open source, and AI-driven tooling. His focus spans supply-chain security, eBPF-based integrity systems, and emerging questions around model-generated c... Show more

Rahul Tanniru

Rahul Tanniru

I am a Senior Vice President of Software Engineering at JPMorgan Chase, specializing in enterprise-scale cloud platforms, distributed systems, and AI-enabled infrastructure. I lead and contribute to the design of secure, scalable, and highly resilient cloud-native architectures supporting mission-critical financial systems.

My expertise spans AWS, Kubernetes, platform engineering, DevOps, and Site Reliability Engineering, with a strong focus on building self-service infrastructure platforms and enabling large engineering organizations to operate at scale. I work extensively on multi-account cloud architectures, infrastructure automation, reliability engineering, and integrating AI and machine learning workloads into modern cloud environments.

Over the past decade, I have focused on designing high-performance systems that improve scalability, operational efficiency, and platform reliability in complex enterprise environments. I am passionate about advancing cloud architecture standards, mentoring engineers, evaluating innovative technology solutions, and contributing to the broader technology community through speaking, technical publications, and industry judging initiatives.

I am a Senior Vice President of Software Engineering at JPMorgan Chase, specializing in enterprise-scale cloud platforms, distributed systems, and AI-enabled infrastructure. I lead and contribute to the design of secure, scalable, and highly resilien... Show more

Dave Coles

Dave Coles

Dave Coles brings more than 20 years of hands-on experience in IT, security, and managed services, working everywhere from small nonprofits to heavily regulated financial firms. As the Managing Partner in charge of Technical Services at Castle Rock Sky and creator of Zero Trust for Humans™, he focuses on the real front line of modern security: the people who move money, approve changes, and answer “just one quick question” in the middle of a busy day.

His work sits at the intersection of identity, fraud, and human behavior. Dave helps organizations—especially RIAs, financial services firms, and MSPs—design verification workflows that assume every request is fake until it proves itself real, without turning staff into robots or killing productivity. He takes concepts like Zero Trust, SEC/HIPAA/industry compliance, and wire-fraud risk and translates them into clear language, simple rules, and repeatable processes that real people can follow.

Dave also cares deeply about the humans doing the work. Through talks like Zen and the Art of IT Support, he addresses burnout, emotional load, and how support and security teams can stay grounded while living in always-on, high-stakes environments. His sessions are candid, practical, and built from real incidents and real tickets—not theory.

Whether he’s speaking to financial executives, compliance teams, or front-line MSP techs, Dave’s goal is the same: help humans stay human while making it brutally hard for attackers to win.

Dave Coles brings more than 20 years of hands-on experience in IT, security, and managed services, working everywhere from small nonprofits to heavily regulated financial firms. As the Managing Partner in charge of Technical Services at Castle Rock S... Show more

Sheyinka Harry

Sheyinka Harry

Sheyinka Harry is an Agile Coach with over six years of experience helping organizations navigate messy, real-world change. She partners with product, engineering, and delivery leaders to improve delivery outcomes, build trust, and create healthy, high-performing teams.

Pragmatic, people-focused, and deeply systems-oriented, Sheyinka designs and resets delivery operating models while facilitating tough conversations across product, tech, and business. She has guided teams and leaders through low trust, burnout, inconsistent delivery, and the misapplication of Agile, always balancing culture, people, and outcomes.

Her experience spans the US, Latin America, and the Caribbean, including regulated and high-stakes environments in finance, e-commerce, and payments. Sheyinka is passionate about helping organizations achieve measurable results while empowering teams to thrive sustainably.

Sheyinka Harry is an Agile Coach with over six years of experience helping organizations navigate messy, real-world change. She partners with product, engineering, and delivery leaders to improve delivery outcomes, build trust, and create healthy, hi... Show more

Thomas Kronawitter

Thomas Kronawitter

Thomas is Head of Data-Driven Applications & Services at GRENKE in Baden-Baden.
GRENKE is a financial solution provider, offering services in more than 30 countries around the world.

His department aims to deliver business value through data and data related services and applications.
He has spent the last 20 years with data, databases, IT services and related infrastructure. Before that, he was a paramedic with the German Red Cross.

When he is not pretending to work, you will probably find him on his motorcycle, as far away from paved roads as possible.

Thomas is Head of Data-Driven Applications & Services at GRENKE in Baden-Baden. GRENKE is a financial solution provider, offering services in more than 30 countries around the world. His department aims to deliver business value through data and ... Show more

Deepak Saxena

Deepak Saxena

Deepak Saxena is a Vice President of Data Science at TWG Global Holdings, where he leads the design and delivery of large-scale data engineering, analytics, and AI platforms supporting investment decision-making across structured finance products including RMBS, CMBS, ABS, and CLOs.

With over a decade of experience in enterprise data systems, Deepak specializes in building cloud-native, high-performance analytics solutions using modern data platforms, distributed computing, and AI/ML techniques. His work focuses on explainable analytics, scalable data pipelines, and applying AI responsibly in financial and enterprise decision systems.

Deepak has hands-on experience across the full lifecycle of data products—from ingestion and modeling to advanced analytics, visualization, and production deployment. He actively works with technologies such as Python, Spark, SQL, cloud platforms, and modern AI/LLM frameworks to solve real-world business problems.

In addition to his industry role, Deepak is an active contributor to technical communities through conference submissions, research-oriented writing, and mentoring. His speaking interests include applied AI, data engineering at scale, explainable machine learning, and the intersection of AI and finance.

He is passionate about sharing practical insights that help organizations move from experimental AI to reliable, production-ready systems.

Deepak Saxena is a Vice President of Data Science at TWG Global Holdings, where he leads the design and delivery of large-scale data engineering, analytics, and AI platforms supporting investment decision-making across structured finance products inc... Show more

Sreenivasulu Gajula

Sreenivasulu Gajula

The Introduction
I am a Principal Full Stack Engineer with over 15 years of experience, passionate about building and modernizing applications for the cloud. My expertise lies in architecting scalable systems using Java, microservices with Spring Boot, and creating dynamic user interfaces with Angular. I have a proven track record of leading successful enterprise application migrations to AWS and Azure, and I am eager to share practical, hands-on knowledge on full-stack development and cloud transformation strategies.

The Enterprise Experience
Currently I lead high-impact projects involving the full technology stack, from Java and Spring Boot microservices to modern Angular. My professional journey is built on a foundation of roles at leading financial institutions including JP Morgan Chase, Bank of America, and Capital One. In these positions, I have been at the forefront of large-scale application modernization, cloud transformation, and the integration of AI to optimize complex enterprise systems.

Leadership & Innovation Focus
Beyond hands-on coding and architecture, I actively mentor development teams and champion technical innovation through microservices and cloud-native design. A key area of my work involves integrating AI/ML capabilities into enterprise applications to enhance efficiency, automation, and security. My experience in modernizing legacy systems and building secure, scalable infrastructures directly intersects with critical industry themes like artificial intelligence and cybersecurity.

The Speaker Proposition
I would be honored to share actionable insights from my journey particularly in AI-augmented software engineering, cloud security best practices, and building scalable enterprise architecture. I am keen to contribute to meaningful, forward-looking discussions with fellow industry experts and researchers at your esteemed conference.

The Introduction I am a Principal Full Stack Engineer with over 15 years of experience, passionate about building and modernizing applications for the cloud. My expertise lies in architecting scalable systems using Java, microservices with Spring Bo... Show more

Venu Thangalapally

Venu Thangalapally

Senior Solutions Architect at AWS, based in Chicago, with deep expertise in cloud architecture, data and analytics, containers, and application modernization. He partners with financial service industry customers to translate business goals into secure, scalable, and compliant cloud solutions that deliver measurable value. Venu is passionate about using technology to drive innovation and operational excellence.

Senior Solutions Architect at AWS, based in Chicago, with deep expertise in cloud architecture, data and analytics, containers, and application modernization. He partners with financial service industry customers to translate business goals into secu... Show more

Satheesh Kumar Kumara Chinnaian

Satheesh Kumar Kumara Chinnaian

Satheesh Kumar Kumara Chinnaian is a Senior Staff Software Engineer and Solution Architect at PayPal with over 19 years of experience designing and delivering large-scale, distributed systems in the fintech and financial operations space. A proven technologist, he combines deep technical expertise with strategic business acumen to architect platforms that drive financial integrity, regulatory compliance, operational efficiency, and scalable monetization.
At PayPal, Satheesh has led the design and delivery of multiple mission-critical platforms. He architected the Pricing Solution Architecture, unifying subscription and usage-based monetization ecosystems and accelerating new model deployments. He also designed the Revenue Share Automation Platform, replacing manual reconciliation systems with a unified framework while enhancing partner settlement traceability.
His work on Payment Event Services established PayPal's next-generation, event-driven data platform delivering audited, reconciled payment data for financial reporting. Additionally, Satheesh architected the Strategic Tax, Invoicing & Compliance (STI) platform, enabling real-time VAT and tax calculation across regulated markets while reducing manual reconciliation efforts.
His expertise spans solution and data architecture, microservices design, distributed compute systems, and data governance. He is proficient in Apache Kafka, Spark, Spring Boot, cloud platforms, and various enterprise databases.
Before PayPal, Satheesh worked at Thales Software and CAE Simulation Technologies, where he contributed to aircraft and ground vehicle simulation systems. He holds a Bachelor's degree in Electronics and Communication Engineering from Anna University.
Satheesh is passionate about building resilient financial platforms that scale globally while maintaining the highest standards of compliance and data integrity.

Satheesh Kumar Kumara Chinnaian is a Senior Staff Software Engineer and Solution Architect at PayPal with over 19 years of experience designing and delivering large-scale, distributed systems in the fintech and financial operations space. A proven te... Show more

Seppe Housen

Seppe Housen

Hi, I’m Seppe!

I work on Responsible AI at the intersection of Artificial Intelligence (AI), risk management, and governance, with a clear mission: AI that benefits everyone.

With over five years of experience in AI, including the last three years focused specifically on Responsible AI, I specialize in helping organizations unlock the value of AI while proactively managing its risks. I combine hands-on technical expertise with a strong governance mindset, enabling me to translate complex regulatory and ethical requirements into concrete, actionable guidance for both technical and business stakeholders.

I play a central role in developing and scaling Datashift’s Responsible AI offering. Achievements I am particularly proud of include:
- Implementing Belgium’s first successful AI risk management framework for AI front-runners
- Acting as a trusted advisor to more than 15 strategic clients on Responsible AI
- Designing an internal screening process to assess the risks of all AI systems developed by Datashift
- Working on real-world AI systems ranging from agentic AI and customer-facing chatbots to healthcare AI, government evaluation systems, and pricing models in banking

What once felt like a “weakness” - an atypical background - has become my greatest strength. I combine hands-on technical experience in AI with an academic background in Criminology, Management, and Applied Economics, allowing me to connect societal impact, business value, and technical robustness. This unique perspective enables me to bridge the needs of executives, risk managers, and AI practitioners.

I began my speaking journey through Datashift’s internal knowledge-sharing sessions, and quickly expanded to community meet-ups, webinars, conferences, and interactive workshops, engaging audiences ranging from beginners to seasoned experts.

I am passionate about sharing insights on Responsible AI because AI is too valuable to ignore, yet too risky to approach carelessly.

Outside of Responsible AI, you’ll most likely find me in the gym - training my lifts and preparing for my next competition, such as the European Weightlifting Championships.

Hi, I’m Seppe! I work on Responsible AI at the intersection of Artificial Intelligence (AI), risk management, and governance, with a clear mission: AI that benefits everyone. With over five years of experience in AI, including the last three ye... Show more

Curtis Blackthorne

Curtis Blackthorne

When Curtis is not out enjoying the finest BBQ that Kansas City has to offer, he is mentoring others to help them grow into whatever butterfly or moth they want to be.

When Curtis is not out enjoying the finest BBQ that Kansas City has to offer, he is mentoring others to help them grow into whatever butterfly or moth they want to be. Show more

Henry Keniding Tarazona Lazaro

Henry Keniding Tarazona Lazaro

Bachiller en Sistemas e Informática por la UTP, especializado en desarrollo de sistemas escalables. Actualmente, me desempeño como Software Engineer en Interbank, con experiencia como arquitecto de soluciones y analista de datos utilizando Python.

Bachiller en Sistemas e Informática por la UTP, especializado en desarrollo de sistemas escalables. Actualmente, me desempeño como Software Engineer en Interbank, con experiencia como arquitecto de soluciones y analista de datos utilizando Python. Show more

Olayiwola Akinnagbe

Olayiwola Akinnagbe

Olayiwola Akinnagbe is a Senior Backend Engineer and AI researcher working at the intersection of financial technology, distributed systems, and intelligent human–AI collaboration. His work is guided by a clear conviction: systems should not merely function. They should scale, adapt, and strengthen the people who use them.

In the fintech sector, Olayiwola architects API-first, event-driven microservices that power payments, loan origination, and high-volume transaction platforms processing over one million API requests daily. He designs secure and resilient backend infrastructures using Java, Spring Boot, Kafka, and AWS. By applying CQRS principles, low-latency search optimization, and cloud-native deployment strategies, he consistently delivers measurable improvements in latency, throughput, and system reliability.

His contribution extends beyond engineering practice into scholarly research. He is the author of the peer-reviewed paper “Human–AI Collaboration: Enhancing Productivity and Decision-Making,” where he reframed artificial intelligence not as automation, but as cognitive partnership. His work examines how humans and intelligent systems can intentionally distribute cognitive responsibility while preserving human agency. This framework has been recognized for its clarity in explaining productivity acceleration and hybrid decision-making models.

Olayiwola holds a Master’s degree in Information Technology, graduating in the top five percent of his class, with research focused on machine learning–based malware detection. His broader publications span AI in finance, cybersecurity, federated learning, and predictive modeling for risk management. This combination of production engineering and academic inquiry enables him to translate theoretical insight into secure, deployable, and economically sound systems.

An AWS Certified Solutions Architect and Developer, he is committed to building architectures that are secure by design, resilient under pressure, and optimized for real-world constraints. He mentors engineers, contributes to technical scholarship, and speaks on system design, fintech infrastructure, and the evolving discipline of human–AI collaborative intelligence.

For Olayiwola, technology is not only about writing code. It is about designing systems that expand human capability while preserving judgment, responsibility, and trust.

Olayiwola Akinnagbe is a Senior Backend Engineer and AI researcher working at the intersection of financial technology, distributed systems, and intelligent human–AI collaboration. His work is guided by a clear conviction: systems should not merely f... Show more

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