Sean Kamkar

Chief Technology Officer at Zest AI

Burbank, California, United States

About Sean Kamkar

Sean Kamkar is Chief Technology Officer at Zest AI. Location: Burbank, California, United States.

Sean Kamkar is the Chief Technology Officer at Zest AI, where he leads engineering, data science, and analytics. His teams build and deploy systems that combine rigorous risk modeling with generative AI to strengthen lending decisions, with more than 1,000 models operating in production across hundreds of financial institutions. At Zest AI, Sean was foundational to the development of the company’s early risk modeling technology and has led its evolution into broader solutions for lenders. Today, Zest combines robust model development with GenAI-powered analytics—including root cause analysis, benchmarking, and simulation—to help lenders strengthen underwriting and fraud controls, optimize performance, and responsibly expand access to credit. Zest AI holds more than 50 patents across machine learning and AI governance. Sean holds a Ph.D. in Aeronautics and Astronautics from Stanford University and completed postdoctoral research at NASA Ames Research Center. He resides in Burbank, California with his family, where he attempts to play outdoor tennis year-round, with varying degrees of success.

Skills

  • Machine Learning
  • Software Development

Additional experience

  • Senior Vice President / Head of Data Science

    Zest AI

    March 2022 – October 2024

Education

  • Ph.D., Stanford University
  • M.S., Stanford University