As companies continue to formalize their approach to artificial intelligence, August brought several new appointments to AI leadership roles. Here are the 10 Chief AI Officer appointments and related executive moves announced during the month.
Target Appoints Chandhu Nair as First CAIO and SVP
Target appointed Chandhu Nair as its first chief AI officer and SVP. Nair will join the company after spending more than six years at Lowe’s, most recently as SVP of stores, data, AI and innovation.
ProofID Announces Neil Evans as First CAIO
ProofID, an identity security specialist providing advisory, implementation, and managed services, has appointed Neil Evans its first Chief AI Officer. The newly created role supports the company’s strategy to expand its AI capabilities and AI-powered identity services. Evans brings more than 30 years of technology leadership experience spanning software engineering, product innovation, and executive leadership.
Sayee Bellamkonda Joins Osaic as Chief AI and Technology Officer
Osaic has hired Sayee Bellamkonda as its new chief artificial intelligence and technology officer. He joins from Vialto Partners, a global provider of tax and mobility solutions, where he was executive vice president and chief digital and technology officer.
Nimrod Barak Joins Synchrony as CAIO
Synchrony has appointed Nimrod Barak as Chief AI Officer to lead the company’s artificial intelligence strategy and accelerate innovation across its financial services enterprise.
Liberty Bank Announces Marc Sylvain as First CAIO
Liberty Bank has named its first chief artificial intelligence officer, expanding the leadership team overseeing the lender’s growing investment in AI. Marc Sylvain, who joined Liberty in 2024 as senior vice president of strategic planning and innovation, will lead the bank’s AI strategy and oversee its newly created AI Center of Excellence.
Monte Carlo Appoints Nik Acheson as CAIO
Monte Carlo announced that Nik Acheson has joined the company as Chief AI Officer. Acheson joins from Highmark Health, where he led data and AI strategy, architecture, and engineering. Acheson’s appointment comes as Monte Carlo accelerates its expansion into agent trust, helping enterprises monitor, troubleshoot, and improve production AI systems as they move from human-guided agents to fully autonomous operations.
Emerson Promotes Rudy Sengupta as Chief Technology and AI Officer
Emerson announced that Rudy Sengupta, Vice President and General Manager of Test and Analytics Software at Emerson Test & Measurement, has been appointed Senior Vice President, Chief Technology and AI Officer. In this role, Sengupta will be a member of Emerson’s Office of the Chief Executive and shape the Company’s technology and AI strategy across Emerson’s leading portfolio of industrial software, control and intelligent devices.
Drew Smith Joins ChristianaCare as Chief Data and AI Officer
Drew Smith has been named chief data and AI officer of ChristianaCare. Prior to joining ChristianaCare, he served as chief data and analytics officer at OhioHealth from 2023 to January 2026.
Oura Announces Han Chiu as AVP of AI and Software Engineering
Oura is pleased to welcome Han Chiu as Senior Vice President of AI and Software Engineering. Han joins Oura from Click Therapeutics, where he served as Chief Technology Officer and led engineering, data, platform, product, and design for FDA-regulated, prescription digital therapeutics operating under HIPAA.
New York Life Appoints Zhen Zhao as CAIO
New York Life announced the appointment of new Chief AI Officer Zhen Zhao. In this role, Zhao will lead the company’s AI strategy, platforms and execution, driving the development and delivery of advanced AI and data science solutions, including agentic AI and machine learning capabilities.
Additional CAIOs on the Move