10 Walmart AI and data science leaders
Timothy L. Jacobs, Vice President, Applied AI and Machine Learning at Walmart, heads this list of Walmart AI and data science leaders, which also includes heads of applied AI labs and data and AI, and senior directors and directors of AI, AI/ML and data science. A reader can learn how AI and data science leaders work at Walmart from people who have held the role.
Professionals to explore
Ehsan Nazarian, Ph.D.
LinkedInExperience: Senior Director of Data Science (ML/AI) · Walmart
Ehsan Nazarian has been Senior Director of Data Science (ML/AI) at Walmart since March 2023, leading ML/AI development teams that build solutions to optimize in-store operations. Ehsan Nazarian was Director of Data Science (ML/AI) at Walmart from 2019 to 2023 and Principal Data Scientist (ML/AI) there from 2016 to 2019.
Leonardo Lezcano
LinkedInExperience: Head of the Walmart Translation Platform - Director of Engineering, AI/ML · Walmart Global Tech
Leonardo Lezcano has been Head of the Walmart Translation Platform - Director of Engineering, AI/ML at Walmart Global Tech since December 2025, and the profile says Leonardo Lezcano has grown and led the machine learning engineers who power machine translation across Walmart. Leonardo Lezcano held Head of Machine Learning at the Walmart Translation Platform - Distinguished Scientist in 2025 and Sr Data Science Manager II - Cofounder and Head of ML at the Walmart Translation Platform from 2022 to 2025.
Rahul Sharnagat
LinkedInExperience: Director, AI/Machine Learning Search · Walmart Global Tech
Rahul Sharnagat has been Director, AI/Machine Learning Search at Walmart Global Tech since October 2025, a Research role at Director level, and the profile headline names leading search intent understanding. Rahul Sharnagat was Senior Data Science Manager II at Walmart Global Tech from 2023 to 2025 and Principal Machine Learning Engineer there from 2022 to 2023.
Saman Alaniazar
LinkedInExperience: Senior Director of AI · Walmart Global Tech
Saman Alaniazar has been Senior Director of AI at Walmart Global Tech since March 2025, based in Bentonville, and describes architecting the AI strategy and agentic maturity model for a B2B commercial suite. Saman Alaniazar was Director of AI NLP Engineering at Walmart Global Tech from 2023 to 2025 and Director of Data Science -- Core/Deliver Marketing at Shopify from 2022 to 2023.
Sonali Gupta
LinkedInExperience: VP, AI Shopping, Search and Personalization · Walmart
Sonali Gupta has been VP, AI Shopping, Search and Personalization at Walmart since January 2026, a role the listing tags at Executive level, and was Vice President, AI driven Commerce at Walmart from 2025 to 2026. Sonali Gupta has also held Leader Omnichannel Supply Chain strategy at Walmart Global Tech since July 2023.
Srujana Kaddevarmuth
LinkedInExperience: AI Leader & Global Head of Applied AI Labs · Walmart Global Tech
Srujana Kaddevarmuth has been AI Leader & Global Head of Applied AI Labs at Walmart Global Tech since July 2025. Srujana Kaddevarmuth was AI Leader & Group Director of Artificial Intelligence Center of Excellence there from 2023 to 2025, Senior Director Data & AI Center Of Excellence from 2021 to 2023 and Director of Artificial Intelligence from 2019 to 2021.
Steven Li
LinkedInExperience: Head of Data & AI, Global e-commerce · Walmart
Steven Li has been Head of Data & AI, Global e-commerce at Walmart since June 2025, based in Shanghai and leading the data and AI team that supports the global e-commerce business with AI and analytics. Steven Li was Head of Data & AI at Starbucks from 2023 to 2025 and Head of Data & AI, Greater China at Sanofi from 2021 to 2023.
Timothy L. Jacobs
LinkedInExperience: Vice President, Applied AI and Machine Learning · Walmart
Timothy L. Jacobs has been Vice President, Applied AI and Machine Learning at Walmart since June 2025, overseeing a global team of AI, ML and data science professionals. Timothy L. Jacobs was Director, Research Science at Amazon from 2016 to 2025 and Director, Crew Systems and Technologies at American Airlines from 2014 to 2016.
Tolgahan Çakaloğlu
LinkedInExperience: Senior Director of Artificial Intelligence · Walmart
Tolgahan Çakaloğlu has been Senior Director of Artificial Intelligence at Walmart since September 2025. Tolgahan Çakaloğlu was Director of Artificial Intelligence Distinguished Scientist at Walmart from 2023 to 2025, Principal Scientist-Manager Research & Data Science there from 2019 to 2023 and Researcher for Artificial Intelligence Deep Learning at Google from 2018 to 2019.
Yog Domlur
LinkedInExperience: Senior Director of AI/ML · Walmart Global Tech
Yog Domlur has been Senior Director of AI/ML at Walmart Global Tech since January 2025, based in Sunnyvale. Yog Domlur was Director of Data Science at Walmart Global Tech from 2021 to 2025, Senior Manager II - Data Science from 2020 to 2021 and Lead Data Scientist - Personalization and Recommender Systems at Walmart from 2019 to 2020.
Choose the right perspective
Match the person's area, such as AI for shopping and search, store operations, ecommerce or machine translation, to the decision you face. Check when each person's current role started to judge how recent their view of the work is.
Questions to take into the conversation
- 01How do you decide which AI use cases to fund first?
- 02What has worked for you in organizing data scientists, machine learning engineers and product managers around one problem?
- 03How do you measure whether an AI or machine learning system changed results for the business?
Reaching Walmart AI and data science leaders
How can I contact one of these Walmart AI and data science leaders?
Pick one of the 10 people on this page and choose "Book a paid call", or describe your project to find others. You offer a fee for a 15-minute call or a written answer, Instant Expert finds the person's work email and sends the invitation, and they decide whether to accept. The list covers 2 companies: Walmart and Walmart Global Tech, based on profile data retrieved on October 26, 2026. Being listed here doesn't mean someone has agreed to take calls.
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Can an AI agent ask one of these Walmart AI and data science leaders a question?
Yes. An agent with a USDC wallet on Base can ask one question without an Instant Expert account. It names the person, for example by the LinkedIn URL on this page, and pays per ask over x402 (HTTP 402). The person answers in writing or by voice note, and if nobody answers within 7 days, the payment goes back to the wallet automatically. Claude and ChatGPT can do the same through the Instant Expert connector: setup is at /docs/mcp for Claude and /docs/chatgpt for ChatGPT. x402 docs
About this directory
This is a professional research starting point based on business profile data retrieved on . Titles and companies reflect that source snapshot; roles marked former had ended by then. Check the linked profiles for current details. Inclusion does not imply Instant Expert membership or availability.