Ankit Sharma

Senior Data Scientist and Machine Learning Engineer with 7+ years of experience in Reinforcement Learning, Machine Learning, Deep Learning, NLP, Computer Vision, and Large-Scale AI Systems.

Toronto, Canada

AS

About

Currently optimizing 1 trillion daily transactions at Index Exchange through advanced predictive models and reinforcement learning agents, with a proven record of improving accuracy, efficiency, and market performance.

Work Experience

Index Exchange
Data Science
ML

Mar 2025 - Present

Senior Data Scientist

  • Design and deploy reinforcement learning agents, time series forecasting models, and deep learning architectures
  • Increased auction win rate by 5%, resulting in a 50% increase in impressions delivered at no additional cost, directly improving advertiser ROI and market efficiency
  • Engineered online, sample-efficient policies that learn rapidly with minimal data while utilizing low compute resources, ensuring scalability without compromising performance
  • Drive measurable impact on total market efficiency by aligning reinforcement learning policies with system-wide optimization, balancing cost, throughput, and fairness

    • Loblaw Digital
    Gen AI
    ML

    Apr 2024 - Mar 2025

    Staff Developer Gen AI

  • Integrated advanced machine learning algorithms, including soft mixture of experts and quantization, into GARFIELLD platform, utilizing Confluence and Terra data; enhanced predictive accuracy by 15% for 10k users
  • Developed and deployed Transformer-based models for enhancing chatbot capabilities, incorporating custom post-inference optimizations like key-value caching and tensor parallelism; boosted user engagement by 75%
  • Engineered a Retrieval Augmentation Generation (RAG) system with advanced similarity search techniques, (including a new Hierarchical Navigable Small World (HNSW)), to optimize data analysis workflows
  • Architected a multi-agent reinforcement learning system to optimize post-LLM response actions, improving overall system efficiency by 35%

    • Loblaw Digital
    Development
    AI

    Oct 2022 - Apr 2024

    Senior Developer

  • Developed and deployed a secure and scalable (Single Sign On) SSO solution for 20M users, integrating with high-traffic applications like PC Optimum and Shoppers Drug Mart, boosting monthly active users to 10M
  • Implemented advanced logging and monitoring frameworks, utilizing machine learning techniques for predictive maintenance and anomaly detection, which enhanced system reliability by 30% and ensured 99.9% SLA compliance
  • Led design and development of 5 AI solutions, integrating state-of-the-art LLMs and stable diffusion technologies, ensuring enhanced model performance and statistical accuracy
  • Engineered a scalable AI-driven system using Kubernetes, which streamlined operations and improved efficiency by 60%; deployed advanced ML models for resource optimization and dynamic load balancing

    • Seehash Softwares
    Co-Founder
    ML

    Jan 2016 - Sep 2022

    Senior Technical Lead, Co-Founder

  • Developed and implemented ML, DL, and NLP apps for text classification tasks, enhancing system efficiency by 40%
  • Implemented SVM and K-Means clustering algorithms, achieving 25% reduction in data processing time
  • Led end-to-end development and deployment of machine learning models, improving system performance by 40%
  • Developed 8 scalable, distributed systems using Python and TensorFlow, enhancing data processing speed by 30%
  • Managed team of 20 engineers in design, development, and deployment of ML applications

    • Fractals
    Fullstack
    ML

    Aug 2012 - Dec 2015

    Fullstack Developer

  • Deployed 12 predictive ML models, processing over 3TB of data, improving prediction accuracy by 20%
  • Implemented SVM and Random Forest algorithms on optimal data sets, increasing data processing speeds by 25%
  • Architected server-side and client-side for 6 high-traffic applications, handling over 500k daily transactions

    • Projects

    Transparent Dynamic Take Rate Optimization

    Developed reinforcement learning policies that increased auction win rate by 5%, driving a 50% boost in impressions without added cost, while ensuring online, sample-efficient learning.

    reinforcement learning
    python
    tensorflow
    optimization

    Bid Traffic Optimization (Quality Classifier)

    Engineered ML-driven classifier handling 1 trillion daily transactions, improving prediction accuracy, reducing wasted compute, and strengthening auction efficiency and market fairness.

    machine learning
    python
    big data
    classification

    Market Floor Prediction (Bid Price Forecasting)

    Built advanced time series and deep learning models for bid price forecasting, improving predictive accuracy and stabilizing market floors to maximize yield and system efficiency.

    time series
    deep learning
    forecasting
    python

    GARFIELLD Platform

    Built an advanced chat-based platform with real-time features and multimodal support, increasing user engagement by 75% and data accuracy by 20%; integrated 5 LLMs and 10 data sources, significantly boosting platform usage and user satisfaction.

    llms
    chatbot
    multimodal
    python
    tensorflow

    GARFIELLD Insights

    Used Pandas AI and Neo4j, enhancing data accessibility by 40% and query efficiency by 50%; enabled real-time updates and comprehensive insights extraction from BigQuery while ensuring data integrity.

    pandas ai
    neo4j
    bigquery
    data analysis

    Clients

    Quantum Circuit Generation with GANs

    Leveraged Generative Adversarial Networks (GANs) for Quantum Circuit Generation at Liverpool John Moores University; developed and implemented a GAN model for generating quantum circuits with high fidelity and diversity.

    gans
    quantum computing
    python
    research

    Qiskit Developer Certification

    IBM Qiskit Developer certification in Quantum Computing and Machine Learning, demonstrating expertise in quantum algorithms and quantum machine learning applications.

    quantum computing
    ibm
    certification

    IIT Delhi Quantum Computing Program

    Continuing Education Programme in Quantum Computing and Machine Learning at IIT Delhi, focusing on advanced quantum algorithms and their applications in machine learning.

    quantum computing
    iit
    education

    IIT Kanpur Blockchain Program

    Program for continued education in Blockchain at IIT Kanpur, covering distributed systems, smart contracts, and blockchain applications in various industries.

    blockchain
    iit
    education

    Education

    Liverpool John Moores University

    2020 - 2022
    Master in Science Data Science

    Woolf University

    2019 - 2021
    Master in Science Computer Science

    IIT Bangalore

    2018 - 2019
    Post Graduate Diploma Machine Learning & Artificial Intelligence

    Visvesvaraya Technological University

    2008 - 2012
    Bachelor of Engineering in Electrical & Electronics

    Skills

    Python
    C++
    Java
    Go
    Rust
    JavaScript
    Deep Learning
    NLP
    Computer Vision
    Reinforcement Learning
    Generative AI
    TensorFlow
    PyTorch
    Scikit-learn
    MLOps
    Big Data
    Data Streaming
    Docker
    Kubernetes
    Apache Hadoop
    Apache Spark
    OpenCV
    Airflow
    MySQL
    PostgreSQL
    Redis
    Cassandra
    Elasticsearch
    Neo4j

    Recent Blog Posts

    Meetings With No Agenda Are a Waste of Time

    Sep 22, 2025

    Why structured meetings lead to better outcomes and productivity.

    Read more →

    Growth Isn't About Doing Everything

    Sep 18, 2025

    Focusing on strategic initiatives over busy work for career advancement.

    Read more →

    Career Longevity Beats Constant Job Hopping

    Sep 13, 2025

    Building deep expertise and meaningful relationships in your field.

    Read more →

    Stay Relevant at Higher Salary Levels

    Sep 08, 2025

    Strategies for maintaining value and impact as you advance in your career.

    Read more →

    Why Distributed Systems Need Consensus Algorithms Like Raft

    Sep 06, 2025

    Understanding the critical role of consensus in distributed systems.

    Read more →

    Recent Papers

    C/C++ Thread Safety Analysis

    2025

    Various

    View paper →

    Mesa: Geo-Replicated, Near Real-Time, Scalable Data Warehousing

    2024

    Google Research

    View paper →

    MyRocks: LSM-Tree Database Storage Engine Serving Facebook's Social Graph

    2024

    Facebook

    View paper →

    Storing and Querying Tree-Structured Records in Dremel

    2024

    Google

    View paper →

    In praise of empathic AI

    2024

    Various

    View paper →

    Courses

    Machine Learning Masterclass

    Complete guide to ML algorithms and implementation

    View course →

    Data Science for Beginners

    Start your data science journey with practical projects

    View course →

    Deep Learning Internals

    Deep dive into neural networks and deep learning

    View course →

    Talks

    Reinforcement Learning in Production

    Mar 2025

    MLConf 2025

    View talk →

    Scaling ML Systems at Scale

    Nov 2024

    DataEngConf 2024

    View talk →

    Building AI-First Applications

    Sep 2024

    AI Summit 2024

    View talk →

    Newsletter

    Ankit's Newsletter

    Weekly essays on machine learning, data science, and AI systems.

    Read by 5,000 engineers

    Subscribe on LinkedInSubscribe on Substack

    Press ⌘J to open the command menu