AK8 AI · About Us | The team behind AI optimization
Our story

Turning AI complexity
into competitive edge.

AK8 AI was born to solve the hardest optimization challenges in machine learning. We don't just deploy AI — we supercharge it.

280+

Enterprise clients

2021

Year founded

3.2x

Avg. ROI delivered

AK8 AI co-founders and engineering team in a strategic meeting about AI optimization
Why we exist

Our mission & core values

Democratizing AI performance through relentless optimization.

Mission

To make every AI model run at peak efficiency — cutting costs, latency, and carbon footprint while unlocking unprecedented performance.

Vision

A world where AI infrastructure is invisible, adaptive, and accessible — powering breakthroughs without waste.

Values

Radical transparency, engineering excellence, customer obsession, and sustainable innovation.

the minds behind AK8

Leadership & founders

Ex‑DeepMind, OpenAI, and FAIR engineers united by one goal: optimize the future.

Dr. Alisha Verma, CEO and co-founder of AK8 AI

Dr. Alisha Verma

CEO & Co‑founder

Ex‑DeepMind, led optimization for Gemini models. PhD from Stanford.

Marcus Chen, CTO and co-founder of AK8 AI

Marcus Chen

CTO & Co‑founder

Previously OpenAI infrastructure team, built scalable inference engines.

Elena Rossi, Chief Product Officer at AK8 AI

Elena Rossi

Chief Product Officer

Ex‑Google AI, led Vertex AI optimization products.

AK8 AI engineering team brainstorming in modern office with large monitors displaying AI performance graphs
our journey

From 2021 to industry benchmark

How we grew from a small team to 280+ enterprise partners.

2021

Foundation & Seed

AK8 AI founded in San Francisco. Raised $5M seed to build first model optimization engine.

2023

Series A & Global expansion

$24M Series A led by top VCs. Opened offices in London and Singapore.

2024

100th enterprise client

Crossed 100+ customers including Fortune 500. Launched real-time inference optimizer.

2025

AK8 Neuron launch

Adaptive inference engine + LLM microtuning platform. 280+ clients and counting.

280+

Enterprise clients

4

Global offices

150+

AI engineers

99.7%

Uptime SLA

Become part of our story

Join 280+ companies that trust AK8 AI for their AI optimization journey.