Executive Summary

AI leadership for companies that need business value, not just momentum.

I help growing companies use AI to solve real business problems, not just chase the hype. Most leaders know AI matters. They just do not know where to start, what will actually move the needle, or how to carry the work from concept to durable execution.

Former Deloitte AI lead. Founder and CEO of AI Forward. Fractional CAIO and CTO partner for startups and mid-market companies. Best when the work requires executive clarity, technical depth, and commercial discipline in the same room.

Based In Toronto, ON

Working with teams across North America.

Best Fit

Companies that need senior AI leadership without a full-time CAIO yet.
Founders and operators who want AI tied to ROI, not theater.
Teams that need strategy, stakeholder alignment, and execution discipline together.

Commercial Impact

$10M+

Contracts influenced and growth supported across consulting, startups, and pre-sales work.

Delivery Breadth

30+

AI engagements spanning strategy, architecture, pilots, and implementation delivery.

Capability Building

20+

Practitioners scaled inside Deloitte's NLP Center of Excellence in under 18 months.

Execution Lift

50%

Faster project delivery created by accelerators, playbooks, and reusable implementation systems.

How I Help

The same pattern shows up repeatedly: clarify the roadmap, align the room, and turn promising AI ideas into shipped capability.

Operating Value

Find the AI opportunities that actually improve the bottom line.
Build solutions that work in the real world, not just in demos.
Scale a team or function's AI capability without unnecessary guesswork.
Make sure the technology serves the business, not the other way around.

Selected Wins

Scaled Deloitte's NLP Center of Excellence to 20+ practitioners while contributing $10M+ in contract value.
Built a flagship deployment accelerator that cut project timelines by 50% across multiple engagements.
Architected the data platform that supported a Forbes 30 Under 30 startup during growth to $10M+ ARR.
Led 30+ enterprise AI engagements as CEO of AI Forward with a team of 5 practitioners and 4 development partners.
Presented product work to Peter Norvig and received direct endorsement.

Current Platforms

Included to keep the resume aligned with current public positioning and LinkedIn.

Primary Platform

AI Forward

Founder and CEO of an AI consultancy delivering production-grade strategy, systems, and advanced implementation support.

Oct 2022 - Present

Operating Role

Canadian Funding

Chief Executive Officer role added in 2026 alongside broader AI and technology leadership work.

Feb 2026 - Present

Fractional Work

CTO and CAIO Mandates

Fractional leadership across companies including Hexona Systems and Sayvo.ai with direct CEO partnership.

2025 - Present

Selected Experience

Roles that explain the range.

The through-line is consistent: identify the right problem, shape the system, and carry the work into real execution.

Oct 2022 - Present AI Forward Toronto, ON

Founder and Chief Executive Officer

Built and scaled an AI consultancy delivering production-grade strategy and systems for SMB and mid-market clients.

Built the firm through 30+ client engagements by leading business development, technical scoping, and delivery.
Led a team of 5 practitioners and 4 development partners across architecture and implementation.

2025 - Present Multiple Companies Canada

Fractional Chief Technology Officer and Chief AI Officer

Fractional AI and technology leadership across companies including Hexona Systems and Sayvo.ai.

Acted as senior strategist to founders and CEOs on AI roadmap, solution direction, and market positioning.
Designed automation playbooks and proof-of-concept frameworks that support adoption and commercial conversion.

Jun 2021 - Oct 2022 Deloitte Toronto, ON

AI Consultant and National NLP Lead

Standardized reusable solution assets, implementation playbooks, and QA protocols while helping scale Deloitte's NLP practice.

Scaled the NLP Center of Excellence to more than 20 practitioners in under 18 months.
Built a deployment accelerator that reduced project timelines by 50% and supported $10M+ in new NLP contract value.

Jun 2021 - Dec 2022 Paperstack Toronto, ON

Fractional Chief AI Officer

Owned the AI function for a fintech and e-commerce startup founded by a Forbes 30 Under 30 team.

Architected the end-to-end data platform enabling real-time analytics during expansion to $10M ARR.
Presented AI innovations to Peter Norvig and received direct product endorsement.

2020 - 2021 PFES and Statistics Canada Canada

AI Engineer, Consultant, and Data Scientist

Early operating roles focused on applied AI systems, dashboards, and decision support in consulting and public-sector environments.

Built a Flask-based analytics application at Statistics Canada with 92-97% accuracy for financial data interpretation.
Developed a LiDAR and GIS-based model at PFES that reduced forest inventory processing time by 40%.

Capabilities

Strategy, systems, and commercial fluency.

AI Strategy Fractional Leadership Executive Communication Enterprise Sales NLP Computer Vision Data Engineering AWS GCP

Education

BA (Hons) Computer Science and Mathematics, Mount Allison University
BSc Cognitive Science, Mount Allison University
President's Scholarship and Reisman Award recipient

Credentials

Lean Six Sigma Black Belt
Stanford Machine Learning Specialization
Google Cloud Data Engineering
DeepLearning.ai Deep Learning Specialization
Tableau Iron Viz Global Top 10

Links

Website: shakedewan.com
LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/shake-the-ai-guy
Book a Call: cal.com/shake-dewan/30min