Navneet Rao

Navneet Rao is an accomplished engineering leader with extensive experience in the technology sector, currently serving as the Director of Engineering at Thumbtack since February 2020. In this role, Navneet leads the engineering teams focused on enhancing search and booking experiences within Thumbtack's marketplace. Previously, Navneet held multiple positions at Thumbtack, including Senior Engineering Manager, where responsibilities included driving technical and AI strategies and fostering a culture of experimentation. Prior experience at IBM involved leading machine learning initiatives for the Watson Assistant product, contributing to a vast deployment of machine learning models. Navneet also served as a mentor at First Round Fast Track and has a strong educational background with an MS in Intelligent Information Systems from Carnegie Mellon University and a BE in Computer Engineering from Savitribai Phule Pune University.