Citadel CEO brings vital industry knowledge to UAE

The Chief Executive Officer of Citadel Securities, Dr. Peng Zhao, is set to deliver a lecture this week on AI, Machine Learning and Economy as part of the MBZUAI Executive Program. One of the early architects of Citadel Securities, Zhao joined the firm as a senior quantitative researcher before becoming CEO in 2017.

Zhao holds a Ph.D. in statistics from the University of California at Berkeley, he is a Berkeley Fellow, and he has a bachelor’s degree in applied mathematics from Peking University. He has led Citadel through a period of continued growth and expansion. Citadel is a global financial services firm headquartered in Chicago, with offices across the United States, Asia-Pacific and Europe.

Zhao is a founding board member of The Asian American Foundation, which is dedicated to growing Asian American and Pacific Islander advocacy, power and representation. In addition, he serves on the Board of Trustees for the Museum of Science and Industry in Chicago.

The Executive Program, which is headed up by MBZUAI President, Professor Eric Xing, is a uniquely powerful learning experience for high-level decision makers. Participants spend 12 weeks learning from the global elite in AI-related research, with the end goal of supporting a range of improvements in healthcare, transportation, education, industry, and more.

42 Participants in total make up the first cohort of the Executive Program that includes ministers and C-suite executives. The program seeks to support the UAE’s mission to become a world leader in artificial intelligence through education, capacity building, innovation, and research and development.