QXO, Inc. announced that Ashwin Rao has been appointed chief artificial intelligence officer, effective immediately. He will serve as the company’s principal AI architect, as QXO becomes a leader in the $800 billion building products distribution industry.
Brad Jacobs, chairman and chief executive officer of QXO, said, “Artificial intelligence will permeate everything we do at QXO, including demand forecasting, inventory management and e-commerce. Ashwin is recognized as one of the brightest minds in enterprise AI. He will be instrumental in making QXO the most tech-forward company in the industry.”
Rao’s career as an innovation leader spans more than 30 years, combining technological expertise and strong commercial instincts. From 2016 through 2022, he served as the first-ever head of AI for Target Corporation, where he led a team that developed mathematical models for pricing, merchandising, customer experience, supply chain logistics and other critical functions.
“The opportunities to use AI to transform the building products distribution industry are endless,” Rao said. “I’m excited to get started on dozens of AI workstreams that, combined with advantages of scale, will help QXO increase efficiency, optimize supply chains and add value for our customers.”
Rao began his career on Wall Street, as a derivatives trading quant strategist with Goldman Sachs and later as managing director of market modeling for Morgan Stanley. He earned a doctorate in theoretical computer science from the University of Southern California and a bachelor’s degree in computer science from the Indian Institute of Technology Bombay. He serves as an adjunct professor of applied mathematics at Stanford University.
