Sanzhar Kettebekov, a co-founder and CEO of the National Innovation Development Fund of Kazakhstan, has had a diverse and accomplished career in industrial engineering, user experience, and technology startups. With a PhD in Industrial Engineering from Penn State University and a research faculty position at MIT Computer Science and Artificial Intelligence Lab, Kettebekov's expertise spans across additive manufacturing, fintech and ICO, smart city and BIM, and industrial IoT. He has also co-founded and led companies like Receptive and Segment Interactive, worked with Tribune Company's User Experience practice, and architected technologies in various fields including freehand gesture-speech interfaces, abnormal behavior analysis for psychiatry, and NY & NJ Port Authority Emergency Management. Kettebekov is currently focused on fostering innovation in Kazakhstan and developing the startup ecosystem while working on joint tech and R&D centers with multinational companies.