Ari Zhou - Product & Technology Leader
Hi, I'm Ari Zhou
I'm a product & technology leader with 8+ years experience shipping digital products from early-stage seed to Fortune 50 companies
“What most teams tackle in years, Ari delivered in a few months. She organized the company, set up analytics, revamped the product, and drove us to our first $x M ARR in record time.”
“She's a natural product manager with great UX sense and a passion for the craft. You can give her any thorny product challenge and trust that she'll go deep, ask the right questions, and figure it out.”
Trusted by teams at leading organizations - startups, non-profits, and companies alike
What I Do
I build technology that puts people first - AI tools that respect human judgment, marketplaces that create real value for both sides, and enterprise systems that feel effortless when the complexity underneath is anything but simple.
Product Strategy & Leadership
Define vision, roadmap, and metrics for complex products. From 0→1 to scale.
AI Workflow Automation
Design human-in-the-loop automations that actually work. Make teams faster without adding headcount.
Marketplace Development
Build two-sided platforms that scale efficiently. Matching algorithms, trust systems, and growth loops.
Growth & Optimization
10x your activation and conversion metrics. Data-driven experiments with clear ROI.
What keeps me up at night
Current research at the intersection of technology and human flourishing. If these questions resonate with you, we should talk.
Holistic health in the age of optimization
How do we design health technology that treats humans as whole beings, not just data points? My research explores the intersection of Western precision with Eastern systems thinking, building products that honor both our biological metrics and our lived experiences. The real challenge: creating health interfaces that understand context, not just symptoms.
Human connection as the ultimate differentiator post-AGI
When AI can do everything, what becomes uniquely valuable about human interaction? I believe the future holds a world where human connection becomes the premium offering. Empathy, presence, and shared vulnerability will be our scarcest resources. My work focuses on designing products that amplify rather than automate these deeply human moments.
The hidden ROI of enterprise UX
Bad enterprise software actively destroys value through decision fatigue, context switching, and learned helplessness. My research quantifies the true cost of UX debt in traditional workflows and develops frameworks to justify UX investment in terms CFOs understand: reduced training costs, fewer errors, and accelerated decision-making.
Marketplaces as trust accelerators
The best marketplaces manufacture trust at scale. My work investigates how to design marketplace mechanics that create confidence without friction, reputation systems that predict quality over popularity, and governance models that protect both sides while enabling growth. The opportunity: turning strangers into trusted partners faster than ever before.
Featured Work
Recent projects with measurable impact
Familiar AI
Cofounder & Product Lead
Built and launched an AI peer support counselor with personalized text+audio and long-term memory
Visa
Product Lead
Launch 'Click to Pay' across 9 APAC markets with local e-commerce players
Career Highlights
Six transformative outcomes across enterprise, consumer, and developer products
Scaled Healthtech Marketplace to Seven-Figure Run Rate
Result: $1.4M+/month GMV and first 7-figure ARR
4x Enterprise Customer Acquisition
Result: Enterprise activation up, admin tickets down
Led Privacy & Compliance at Fortune 500 Scale
Result: Durable privacy posture and repeatable program
International "Click to Pay" Launches (Visa)
Result: Multi-market adoption across banks/merchants
First 2FA for Twitter Web
Result: Stronger account protection across the web surface
Developer APIs for PSP Onboarding (Microsoft)
Result: Streamlined partner ecosystem growth