Data & AI Innovation · Ottawa, Canada

Turning data into decisions that matter.

Product X helps health systems, universities and growth companies build data and AI products that work in the real world, from strategy to platforms to deployment at scale.

Explore what we do See our experience →
25+
Years in Big Data & AI
3
Continents of delivery
C-suite
& VP-level product leadership
2026
HIMSS Changemaker in Health

Leadership experience from organizations like

  • Aga Khan University
  • Shopify
  • IBM Watson Health
  • Cognos
  • RMS
  • SAS

What we do

From raw data to real-world impact

We bring executive-level data, analytics and AI product experience to the organizations that need it most, and we stay through delivery.

Data Innovation Strategy

Fractional Chief Data Officer support. We set your data vision, investment roadmap and operating model, and build the team to deliver it.

AI Product Leadership

We take AI and analytics products from idea to market: positioning, roadmaps, pricing and go-to-market, drawing on VP-level product experience.

Digital Health & EHR

Cloud EHR rollouts, clinical data platforms and health AI built with clinicians, so the data drives research, policy and patient outcomes.

Data Governance & Sovereignty

Ethical, sovereign data frameworks that protect communities and make sure the people who produce the data share in its value.

Insights & Analytics Platforms

Merchant-, customer- and operations-facing analytics that people actually use, built on Big Data and modern cloud stacks.

Startup & M&A Advisory

Advisory for AI technology companies, from product-market fit to acquisition strategy, backed by experience leading a landmark acquisition at IBM.

Our approach

Innovation in context

Solutions copied from one market often fail in another. We start by understanding the scale and nature of the problem, then build for the place and people it serves.

  1. 01

    Understand

    Map the real problem, the people involved and the data that already exists before writing a line of code.

  2. 02

    Adapt

    Shape proven technology to the local context, including infrastructure, regulation, culture and budget.

  3. 03

    Build

    Co-create with the domain experts, whether clinicians, merchants or researchers, so the product earns trust.

  4. 04

    Scale

    Turn data into ongoing insight for operations, research and policy, and hand over capabilities that last.

Experience

Senior leadership, proven at scale

Product X is led by Farhana Alarakhiya, an electrical engineer and veteran Big Data and AI executive. Her senior roles span global health, commerce and enterprise software.

Global Health · Nairobi

Chief Data Innovation Officer

Aga Khan University

  • Leads the university's data investment and strategy across low- and middle-income country settings.
  • Led the deployment of a modern, cloud-based electronic health record system across Kenya.
  • Champions health AI built with local doctors, including the Afya Gemma initiative.
  • DMAC lead on a DS-I Africa project using health information for impact in East Africa.
Commerce · Canada

VP Product, Insights & Analytics

Shopify

  • Led product for insights and analytics on one of the world's largest commerce platforms.
  • Turned merchant data into decision-ready products for businesses of every size.
Enterprise AI · Global

Director, Watson Health

IBM

  • Spearheaded a key acquisition that helped launch IBM Watson Health.
  • Brought AI and analytics to healthcare at enterprise scale.
Risk Analytics

Product Leadership

RMS

  • Led a team of product specialists and worked closely with engineering, sales and customers.
  • Known for explaining complex analytics products clearly.
Business Intelligence

Early Career in BI & Analytics

Cognos · SAS

  • Built a base in business intelligence and analytics software at industry pioneers.

Education

Bachelor of Engineering & Management (Electrical), McMaster University

What colleagues highlight

  • Execution speed
  • Strategic thinking
  • Customer focus
  • Mentorship
  • Cross-functional partner
  • Clear communicator

Impact & recognition

Recognized on the global stage

Award · 2026

HIMSS Changemaker in Health

Global Patient Innovator category, recognizing the use of data and technology to improve patient care worldwide.

  • Google.org Impact SummitOpened the plenary in Dublin on AI and digital tools for non-profits
  • Data Tamasha AfricaZanzibar talk on data sovereignty and community benefit
  • Einstein Frontiers 2026Featured speaker, Brazil
  • DataFest AfricaSpeaker on data-driven impact in emerging markets

Giving back

Pulsar CollectiveBoard Member, 2020–2024. Advancing gender equality in STEM.
Ismaili Conciliation & Arbitration Board, CanadaBoard Member and Mediator since 2019
International Collegiate Business Strategy CompetitionJudge since 2002, Smith School of Business, Queen's University
BGC Ottawa · Scientific Advisory BoardsBoard service and scientific advisory roles in biomedical research

Our mission

Data that serves people, everywhere.

Product X exists to close the gap between what data can do and what it actually does for people. We build innovation that fits its context, from a merchant dashboard in Canada to an electronic health record in Kenya, so data becomes better decisions, better care and shared prosperity.