Svetlana Makarova

Svetlana Makarova is an AI Principal Product Management leader at Mayo Clinic, where she drives the development of scalable, explainable AI systems that transform how clinicians access and use data. She leads multiple AI initiatives that tackle some of healthcare’s most complex challenges, including contextualized data curation and intelligent pre-processing of outside medical documentation - advancing interoperability, data quality, and explainability across clinical systems.

Beyond enterprise execution, Svetlana contributes to AI as a scientific discipline. She has co-authored peer-reviewed research on expert-finding algorithms and LLM-powered clinical data retrieval and is pursuing a Doctor of Engineering in Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning at George Washington University, advancing her expertise at the intersection of research and real-world application.

Svetlana is also an educator and thought leader on the global stage. She teaches executive AI strategy at NextMBA—alongside thinkers like Seth Godin and James Clear—has instructed nearly 1,000 executives across 100+ countries, mentors founders through Cornell Tech, and is preparing for her TEDx Jacksonville 2026 talk, “Human Margin: What Makes Us Irreplaceably Human in the Age of AI.”

Her leadership has been recognized internationally—she is a finalist for the Stevie® Awards for Women in Business, reflecting her impact in shaping the next era of responsible, scalable, and human-centered AI.