Kasra Ghaharian

Dr. Kasra Ghaharian is the Director of Research for the University of Nevada, Las Vegas (UNLV) International Gaming Institute and co-founder of the AI Research Hub (AiR Hub), an institute initiative aimed at setting standards for ethical industry-wide artificial intelligence use and regulation. He is a global gaming expert specializing in online settings, AI applications, machine learning, consumer protection, and payments modernization.

Ghaharian brings several years of industry experience from several of the world’s largest casino-hotel companies, with background in digital analytics, strategic marketing, e-commerce analysis and product management, enterprise strategy, and sales. His scholarly works have examined ways to improve industry technology and user experience.

While pursuing his Ph.D., he explored the implications of digital payments for the gambling industry and applied machine learning to payment transaction data to uncover behavioral patterns and potential markers of problem gambling. His master’s thesis was a first-of-its-kind study applying mathematical methods to optimizing the casino floor. Current research includes using consumer bank transaction data for gambling harm prevention and investigating AI chatbot efficacy for responsible gambling education.

He has been quoted by media outlets including BBC, Sports Handle, and Inside Asian Gaming.