Kamari Aykes had her first technical career in neuroscience research, focused on ADHD & ASD and guided by a presidential award-winning neuroscientist, who introduced her to the field of software engineering. Several journal publications later, she made a professional pivot to web development; a move aligned with a physical transition from Oregon to the New York City area.
In her new space, Kamari worked for a couple of fledgling startups and the TIME/Money/FORTUNE digital team. Her most impactful projects included the 2016 + 2017 FORTUNE500 lists, sponsored video series with TIME+Toyota and Money Magazine+State Farm, the relaunch of TIME for Kids, and a variety of award-winning photojournalism stories. As a contributor to Warby Parker’s retail apps team, Kamari delivered a robust, internal sales reporting platform & Prescription Check AR prototype to the NYC HQ showroom. During the height of the pandemic, The Washington Post counted her amongst their ranks as principal engineer supporting their custom CMS, known as Ellipsis.
She has been featured in ESSENCE magazine as a “Young Phenom”, was a contestant on Who Wants To Be A Millionaire, had her technical talents highlighted in Dice Recruiting’s “I Look Like An Engineer” international advertising campaign, and participated in the Wells Fargo Platinum Series: Millennium Women on the Move.
Kamari has previously served on executive boards for the National Urban League Young Professionals, the Portland Trailblazers’ Make It Better Foundation, and the Urban League of Portland. She wore the co-director hat for OSHU’s Youth Engaged in Science (YES!) Initiative and Time Inc’s (now Dotdash Meredith) Women in Technology (WiT) employee resource group. Kamari has also served in an advisory capacity to NYC’s Tech Talent Pipeline, General Assembly, Someone’s Daughter Inc., MiMConnect, and On Track OHSU!.
She now serves as Cloudflare’s Marketing Engineering Manager, leading an international team of Astro-enthused frontend and infrastructure engineers.
Dipping her toe into the entrepreneurial pool (pre-2020), she recently exited a venture in boutique fitness ownership. Kamari enjoys making s’mores in autumn, and delving into early 20th century biographies, amateur art collecting, and Scrabble.
