Scoping, building, and shipping AI, data, and security systems. DePaul University, Class of 2027.
About
Across Aegis, Xternal, and both internships, the throughline is the same: map the real workflow, ship a measured pilot, then scale and hand off what actually works.
Shanzay Ijaz Khan is a Mathematics and Computer Science student at DePaul University (Class of 2027), working across AI agents, cybersecurity, and data engineering. She co-founded Aegis, an AI-powered cybersecurity platform doing autonomous reconnaissance and CVE correlation for mid-market companies, and founded Xternal, an AI systems studio building production agents and automations for operations, marketing, education, and internal service desks.
She currently splits her internship time between Hendrickson, building an AI-powered program management agent, and Premier Early Childhood Education Partners, where she engineered an FP&A application that now saves 15+ hours per reporting cycle. She also serves as Vice President of the DePaul chapter of Women in Cybersecurity (WiCyS), and won 1st place at CMU NexHacks '26.
Education
B.S. in Mathematics and Computer Science
Dean's Honors List · State Scholar · Global DePaul Scholar
Selected work · 2024–2026
A focused selection of security, data, AI, and hardware work. Open a project for the problem, approach, and measured outcome.
Career
Chicago, ILFounder
Founder
2026 – Present
Founded an AI systems studio building production AI agents, automation, and integrations for operations, marketing, education, and internal service desks.
Woodridge, IL
Program Management Intern
Jun 2026 – Present
Building an AI-powered agent for program management, automating task tracking, surfacing project insights, and reducing manual coordination overhead.
Chicago, IL
Data Warehouse Developer Intern
Mar 2026 – Present
Engineered an FP&A application unifying financial and operational datasets; automating reporting workflows and improving financial decision-making speed.
Chicago, ILFounder
Co-Founder
Sep 2025 – Present
Co-founded an AI-powered cybersecurity company with Zain Khan, who originated the idea and built the initial platform, helping lead product direction on autonomous vulnerability analysis, threat intelligence, and security automation.
Chicago, IL
Vice President
Oct 2025 – Present
Directed chapter operations and strategic initiatives; led technical workshops, networking events, and mentorship programs advancing women in cybersecurity.
Events Coordinator
Oct 2025 – Present
Planned and executed chapter events including speaker panels, industry networking sessions, and hands-on cybersecurity workshops.
Chicago, IL
IS Technician
May 2024 – Present
Provided hardware and software support across Windows and macOS environments; resolved tickets and maintained campus IT infrastructure.
Sports Supervisor, Campus Recreation
May 2024 – Present
Supervised intramural and recreational sports operations; managed facilities, staff, and participant experience during events.
CDM Grader
May 2024 – Present
Evaluated student assignments and provided structured feedback for courses in the College of Computing and Digital Media.
Student Ambassador
May 2024 – Aug 2025
Represented the college at prospective student events, campus tours, and outreach initiatives; first point of contact for incoming students.
Chicago, IL
Gameday Ticketing Assistant
May 2024 – Present
Managed gameday ticketing operations across all ticketed sports; handled entry logistics, resolved ticketing issues, and ensured smooth fan entry.
Marketing Student Assistant
May 2024 – Present
Assisted Sports Marketing with student engagement, external outreach, and event planning. Oversaw campus signage and fan experience activations.
5 awards & honors
Carnegie Mellon University
1st place at CMU's NexHacks hackathon. Built an AI-powered solution recognized for real-world impact and technical execution.
Seda AI
Winner of the Seda AI Researchathon for research on autonomous AI agents applied to cybersecurity threat modeling.
DePaul University
Awarded each quarter for academic excellence at DePaul University.
Illinois Student Assistance Commission
Illinois State Scholar recognition for outstanding academic achievement.
DePaul University
Selected for the Global DePaul Scholarship recognizing academic distinction and global leadership potential.
34 skills across 5 areas
Operating principles
Systems should preserve where a conclusion came from. That makes AI and security workflows reviewable instead of mysterious.
Aegis keeps source evidence connected to structured findings.The normal state should stay quiet. Interfaces earn their value when they make anomalies, blockers, and failures easy to act on.
SpaceVitals prioritizes abnormal telemetry over decorative charts.Authorization, input validation, and scope controls belong at the system boundary, not as cleanup after the feature works.
The Aegis workflow starts with explicit authorized scope.Featured writing
What actually breaks when you point an LLM agent at real project data at Hendrickson, and the guardrails that made it trustworthy enough to ship.
Unifying financial and operational data at Premier taught me that the hard part of data engineering is rarely the pipeline. It is trust.
Twenty-four hours, one working demo, and a lot of scope cutting. Notes on what separated the projects that placed from the ones that did not.
FAQ
Mostly AI agents, cybersecurity, and data engineering. She's co-founder of Aegis (an AI-powered cybersecurity platform), founder of Xternal (an AI systems studio), and interning at Hendrickson and Premier Early Childhood Education Partners.
An AI-powered cybersecurity platform, co-founded with Zain Khan. It runs autonomous reconnaissance, correlates findings against CVE data, and produces structured reports for mid-market companies that can't afford a full-time security team.
An AI systems studio she founded, building production AI agents and automations for operations, marketing, education, and internal service desks.
Yes, full-time opportunities in AI, data, or cybersecurity, with availability starting Summer/Fall 2027.
Chicago. She studies Mathematics and Computer Science at DePaul University, graduating June 2027.
Python, FastAPI, React, Next.js, TypeScript, LangChain, PostgreSQL, Snowflake, and Docker, mostly. The full list is in the Technical Skills section below.
Contact
Open to internships, research collaborations, and interesting problems. Fill out the form and your email client will open with everything pre-filled.
khanshanzay983@gmail.com