About
Data meets
culture.
I'm Aneela Veldi, a Chicago-based ML/AI Analyst finishing my M.S. in Business Analytics at DePaul University. I build predictive models, dig into messy data, and turn what I find into something people can actually use.
What makes it different: I built the dataset myself. Three years of posting gave me 8M+ impressions of real data, which I turned into an IEEE paper on influencer ROI and fake engagement. The research subject was me.
The Story
Two worlds,
one analyst
My path into data wasn't straight and that's honestly the point. I started in operations at FedEx, where I learned that bad data costs real money and good data still gets ignored if you don't explain it right. Moved into financial analysis at Whirlpool, building the forecasting models that the regional team actually ran their budgets off.
Then I got to spend two years at the Indian School of Business as a Research Associate. 100K+ record panel datasets. Econometric models. Working with faculty on real publications. That's where I learned the difference between data work that looks good in a deck and work that holds up under scrutiny.
When I moved to Chicago for my DePaul M.S., I was also three years deep into building a lifestyle platform on Instagram. That wasn't separate from my analytical work. It became the lab. I used my own account as the research dataset, and am submitting the findings to IEEE — making the case that ML applied to your own life can produce real, peer-reviewed science.
I don't just analyze data. I live it.
Principles
Experiment first
Run the test. Theory is useful but results are better.
Data tells stories
Numbers alone don't move people. I write the model and I write the explanation of what the model means.
Impact over output
A dashboard nobody looks at is just noise. A forecast that changes a hiring decision actually mattered.
Own your edge
Being both an analyst and a creator is not a contradiction. It's the most useful thing about me.
@aneela_veldi
The creator side
Beauty, lifestyle, travel, and the art of everyday romanticization. My content isn't separate from my analytical work — it's the environment where I collect data, test posting hypotheses, and observe real audience behavior in real time.
Brand partnerships with Thayers, YesStyle, Frankly, iUNIK, Deeva Nail, and Capriccio Events. I know what it feels like to be the influencer getting the brief. Now I'm the one who analyzes whether it worked.
4.8K
Instagram Followers
8M+
Reel Impressions
3.4M
Single Reel Views
300+
YouTube Subscribers
Let's connect
Looking for an ML analyst who understands both the model and the market?