We work at the intersection between technology and society to build solutions that enhance societal impact, justice and equity. Our work is done through our two labs:
We are a thoughtful, creative and almost always exuberant group of social scientists, lawyers, and engineers.
Founder
Co-Founder and Director
Data Analyst
Strategy and Partnerships
Research Analyst
Research Analyst
Research Analyst
Senior Research Associate
Research Analyst
Research Analyst
Research Analyst
Founder
Sarayu has a background in management consulting (McKinsey and Company), venture investing (Elevar Equity), program development and management (Gray Matters Capital), and academic research. She has a PhD in Political Science from King's College London, a Master's in Public Policy from the School of International and Public Affairs (SIPA) at Columbia University, and a arts and law degree from the National Law School of India University, Bangalore (NLSIU).
Co-Founder and Director
Astha has experience in research (Future State, SEWA), consulting (MicroSave, Dalberg), advisory (APPI), and government (Planning Commission). She has a Masters from the Institute of Social Studies (the Netherlands), and a bachelors in history from St. Stephens College. She is a two time TedX speaker, and Global Governance Future Fellow (2018-19).
Data Analyst
Kanimozhi has worked in the International Relations sector and geopolitical analysis space focusing on Indo-Pacific and the African continent. She has previously worked with Jane's by IHS Markit where she analysed the conflict situations in Africa. She has also worked on the Asia-Africa Growth Corridor (AAGC) with the Research and Information Systems for Developing Countries (RIS). With a background in engineering, she hopes to utilise her analytical skills to understand more about the societal paradigm of technology at Aapti.
Strategy and Partnerships
Suha has experience working in the startup ecosystem with several tech startups, social enterprises (Microsoft for Startups), and women-led organisations (SonderConnect). At Microsoft, she led a program that supported social enterprises in leveraging technology to amplify their impact. Previously she worked for the Centre for Law and Policy Research (Bangalore), where she focused on issues concerning gender, public health & disability rights. During this period she also organised India’s first conference on Transgender Rights and the law. Suha graduated from Maastricht University, with a degree in International Relations & Public Policy.
Research Analyst
Amrita holds a BA in Philosophy from Ashoka University. Her interests lie in the intersection of applied ethics and technology, and the future of privacy and digital rights. Prior to joining Aapti, she worked at Scroll, writing and curating a variety of stories. She also has prior experience in academic research, film and advertising. At Aapti, Amrita hopes to solve for possible ethical models in the formulation, deployment and use of data-driven technologies - between the state, the individual and industry stakeholders.
Research Analyst
Soujanya Sridharan is a graduate of Development from Azim Premji University. Her interest in tech policy stems from her thesis research on labour unions within India’s IT industry. Previously, she has interned with organisations such as The Hindu and Tata Trusts. This was followed by a short stint with IT for Change where she was involved in the gender and technology vertical. At Aapti, her research revolves around forging human-centric pathways to platform and data governance.
Research Analyst
Aishani holds a BA.LLB (Hons.) degree from School of Law, Christ. Her past internship at The Dialogue, Delhi steered her interest towards the field of technology law and policy where she broadly worked on encryption, illegal content and online harms, and consumer trust in the online world. She has a keen interest in policy and has assisted in researching and drafting the Karnataka Tank Conservation & Development Authority Rules, 2019. At Aapti, she seeks to explore the confluence of technology with laws such as competition, consumer and employment, and work towards bolstering legal frameworks, protecting citizens from harms stemming due to tech deployment.
Senior Research Associate
Vinay started his career as a corporate lawyer at Khaitan & Co. where he was involved in analysing and advising companies on the legal landscape of tech and corporate matters. He then made the shift to tech policy, working at IT for Change, researching various aspects of the digital economy, with a specific focus on identifying a theoretical basis and practical models for socialising data value. He is interested in how data governance frameworks can be leveraged to enable greater social good. Vinay graduated from Gujarat National Law University with a B.B.A., LL.B. (Hons.) degree.
Research Analyst
Shefali Girish holds a BA.LLB (Hons.) degree from School of Law, Christ. Her past internship at Navi Technologies Pvt Ltd, a fintech company steered her interest towards the field of technology law and understanding the intersection between technology and law and data governance. She has also previously interned in IP Firms such as BananaIP, K&S Partners and researched on Intellectual Property rights and AI-generated works. She has a keen interest in policy and research. At Aapti, she seeks to explore the confluence of tech law with other laws such as privacy law, data protection and understanding models of data governance.
Research Analyst
Ava is a Political Science graduate, with research experience in literature and music. Her interests are in dilemmas of digital access, social transformations through technology and digital forms of social representation. Before joining Aapti, Ava worked as a Teaching Fellow at Ashoka University, where she taught students political theory, helped create online-friendly curriculums and conducted writing workshops. She has conducted various research projects in the intersection of art, politics and digitisation in India. At Aapti, Ava seeks a greater understanding of digital ecosystems of development, as well as technologically-driven perspectives on Indian culture.
Research Analyst
By training Shafali is a new media designer and a computer science engineer. She is currently building her practise in the space of Community, Technology, and now, Policy. As a part of Janastu collective and Milli, she worked with archives for a diversity of stories and with young women in rural areas to help gig-enable them, by inculcating a culture of media making. She has also been pursuing research on community networks, citizenship, and how to move away from the textually prolific internet through annotations and hypermedia communication. At Aapti, she wants to focus on making the tech policy spaces more feminist and open it further to having more representation.