Ajay Data
Founder and CEO Data Xgen Technologies
Dr Ajay Data is a young techno-commercial Founder and CEO of
multiple technology companies. His hard work, visionary approach, belief in teamwork and
ingenious thinking made Data Infosys Limited a highly-respected IT company.
As CEO of the leadership team of the company,
he has been driving initiatives to build a skilled and
culturally diverse global workforce. His innovation and execution of software products like
BharatSync, XgenPlus, Spamjaoo, and DATAMAIL have got users the world over and won multiple
patents.
Making a modest start on April 18th 1999 as
Rajasthan’s first private ISP, the company rapidly
expanded its line of businesses in the areas of e-Governance, Software Products, Turnkey IT
Solutions and Mobile Technologies. Recently Data Xgen Technologies got global recognition
for
bringing in first-of-its-kind IDN email supporting email addresses in 11 local Indian
languages,
including Hindi, Gujarati, Tamil, Telugu, and Marathi. Dr Data is Managing Director of Data
Group of
Industries with an annual business turnover of approx US $200 million and sought after
leader by
young entrepreneurs for mentoring and guidance.
Recently, the Government of Rajasthan also
started email services to every citizen on the innovation
and technology built under his leadership and guidance. In his wide-ranging experience in
these
organisations, he has led the transformation of HR into a strategic partner, facilitated
organisation-
wide transformation and capability development, and has been instrumental in building a
strong
talent pool through a series of leadership development initiatives.
Maheshwer Peri
Founder & Chairman, CAREERS 360 (Pathfinder Publishing
A passionate entrepreneur, Mahesh is a qualified CA, CMA and ACS. He
started his
career as an investment banker with SBI Capital Markets. He was associated with
the Outlook group for 17 years and headed it for more than 10 years. Mahesh
believes that the demographic dividend India seeks can turn into a nightmare if youth
are not shown the right direction to maximize their capabilities. CAREERS360 is the
result of his deep understanding of student issues, and the information gaps that
need to be filled to help students take an informed career decision.
Ritesh Malik
Founder at Innov8 and Plaksha University
Dr Ritesh Malik is a medical graduate who took a detour from
conventional medicine to follow his
passion for entrepreneurship. In 2016, Dr Malik started a coworking platform called Innov8. A
venture, which started with Ritesh’s sheer love and thirst to promote entrepreneurship in the
country, is now one of the leading names in the coworking ecosystem of India.
Innov8, a Y-combinator backed coworking space,
is a platform to connect communities of
freelancers, entrepreneurs, corporates, tech innovators and investors under one roof and in
a social
environment. In 2019, Innov8 Coworking was acquired by Softbank-backed OYO Group. Innov8 has
a
presence in over 14 cities of India, panning over 30 campuses.
Dr Malik has been one of the most active angel
investors in the country and has invested in over 50
companies in the last six years. WittyFeed, Sarva Yoga, Sheroes, Sattviko, Josh Talks,
PeeSafe,
SectorQube, Inc42, QDesk, Leverage Edu, CivilCops, Pesto, OrangeWood (YC), Inito (YC),
StylDotMe,
TapChief, Asimov Robotics, and Ketto, are some of the companies that are a part of his
investment
portfolio. Dr Malik’s leadership and contribution to the Indian startup ecosystem is widely
recognised by the startup industry and media fraternity with recognitions like Forbes 30
under 30
Asia (2016), Fortune 40 under 40 India (2018), PWC & SPH 40 Influential Indians,
Business World 40
Under 40 (2017), Entrepreneur Magazine 35 Under 35 India (2017), Star of Delhi award by
Hurun
Report, CEO of the year (Real Estate Tech) by Economic Times, and ‘The Coworking Wonder’
title by
Entrepreneur Magazine to name a few.
Rohan Verma
CEO & Executive Director, MapmyIndia Mappls (C.E. Info Systems
Ltd)
Rohan is a passionate entrepreneur on a mission to make our world better through maps and
location technologies. He has significant experience as an industry leader in the digital mapping,
geospatial technologies and automotive mobility technologies sectors. In 2004 while still an
undergraduate at Stanford University, the then 19 year old Rohan created India’s first interactive
internet mapping portal, MapmyIndia.com. And on July 26, 2007 he joined the MapmyIndia board as
a full time Director and thus began a period of high growth for the company and sustained value
creation for the stakeholders. But his finest hour came in December 2021 when MapmyIndia was
recognized as a ‘Unicorn’, post the company’s blockbuster IPO that was oversubscribed by more
than 154 times and the stock listed with an opening day premium of 65% despite uncertain market
conditions.
Rohan has had experience in geospatial industry at various stages of its evolution, he has focused on
bringing significant benefits of maps and location technologies to individuals, businesses and
governments. He has previously worked with leading technology and consulting giants like Microsoft
Corporation in Washington, USA and with McKinsey & Co. and Intel Corporation in California, USA.
This experience has proved invaluable in the discharge of his current responsibilities as CEO and
Executive Director, at MapmyIndia, where he drives corporate strategy/growth, sales/marketing,
product and technology/innovation. Rohan has global ambitions for MapmyIndia. And work has
already begun in earnest to take company’s products and solutions global, under the brand ‘Mappls’.
A technocrat at heart Rohan believes that there is a limitless potential to make the lives of millions
of people better. A meritorious student, Rohan has been the recipient of the prestigious President’s
Award for Academic Excellence at Stanford University, USA from where he pursued Electrical
Engineering. He also holds a master’s degree in Business Administration with Distinction from the
London Business School (2015). And here too he distinguished himself by earning the Dean’s List
Award.
Being a tech evangelist with rich entrepreneurial experience, Rohan is sought after by leading
industry bodies and companies. He is a member of the CII National Committee on Space and
represents MapmyIndia as a Core Member in the Indian Space Association. He sits on the Board of
the publicly listed Cholamandalam Investment and Finance Company, the financial services arm of
Murugappa Group, with a loan book of INR 50,000+ crores, where he advises the company on how
to leverage technology and phygital innovations for future growth and success.
Snehil Khanor
Founder at TrulyMadly.com
Snehil Khanor is a serial tech entrepreneur who has founded startups from his school days and is currently the Founder & CEO of TrulyMadly .
Snehil is a firm believer in creating sustainable business practices or he likes to call it ‘Frugile Methodology’ (Frugal+Agile) for startups. Under his excellent leadership, TrulyMadly has become one of India’s
largest matchmaking app.
TrulyMadly has nearly ten million downloads and has redefined the
way Indian millennials are finding their partners.
Vishal Gondal
Founder & CEO, GOQii
From being known as the father of the Indian gaming industry Vishal Gondal is now
a pioneer in the health metaverse space. His passion for technology, fitness, and
gaming, led him to start GOQii, which is focused on preventive healthcare. GOQii
helps people make a positive change towards a healthier lifestyle and be a force for
good. Now, GOQii will be a combination of preventive healthcare + gaming, + the
metaverse in 3D. Vishal believes that the metaverse will combine the two worlds,
making living healthy in the real world more fun and rewarding. He sold his first
entrepreneurial venture, India Games, to Walt Disney. He was listed among the top
50 executives in the mobile content space by the UK-based 'Mobile Entertainment'
Magazine alongside noted people like Steve Jobs. A notable angel investor, he has
brought his knowledge and love for interviewing people to a whole new platform by
hosting a podcast series ‘Beneath the Force: The Vishal Gondal Show'. On the
show, he converses with personalities from various walks of life, providing a sneak
peek into their fascinating lives. Vishal is also a fitness enthusiast, runs marathons,
goes on treks, and also enjoys skydiving.