“With India projected to be a global AI powerhouse, empowering its women in this space isn’t just local impact — it’s global transformation.” Kirthiga Reddy, who was once the first employee and Managing Director of Facebook India (now Meta) and later the first female investing partner at the AI-focused over $130B SoftBank’s Vision Fund, is more than sure of what she wants to do with her new platform AI Kiran.
Reddy, now the CEO & co-founder, Verix, a global trust-tech platform, is the brain behind AI Kiran which aims to put Indian women in AI on a global stage, enable connectivity, funding and mentorship. AI Kiran is launching on April 21 in conjunction with UN creativity and innovation day. The timing is crucial , for despite women outnumbering men in STEM courses in India, it is estimated that women account for only 33 per cent of GenAI roles at the junior level in India and this drops to 19 per cent at the senior level.
“It is towards building a cross-functional AI community. The initiative is hosted on the Manthan Platform, enabling access for a wide and diverse audience of professionals, students, and researchers across India,” Reddy explained. She said all recognitions under AI Kiran are digitally verified using blockchain-powered credentialing, ensuring authenticity, transparency, and global shareability. “This initiative combines a vibrant membership community with access to mentorship, curated learning programmes, branding support, and high-impact events – creating valuable opportunities for growth, visibility, and leadership. It is also about connecting women across geographies.”
India’s AI market is poised to reach $17 billion by 2027, Reddy said, adding that to ensure that women are a leading force in shaping and operating transformative technologies, “a collaborative approach is required between the government, private sector and civil society organisations”. This is why AI Kiran is being launched in collaboration with the office of the principal scientific adviser to the government of India and INK Women, she reasoned.
As part of the initial announcement, the initiative focuses on 250 prominent women in AI spanning key domains including education, healthcare, sustainability, and enterprise tech, bringing interdisciplinary perspectives that are crucial to responsible and impactful AI. “This launch will set the stage for a multi-year process of recognising, growing and nurturing women leaders in AI,” she added. “Over the next year, in conjunction with our partners, we aim to reach a million women in AI across our programmes.”
In addition to government support, AI Kiran has forged strong partnerships with Nasscom, 100 GIGA, AspireForHer, Udaiti Foundation, Youth Ki Awaaz and Karya. “We are also designed for global connectivity from the start in partnership with organisations like AnitaB.org, SheTO and Neythri. With these partners, we are creating avenues for ongoing learning and collaboration, mentorship programmes, funding pathways, and building a global network of women leaders.”
The launch also kickstarts a fundraising drive with via the INK Women Foundation non-profit. “Our initial target of $3M supports the ambitious AI Kiran initiative with the resources for large-scale summits, academic and industry partnerships, scholarships, and sharing stories of women in AI in India on a global stage.”
