New Delhi: Pranjali Awasthi, a 16-year-old Indian prodigy has stepped into the tech world with her startup, Delv.AI.
Launched in January 2022, the venture focuses on streamlining data extraction for research purposes. Impressively, Awasthi has secured $450,000 (Rs 3.7 crore) in funding for her startup and leads a team of 10 employees.
Awasthi’s tech journey started at an early age, and she attributes her father, an engineer, as the key inspiration for her entrepreneurial path. Expressing gratitude for her father’s passion and values, she mentioned that his influence led her to delve into coding at the age of 7.
By the age of 13, she began interning in university research labs at Florida International University, actively engaging in machine learning projects while simultaneously attending school. Amid the COVID pandemic, she dedicated around 20 hours a week to her internship since her school had transitioned to virtual learning.
While interning, she started thinking on how AI could address a particular issue, giving rise to the concept of Delv.AI.
In 2021, Pranjali secured a spot in an AI startup accelerator in Miami, organized by tech enthusiasts Lucy Guo and Dave Fontenot from Backend Capital. She joined their September 12-week cohort, offering a small equity share in her future company as part of the agreement.
She took a temporary break from high school. The accelerator served as a launchpad, aiding her in attracting investments from notable entities such as On Deck and Village Global.
She explained that Delv.AI aims to assist researchers in extracting specific information from online content. The startup secured $450,000 (about Rs 3.7 crore) in funding and presently holds an estimated valuation of $12 million (Rs 100 crore).