Sunil Wadhwani Explained

Sunil Wadhwani
Birth Name:Sunil Tekchand Wadhwani[1]
Birth Place:Delhi, India[2]
Nationality:American
Alma Mater:IIT Madras
Carnegie Mellon University
Years Active:1981–present
Known For:Co-founding Mastech Digital and IGATE
Spouse:Nita Wadhwani
Children:2
Relatives:Romesh Wadhwani (brother)

Sunil Wadhwani is an entrepreneur, investor, and philanthropist. He is best known as the co-founder and CEO Mastech, Inc. and IGATE. Born in Delhi, India, Sunil graduated from the Indian Institute of Technology, Madras, before moving to the United States of America to earn a degree from Carnegie Mellon University.[3]

Sunil is presently the Managing Partner at SWAT Capital. He is focused on several philanthropic initiatives; two of which are, the Wadhwani Initiative for Sustainable Healthcare (WISH) and the Wadhwani Institute for Artificial Intelligence (WIAI). He currently resides in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.

Early life and education

Sunil Wadhwani was born in Delhi, India, and is the brother of Indian-born American billionaire, Romesh Wadhwani.

In 1974, Sunil received a B.Tech. (Bachelor of Technology) from IIT Madras. He later obtained a Master of Science from Carnegie Mellon University, Pittsburgh in 1976.[4]

Philanthropy

In 2000, Wadhwani and his family established the Wadhwani Impact Trust to leverage innovation to transform the lives and communities of the world's most vulnerable populations. The nonprofit supports two organizations in India and other US charities.    

Wadhwani Initiative for Sustainable Healthcare (WISH)

The Wadhwani Initiative for Sustainable Healthcare (WISH) was founded in 2014 by Sunil Wadhwani to transform the primary healthcare system in low-income areas of India and other developing countries using innovation and technology.[5] [6] [7]

WISH works with healthcare innovators, the government, and other private sector partners. to support over 1,000 digital health and wellness centers in India. These centers have served over 30 million patients with free healthcare. WISH also established an Innovation Unit at the National Health Authority in India to mainstream digital health innovations such as point-of-care-services, smart clinics, and e-health modules.[6]

WISH is currently present in several states in India including Assam, Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh, and Delhi.[8]

Wadhwani Institute for Artificial Intelligence (WIAI)

In February 2018, Sunil Wadhwani, along with his brother, Romesh Wadhwani, founded the institute to develop and deploy transformative solutions using artificial intelligence, machine learning, data sciences, and related areas to address societal challenges in domains such as health, agriculture, infrastructure, education, and more.[9]

WIAI, led by a team of more than 200 AI / ML experts, has developed over 30 AI solutions being scaled across various states in India.  These solutions include smart differential diagnosis enabling over 5 million AI-powered consultations, a system that helps predict high risk pregnancies and suggest interventions affecting 30+ million women around the world each year, a suite of TB solutions impacting over 2.6 million people, and an AI-powered tool for agricultural pest management being used by 33,000 farmers across 6 states to protect crops.

Wadhwani School of Data Science and AI

Sunil Wadhwani, through the Wadhwani Impact Trust, endowed Rs. 110 crore to the Indian Institute of Technology Madras to establish the Wadhwani School of Data Science and AI. The school will offer various graduate and postgraduate courses and run a Joint MSc program in Data Science and AI with the University of Birmingham, U.K.[10]

Vibrant Pittsburgh (VP)

In 2010, Wadhwani co-founded Vibrant Pittsburgh.[11] Vibrant Pittsburgh is an economic development non-profit catalyzing workplace diversity in the Pittsburgh region by providing resources and partnering with the business community. It trains over 2,000 employees annually with the goal of measurable progress toward a more diverse, equitable, inclusive, and attractive organizations for the talent of today and tomorrow.

2070 Health

Sunil, through his venture capital firm W Health Ventures, has invested $30 million in 2070 Health, a platform that creates new health companies to improve healthcare accessibility and affordability in India. 2070 Health has launched three companies to date: ElevateNow, Nivaan Care, and Reveal HealthTech.[12]

Other Service

Wadhwani serves, or served, as a Trustee or Director of Carnegie-Mellon University, George Washington University, The US Federal Reserve Bank (Pittsburgh Branch), United Way Worldwide, UPMC Health System, Allegheny Conference on Community Development, and Pittsburgh Cultural Trust.[13]    

Business career

In 1981, he founded UroTec Systems Corp, and served as its president and CEO until 1986.[14]

Following his stint with UroTec, he co-founded Mastech Digital Inc., formerly Mastech Inc., serving as its chairman until September 1996.[15] [16] [17] Annualized growth of 56% over three years in the late 1990s landed the company on BusinessWeek's Hot 100 Growth List.[18]

By the 2000s, the company had expanded to 34 countries across North America, Europe, and Asia. The Indian sub-continent became the company's largest delivery hub. Under his leadership, IGATE recorded revenues of $1.2 billion[19] and grew to 34,000 employees.[20] [18]

The company was featured among the five best companies to work at in India.[21] CareerBliss - based on employee happiness and satisfaction quotients - featured IGATE among the twenty-five best companies to work for in the United States of America.[22]

By July 2015, French IT company, Capgemini completed a $4 billion acquisition of IGATE,[23] recorded as one of the largest deals in the Indian information technology sector.[24] [25]

In 2016, Mastech repositioned itself as a digital technologies company - Mastech Digital and continues to be listed on the NYSE as MHH.[26] [27]

In addition to currently being part of Mastech Digital's board of directors, Sunil also serves as the Managing Partner of SWAT Capital.[28]

Recognition

In 2023, Time Magazine recognized Sunil, along with his brother Romesh Wadhwani, as one of the 100 Most Influential People in Artificial Intelligence.[29]

In April 2023, Wadhwani delivered the keynote address on innovation in healthcare at a G20 working group meeting in Goa, India.

In recognition of his success as an angel investor, he received the Lifetime Achievement Award from the Pittsburgh Venture Capital Association at the 23rd PVCA Annual Luncheon in May 2017.[30]

Sunil Wadhwani was recognized as the EY Entrepreneur of the Year, an award by Ernst & Young, and was honored as the Pittsburgh Man of the Year by Vectors.

In 1991, Sunil Wadhwani was honored as a Distinguished Alumnus of the Indian Institute of Technology, Madras.[31]

Sunil has written articles for various publications, including Datamation, Systems Integrator, and Reader's Digest. He has been quoted in publications such as Business Week, The Wall Street Journal, Information Week, and Investors Business Daily.

Investments

Sunil Wadhwani is an active angel investor.[32] He has invested in over 30 early-stage technology companies, serving on the board in several of these ventures.[33] Sunil has invested in various industries, including healthcare, life sciences, IT, social media, software, and financial services.

Personal life

He is married to Nita. They have a son, Rohan, and a daughter, Shalina.[34]

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Sunil Tekchand Wadhwani - Biography. MarketScreener. www.marketscreener.com. 20 August 2018.
  2. Web site: Sunil Wadhwani: There's been a dramatic change in Indian American philanthropy in recent years . 10 January 2017.
  3. Web site: Citations: 1999 Distinguished Alumnus Awards Recipients Office Of Alumni Relations. alumni.iitm.ac.in. 2018-06-13.
  4. Web site: SCHOOL OF COMPUTER SCIENCE, Carnegie Mellon. www-dev.cs.cmu.edu. 2018-06-13.
  5. Web site: A Leader in His Own Right: Sunil Wadhwani. ehealth.eletsonline.com. 19 November 2017 . 2018-06-13.
  6. Web site: 2014-11-21 . Health ATMs can be a reality soon . 2023-08-31 . The Indian Express.
  7. News: 2016-02-20 . WISH, USAID brace up to improve primary healthcare . The Times of India . 2023-08-31 . 0971-8257.
  8. Web site: Rajasthan Pushes Ahead With Privatisation Of Primary Healthcare NewsClick. NewsClick. 31 October 2017 . 2018-06-13.
  9. Web site: A New Initiative in India to Help Shape AI for the Benefit of Everyone - Non Profit News Nonprofit Quarterly. nonprofitquarterly.org. 23 February 2018 . 2018-06-13.
  10. News: Basu . Sreeradha . 2024-01-30 . IIT-Madras gets Rs 110 crore endowment from Sunil Wadhwani . 2024-06-18 . The Economic Times . 0013-0389.
  11. Web site: An Exemplary Life - Sunil Wadhwani Tells His Story . 2023-08-31 . Pittsburgh Quarterly.
  12. News: 2023-06-07 . W Health Ventures invests $30 million in healthcare venture studio 2070 Health . 2024-06-18 . The Times of India . 0971-8257.
  13. Web site: Network . eHealth . 2017-11-19 . A Leader in His Own Right: Sunil Wadhwani - Elets eHealth . 2023-08-31 . eHealth Magazine.
  14. Web site: Sunil Wadhwani: Executive Profile & Biography - Bloomberg. www.bloomberg.com. 2018-06-13.
  15. Web site: Mastech Digital MHH. Reuters. 2018-06-13.
  16. Web site: Capgemini Technology Services India History Capgemini Technology Services India Information - The Economic Times. economictimes.indiatimes.com. 2018-06-13.
  17. Web site: IGATE Story - Profile, History, Founder, CEO Famous IT Companies SuccessStory. successstory.com. 2018-06-13.
  18. News: 1999-05-31 . Mastech Corp.: The Nabobs Of Networking . Bloomberg.com . 2023-08-31.
  19. News: iGate brought in an intensive client-centric approach: Lanny Cohen. @businessline. 2018-05-30.
  20. Web site: IGATE Story - Profile, History, Founder, CEO Famous IT Companies SuccessStory . 2023-08-31 . successstory.com.
  21. News: India's 20 best IT employers. Rediff. 2018-05-30.
  22. News: The top 25 US companies to work for if you want to be happier. Mejia. Zameena. 2018-01-18. CNBC. 2018-05-30.
  23. News: Capgemini to complete iGate merger by June, rules out job cuts. 2016-02-11. The Economic Times. 2018-05-17.
  24. News: Capgemini acquires IGATE for $4 bn in all-cash deal. Reporter. B. S.. 2015-04-28. Business Standard India. 2018-05-29.
  25. News: 9 People Who Pocketed Millions: Capgemini-iGate Deal.. Business Insider. 2018-05-17.
  26. Web site: Capgemini Technology Services India History Capgemini Technology Services India Information - The Economic Times. economictimes.indiatimes.com. 2018-05-17.
  27. Web site: Stock Quotes & Mastech News Reuters.com. Editorial. Reuters. U.S.. 2018-05-17.
  28. News: Indian Angel Network invests in French software firm Stelae. (VCCircle.com). Madhav A Chanchani. U.S.. 2018-05-17.
  29. Web site: 2023-09-07 . TIME100 AI 2023: Romesh and Sunil Wadhwani . 2024-06-18 . Time . en.
  30. Web site: Pittsburgh . A. Carnegie Mellon University Publication 5000 Forbes Avenue . Pa 15213268-2000 . The 21st Century Entrepreneur . 2023-09-01 . Carnegie Mellon Today.
  31. Web site: Office of Alumni & Corporate Relations, IIT Madras . 2023-09-01 . acr.iitm.ac.in.
  32. Web site: 2018-02-23 . A New Initiative in India to Help Shape AI for the Benefit of Everyone . 2023-09-01 . Non Profit News Nonprofit Quarterly.
  33. Web site: Network . eHealth . 2017-11-19 . A Leader in His Own Right: Sunil Wadhwani - Elets eHealth . 2023-09-01 . eHealth Magazine.
  34. Web site: The 21st Century Entrepreneur - Carnegie Mellon Today. www.cmu.edu. 20 August 2018.