Kirthiga Reddy, CEO and co-founder of OptimizeGEO and Verix, is set to take the stage today at the NDTV Ind.AI Summit 2026 in ITC Maurya, New Delhi. She will be a key speaker in the session titled "The World at Work: Global Lessons in AI Adoption."
The session will also have Reddy alongside other senior voices, including Kumaresh Pattabiraman (Head, LinkedIn India), Madhav Krishna (Founder & CEO, Vahan.ai) and Puneet Chandok (President, Microsoft India & South Asia).
Who is Kirthiga Reddy?
Kirthiga Reddy is a leading technology executive and investor with over two decades of global experience. She began her technology career in engineering roles in the United States and later joined Facebook (now Meta) as its first employee in India and later went on to become Managing Director of Facebook India & South Asia.
Her leadership credentials also include becoming the first female investment partner at the AI-focused SoftBank Vision Fund and serving as chair of the Stanford Business School Management Board.
Reddy is currently the CEO of Virtualness, a high-growth, venture-backed generative AI and Web3 startup and also President of Athena Technology II, the third in a series of all-women-led SPACs (Special Purpose Acquisition Companies). In addition, she co-founded Liftery, a social impact initiative aimed at supporting working women, especially mothers, to grow in their careers.
Reddy's AI initiative
AI Kiran is a global initiative led by OptimizeGeo and INK Global Foundation, in partnership with the Office of the Principal Scientific Adviser to the Government of India.
Reddy is not only leading ventures in AI but also working to make artificial intelligence more inclusive. AI is growing rapidly, it is changing how companies work, how governments function and how jobs are created. But not many women are part of this space, especially in leadership roles.
That's when AI Kiran comes, helping connect women working in AI. It creates a strong network where women and diverse professionals in AI can connect, support each other and collaborate. It helps people learn AI, improve their knowledge and stay updated with new developments.
It is designed as a long-term effort to recognise, mentor and promote women in AI over the coming years. AI Kiran wants to bring together government, industry and civil society to create a strong support system for women in the field of artificial intelligence.
