# Aakrit Vaish

> Aakrit Vaish is a Mumbai-based entrepreneur and investor who co-founded conversational AI company Haptik with Swapan Rajdev in 2013 and served as its founding CEO. Following Reliance Jio’s majority investment in 2019 and a later CEO handover, he co-founded AI investment firm Activate with Pratyush Choudhury. He has also advised the IndiaAI Mission, backed more than 100 startups and co-founded the Tech Entrepreneurs Association of Mumbai.

- **Role:** Co-founder at Activate; co-founder and founding CEO of Haptik
- **Organizations:** Activate, Haptik, Tech Entrepreneurs Association of Mumbai (TEAM), IndiaAI Mission (former advisor), RateGain Travel Technologies, Interakt, Peercheque, Flat.to, Flurry, Deloitte
- **From:** Mumbai, India
- **Nationality:** Indian
- **Education:** B.S. in Industrial Engineering, University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign
- **Known for:** Co-founded Haptik in 2013 and led it through Reliance Jio’s 2019 majority investment., Named a World Economic Forum Young Global Leader in 2023., Co-founded TEAM and served as co-chair of its 2024-26 governing council.

## Career timeline

- **2008** — Graduated from the University of Illinois and moved to San Francisco; worked at Deloitte before joining Flurry.
- **2010** — Joined Flurry, where he was employee number 12 and later established the India office.
- **2013** — Co-founded Haptik with Swapan Rajdev; also co-founded and invested in Flat.to.
- **2014** — Haptik launched its personal-assistant chatbot; Flat.to was acquired by CommonFloor.
- **2019** — Reliance announced an 87% interest in Haptik through a transaction including ₹230 crore for the business transfer within a ₹700 crore overall package.
- **2022** — Helped establish the Tech Entrepreneurs Association of Mumbai.
- **2023** — Named a World Economic Forum Young Global Leader.
- **2024** — Handed the Haptik CEO role to Ahshad Jussawalla; elected TEAM co-chair for the 2024-26 council.
- **2025-02** — Publicly announced his Haptik CEO transition and said he would continue on the board.
- **2025-08** — RateGain announced his appointment as independent director effective August 8, subject to shareholder approval.
- **2025-12** — Launched Activate with Pratyush Choudhury.
- **2026-02** — Activate announced a collaboration with Nvidia to support AI startups.
- **2026-09** — Activate’s $105 million investment platform was reported, comprising an $85 million early-stage fund and $20 million in growth vehicles.

## Achievements

- Co-founded Haptik in 2013 and led it through Reliance Jio’s 2019 majority investment.
- Named a World Economic Forum Young Global Leader in 2023.
- Co-founded TEAM and served as co-chair of its 2024-26 governing council.
- Served for a year as a full-time advisor to the IndiaAI Mission, contributing to sovereign AI policy.
- Made more than 100 startup investments, according to his World Economic Forum biography.
- Co-founded Activate, whose $105 million investment platform was reported in September 2026.

## Latest updates

- **2026-09** — Activate closed a $105 million investment platform, with $85 million for early-stage investment and $20 million in growth vehicles; reported investments included Sarvam AI, ElevenLabs and Wispr Flow.
- **2026-04** — Appeared with Avnish Bajaj on Unstarted to discuss timing, Haptik and the transition to Activate.
- **2026-02** — Activate announced a collaboration with Nvidia offering portfolio founders technical support and access to models and tools.
- **2025-12** — Launched Activate with Pratyush Choudhury, announcing inception investments of $500,000-$3 million.

## Links

- Website: https://about.me/aakrit
- LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/aakrit/
- Twitter/X: https://x.com/aakrit

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Profile page: https://yespress.io/aakrit-vaish
Published by YesPress — https://yespress.io
Last updated: 2026-10-25