# Niraj Ranjan Rout

> Niraj Ranjan Rout is the co-founder and CEO of Hiver, a customer-service software company he started with Nitesh Nandy as GrexIt in 2011. An IIT Kharagpur engineering graduate and former Mentor Graphics engineer, he previously built the application-development business Mobicules. His public writing and interviews focus on email collaboration, practical customer support, and the operational effectiveness of AI. He also plays guitar and has shared performances with Hiver colleagues.

- **Role:** Co-founder & CEO at Hiver
- **Organizations:** Hiver, Mobicules, Mentor Graphics, Forbes Business Council
- **Education:** B.Tech in Electronics and Electrical Communications Engineering, Indian Institute of Technology, Kharagpur
- **Known for:** Co-founded Hiver and led its evolution from email knowledge-sharing software to customer-service products., Helped grow Mobicules to 35 people in 20 months, according to his 2011 interview., Led Hiver through the documented $4 million 2018 round and $22 million 2022 Series B.

## Career timeline

- **2002** — Graduated from IIT Kharagpur; subsequently worked at Mentor Graphics for five years in EDA and VLSI.
- **2007** — Became an entrepreneur; early product attempts were followed by the web and mobile development business Mobicules.
- **2011** — Exited Mobicules in January and started GrexIt with Nitesh Nandy; an April interview documented the private beta.
- **2015** — GrexIt rebranded its product as Hiver to avoid confusion with Greece’s possible eurozone exit.
- **2018** — Hiver raised $4 million from Kalaari Capital and Kae Capital; reported more than 1,100 paying customers and a 50-person team.
- **2022** — Hiver raised a $22 million Series B led by K1.
- **2023** — Moved to the United States in August, according to a public personal recollection.
- **2026** — Published and discussed arguments for measuring AI by operational outcomes in customer service.

## Achievements

- Co-founded Hiver and led its evolution from email knowledge-sharing software to customer-service products.
- Helped grow Mobicules to 35 people in 20 months, according to his 2011 interview.
- Led Hiver through the documented $4 million 2018 round and $22 million 2022 Series B.
- Hiver’s current company page reports usage by more than 10,000 teams worldwide.

## Latest updates

- **2026-09** — Hiver listed Rout as a September 22 speaker at the AI for Customer Support Summit, with a session called The 40% Problem: AI for tickets that won’t deflect. The listing establishes the scheduled session, rather than independently confirming attendance.
- **2026-03** — Published AI-First Vs. AI-Effective: How Operational Design Impacts Customer Service Outcomes on March 6 in Forbes Business Council.
- **2026-02** — Appeared on the February 20 AI at Work episode about deploying and measuring AI in customer service.

## Links

- Website: https://nirajr.medium.com/
- LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/nirajranjan/
- Twitter/X: https://x.com/nirajr

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Profile page: https://yespress.io/niraj-ranjan-rout
Published by YesPress — https://yespress.io
Last updated: 2026-10-14