2024 was a year of progress and successes for Plaksha. Through each partnership, research center, lab and event, we inched closer to demonstrating what reimagining technology education grounded in solving real-world problems can look like.
Thought-provoking discussions on transformative technologies, economics and entrepreneurship were some of the key highlights, as we continued to drive change via new global partnerships and industry-academia collaborations.
Nurturing a new kind of engineer is a cherished goal we pursue in multiple ways. We were also unwavering in our focus on student well-being.
Here are our 24 key highlights in entrepreneurship, research, innovation and inclusivity from 2024, that we are proud to share:
1. Driving Student Startup Success with Accelerator Program
We kickstarted the year with the unveiling of Plaksha Launch Accelerator Program (PLAP) on Jan 16, an initiative of the Info Edge Center for Entrepreneurship, that fosters innovation and inspires aspirant entrepreneurs in the university to solve stirring problems of the larger world. A six-month pre-seed training exclusively designed for students and alumni; this program offers a platform to help startups become portfolio companies.
The program was launched at the university campus during Alchemy'24, an annual event aimed to catalyze innovation and nurture the entrepreneurial spirit in young minds.
2. Fostering SDG Solutions via Innovation Challenge for Future Tech Leaders
During January we also hosted the 3rd edition of Young Creators League, an innovation challenge for high school students where they showcased solutions to real-world challenges, aligned with the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) of the United Nations.
More than a thousand high school students from classes 8 to 12 participated and 50 outstanding teams displayed their projects at the Grand Exhibition on campus. The projects included innovations such as braille printers, smart zebra crossings, speech therapy systems and more.
3. Facilitating India’s Transition to a Net Zero-Carbon Future
At the first annual Foundation Day celebration, we announced the launch of the Indorama Ventures Center for Clean Energy to lead clean energy transition via research and aid India’s transition to a net-zero carbon, self-reliant and energy-secure future.
Through research, industry & government partnerships, and public awareness campaigns, this center is contributing to the global effort in reducing carbon emissions. It is currently focused on 3 key research areas: Smart Homes, District Cooling with Thermal Storage, and Mitigation of Urban Heat Islands.
4. Innovating IoT Solutions with a Cutting-Edge Research Lab
To design affordable and scalable Internet-of-Things (IoT) solutions, we launched Dixon IoT Lab, a state-of-the-art facility in collaboration with Dixon Technologies (India) Limited, a leader in the electronic manufacturing services (EMS) space in India.
Fine-grained environmental data collection, novel sensing techniques to generate food & nutrition insights, and digital health applications are some of the key use cases for this lab. The research is also being leveraged to enhance road safety in Punjab, through an MoU signed between Plaksha University and Punjab Police.
5. Reflecting on Data Science as a Transformative Force
Committed to fostering innovative thinking and nurturing the next generation of technology leaders as we are, we hosted a thought-provoking fireside chat, which featured Prof Rajesh Gupta, Qualcomm Endowed Chair at the UC San Diego, and Prof Nandini Kannan, Dean of Academics at Plaksha University.
The talk addressed the transformative potential of Data Science in an age of AI growth. An enthusiastic group of industry leaders attended this session across Mumbai and Bengaluru, including Kavita Iyer (Managing Trustee of SIFF), Monik Sameer Koticha (Managing Director of Fortress Group), Raamdeo Agrawal (Non Executive Chairman of Motilal Oswal Financial Services Ltd), and Srikanth Velamakanni (Co-founder of Fractal.ai) among others. It is a part of our ongoing efforts to interweave realms of academia and industry.
6. Building a Supportive Ecosystem for Girls and Women in STEM
Empowering girls and women to thrive in STEM with fulfilling careers, is one of Plaksha’s key goals. GWiST (Girls and Women in STEM) is a Plaksha initiative that promotes this purpose through a multitude of events and initiatives.
“Women and girls do not need technology as much as technology needs them,” says Prof Rudra Pratap, Vice Chancellor of Plaksha University.
The GWiST Mentoring Walk in April, in collaboration with Vital Voices and Beyond Diversity, brought together experienced and future women leaders in tech. Inspiring conversations and fireside chats with Amita Karadkhekar, Parul Mittal and other women leaders saw a powerful display of mentorship and leadership. The event symbolized knowledge sharing and community building.
Watch: GWiST at Plaksha
7. Reimagining the Imagined through TEDx
Staying true to our commitment to reimagining, the inaugural TEDx event at Plaksha took the sentiment a level ahead.
Themed as ‘Re-imagining the Imagined’, it witnessed five exceptional speakers who brought their unique perspectives within the domains of freelancing, entrepreneurship, music, education, environmental advocacy, B2B software and content creation in tech education.
Watch: Reimagine the Imagined
8. Exchanging Journeys of Entrepreneurial Resilience
In the April fireside chat during the Immersion Day on campus, Binny Bansal, Co-founder of Flipkart and Prashanth Prakash, Founding Partner of Accel India, shared their entrepreneurial journeys of resilience and agile responses during uncertain times. It left lasting insights for all Plakshans.
“Only when things change do new opportunities emerge. There will always be challenges in your entrepreneurial journey, but you have to pivot, and stick to what you’re working on,” said Binny.
Watch: Hacking the Uncertainities with Binny Bansal
9. Hosting an Inter-University Sports Fest and Music Club
At the heart of Plaksha’s pursuits, beyond thought leadership discussions and research, also lies a vibrant culture driven by students. The first edition of our sports fest Eklavya was also a major attraction – 243 athletes from 11 institutes participated in basketball, badminton, table tennis, football and volleyball over three days. This student-led inter-university event contributed to a vibrant atmosphere and new energy to campus life.
The musical competition ‘Battle of Bands 2024’ was also an energizing display of musical prowess, where three teams of undergraduate students competed for the top spot.
10. Taking 150 Drones on a Flight on Campus
In a dazzling display of cutting-edge technology this September, our spectacular Drone Show with its intricate formations and breathtaking visuals gave a glimpse to high schoolers of the possibilities they could attain. The scene was observed as a part of the 7th edition of the Young Technology Scholars program, during which high school students stay on campus to learn and tinker.
YTS provides students from Classes 9 to 12 the opportunity to experience Plaksha’s campus and discover engineering like never before. They learn programming, algorithm development, microcontroller coding and more through practical lessons under 5 SDG tracks.
Watch: Skies of Innovation at Plaksha
11. Empowering a Smart Farm with Drones for Precision Agriculture
We also use drones for research-driven imagery. Dr. Shashank Tamaskar, Director, Center for Sustainable and Precision Agriculture (CSPA) made a captivating display of a drone in June, that is being used by CSPA to monitor crop health and predict yield.
CSPA is developing an innovative technology that would combine information from satellites, drones and IoT sensors to empower farmers and sugar mills, as a part of the larger Smart Farm initiative driven by AI/ML and remote sensing.
12. Driving Disruptive Tech with Holistic Development
At Plaksha, developing students as holistic individuals who exhibit resilience and adaptability is paramount. To expand perspectives in this direction, we hosted the Tech Talent Day in May.
CEOs, CXOs and business leaders in technology & HR joined us for a stimulating afternoon of discussions, where panelists deliberated on the impact of technology on business. The ability to lead, embrace changes and take risks emerged as essential attributes for an engineer on the face of disruptive technology.
“We are stuck in a mindset to assess talent in a certain way, to discern potential under certain parameters. But we must change our approach and see students as holistic individuals,” said Rajesh Magow, Co-founder and CEO of MakeMyTrip.
13. Reconnecting and Reminiscing during Residential Alumni Meet
We also welcomed students whom we had nurtured as technology leaders back to campus, some of them for the first time, in September. During our First Residential Alumni Meet, Plaksha alumni reconnected and reminisced together about their past, collectively sharing their experiences in life and career after graduating.
It was an incredible weekend of conversations, music and nostalgia.
Watch: Alumni Meet 2024
14. Welcoming 35% Women to the BTech Class of 2028
The new academic year at Plaksha began with 188 students joining the BTech program in August – a set of curious tinkerers, budding entrepreneurs, national level sportspersons and problem solvers.
This cohort included NTSE scholars, app and website developers, Trinity level musicians and high school heads. However, we are most proud that it comprises 35% women students.
Watch: BTech Class of 2028
15. Reimagining Healthcare Learning through Research
Plaksha, in collaboration with Molbio Diagnostics, has taken a significant step towards transforming healthcare education and innovation with the launch of its first In-Vitro Diagnostics (IVD) Lab.
This cutting-edge lab is designed as a hub of innovation for students, researchers and entrepreneurs. It aims to equip the next generation with the skills to solve real-world challenges and drive meaningful change. With hands-on training, practical exposure and research opportunities, the lab is poised to reimagine healthcare learning.
16. Connecting Students with the Natural World
Our research collaborations extended to biological sciences too. Plaksha in collaboration with Anthem Biosciences inaugurated a pathbreaking facility in August, dedicated to connecting students with intricate machinery of the natural world. The Anthem BioSciences Nature’s Machines Lab is a hub for developing biological literacy and ecological awareness on our campus.
Sponsored by Anthem Biosciences, the lab spans 1500 square feet approximately, and is designed to foster experiential learning and interdisciplinary research in biosciences.
17. Enhancing Research with Penn Engineering
To continue with such stellar research, exchange of mindsets and knowledge is paramount. In September, we signed an MoU with Penn Engineering, one of the 12 schools within the University of Pennsylvania, to enhance student international exchanges and foster advancements in research and education.
The key areas of collaboration also include exchange of faculty and researchers. This partnership enables us to develop cooperative research and educational programs, leveraging the expertise of both institutions.
18. Brainstorming on the Transformative Potential of Higher Education
To encourage insightful conversations on the transformation that higher education can bring, we held a series of thought leadership events in October titled ‘Invent the Future’.
Our Founding Chancellor Prof Shankar Sastry emphasized during the 3-city event, that the next generation of transformative technologies can indeed emerge from the startups that students at Plaksha are building currently. The event was hosted by Aakash Choudhry (Co-founder and Chief Mentor of AESL) in Delhi, Madhusudan Kela (Founder of MK Ventures) in Mumbai and Prashanth Prakash (Co-founder of Accel India) in Bengaluru.
To nurture such impact, faculty too teaches differently here.
“There is no reason why the next generation of foundation models cannot come from the startups that are represented here today. Students do use these models, but they don’t need to hear a 30-year-old curriculum anymore,” said Prof Sastry.
19. Highlighting Entrepreneurial Pitches and Inspiring Stories
At Plaksha, the transformative impact of such a higher education is already being felt.
During Innovator’s Edge Pitch Day in October, student and faculty pitches tackling real- world challenges in cybersecurity, agritech, health and more hinted possibilities of creating entirely new futures, beyond products. The event also marked the launch of Info Edge Center for Entrepreneurship, which nurtures startup ideas on our campus.
“The goal of this center is to cultivate pioneering entrepreneurs who can create solutions from limited resources, rather than merely encouraging students to start businesses” said Sanjeev Bikhchandani, Founder, Info Edge.
20. Launching a Minor in Technology Entrepreneurship with SCET, UC Berkeley
To further enable such innovations, during October we also announced a Minor in Technology Entrepreneurship in collaboration with the Sutardja Center for Entrepreneurship and Technology (SCET), UC Berkeley, to enable students to engage in real-world startup projects, simulations and entrepreneurial challenge labs.
As the program evolves, we will introduce advanced electives at the intersection of technology, business and sustainability.
21. Empowering STEM Teachers with Latest Tools and Methods
We realize how critical it is to equip teachers with latest teaching methods in STEM, for them to prepare students to lead future transformations.
The Teachers Training Workshop in November on campus offered practical applications, to help 118 government school teachers from 108 schools of eminence and 10 meritorious schools across Punjab bring STEM subjects to life in the classroom. The program included project-based instruction and interdisciplinary techniques.
22. Inaugurating the Agrawal-Oswal Student Residence
“Learn, earn and return. Life is 25% learn, 25% earn and 25% return.”
This Founders Day we inaugurated a new home away from home for girl students, where lifelong bonds can be forged. This state-of-the-art student residence was inaugurated by Motilal Oswal (Managing Director & CEO, Motilal Oswal Financial Services Ltd), Natasha Malpani Oswal (Venture Partner, Kae Capital) and Vedika Agrawal (Director, Motilal Oswal Financial Services Ltd).
This residence will be a source of knowledge-seeking and partnerships for students. This is where future entrepreneurs will flourish and new friendships will be forged.
23. Celebrating our First Techno-Cultural Fest
With participation from 20 universities and 236 internal participants, our first student-led techno-cultural fest Fitoor x Prayaas brought together an exciting blend of technology and culture, celebrating innovation and young talent.
Students connected with peers and interacted with industry leaders while showcasing skills in music, dance, photography, fashion, finance and more.
24. Showcasing Innovation on the Third Founders Day
The year ended for Plaksha with a vibrant showcase of innovation and leadership to our founders who joined us in our celebration of philanthropy and progress.
We celebrated our third Founders Day with a curated tour of Plaksha’s state-of-the-art labs and facilities, along with exhibition of tech projects by young innovators. A demonstration of our innovative teaching methodologies via interactive classroom sessions, and a mentorship lunch provided an engaging platform for founder-student interactions.
Watch: Founders Day 2024
Through culture, innovative pedagogy, entrepreneurial pitches, thought-leadership discussions, diversity, partnerships and collaborations, 2024 was a year of many milestones big and small, that helped us shape a reimagined version of technology education. We are building a thriving community of future technology leaders.
