Venkatarangan Thirumalai is a Generative AI keynote speaker, enterprise AI consultant, and founder-to-CEO advisor based in Chennai, India. An Honorary Microsoft Regional Director since 1999 and an IEEE Senior Member with over 30 years in software, he helps enterprises adopt Generative AI and advises founding teams of funded technology startups on growth strategy, leadership, team building, and service design.
He founded Vishwak Solutions in 1996, growing it into a global software services firm with offices in India, Seattle, and London, and later co-founded an AI-driven fintech startup in the US. His track record of foresight spans decades: he predicted mobile phones would become primary computing devices in 2003 and built a machine learning-powered news app years before Generative AI became mainstream.
His advisory practice, The Founder Catalyst, works at the intersection of AI strategy and business leadership — helping technology leaders make the transition from technologist to confident, decisive CEO. His approach is grounded in real business experience across Indian and global companies. His book, The Founder Catalyst, is a practical field guide for that journey, drawing on stories from companies including Microsoft, Tata, Nykaa, Airbnb, and Ogilvy.
Beyond enterprise work, Venkatarangan is a long-standing contributor to Tamil language computing and digital preservation through the Tamil Virtual Academy. He serves as a trusted advisor to the Dr APJ Abdul Kalam International Foundation, Rameswaram.
He is the author of two Tamil technology books: Nutpam, which makes consumer technology accessible to everyday readers, and Seyaligalin Kadhai, a collection of stories behind successful apps from around the world, originally serialised in Madras Paper. He regularly discusses Generative AI developments in Tamil on the Sapien Geno YouTube channel, making AI accessible to Tamil-speaking audiences across India and the world.
A blogger since 2004 at venkatarangan.com, he has published over 4,500 posts reaching more than 2.5 million readers. His writing spans technology, entrepreneurship, and everyday life — most often written with a hot cup of Madras filter coffee and Tamil film songs in the background. All three books are available on Amazon India and Amazon.com.
Speaker Introduction
Please welcome Venkatarangan Thirumalai — an entrepreneur who spent three decades building software companies before the AI era, and has spent the years since helping business leaders understand what it actually changes.
He founded Vishwak Solutions, holds the honorary title of Microsoft Regional Director since 1999, and advises enterprises and tech founders across India on Generative AI strategy. His book, The Founder Catalyst, is a practical guide for founders growing into CEOs.
His insights come from building, advising, and watching AI reshape everything he knew about software. Please welcome Venkatarangan.
In Tamil
தி.ந.ச. வெங்கடரங்கன்: செயற்கை நுண்ணறிவு பேச்சாளர், எழுத்தாளர், தலைமை நிர்வாகிகளுக்கான ஆலோசகர், மென்பொருள் வல்லுநர், சேப்பியன் ஜீனோ யு-ட்யூப் ஓடைப் பேச்சாளர்.
Contact
For keynote inquiries with Venkatarangan, reach Kural at +91-98845 42028 or message through LinkedIn.
