Swapan Rajdev
Co-founder and CTO at Haptik; Co-founder at Interakt
About
I'm Swapan Rajdev, the Co-founder and CTO of Haptik and Interakt. My journey has been defined by building and scaling conversational AI, from the early days of Haptik to its $100M acquisition by Reliance Jio, and now helping thousands of SMBs through Interakt. I’m a builder at heart, having scaled teams of over 300 and platforms that handle billions of conversations. Currently, I’m deeply focused on the AI stack—specifically agentic AI, LLM guardrails, and how we move from demos to production-ready applications. Beyond the commercial side, I’m incredibly passionate about using AI for social impact, particularly in bridging the gap for special education in India. Whether you are a founder looking for mentorship on AI velocity or someone interested in how technology can drive inclusive education, I’m always happy to share what I’ve learned and explore how we can build something impactful together.
Networking
What I can offer
- ›Technical expertise in scaling AI from zero to acquisition
- ›Practical guides on LLM implementation and monitoring
- ›Mentorship on building defensible AI businesses
- ›GTM strategy for AI startups
Looking for
- ›Founders and builders in the AI space
- ›Collaborators for inclusive education projects
- ›Investors and policymakers interested in AI for good
- ›expanding my professional network
Best fit for
Current Interests
Background
Career
Began as a software engineer and consultant before co-founding Haptik in 2013, leading it to a $100M acquisition by Reliance Jio. Subsequently launched Interakt and became an active angel investor in the AI space.
Education
Bachelor of Science in Computer Engineering, University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign (2004 – 2008)
Achievements
- ›Led Haptik to $100M acquisition by Reliance Jio
- ›MIT Innovator Under 35
- ›Scaled AI platforms to 1 billion monthly conversations
- ›Developed 'Snake Classic' app with 2M+ users
- ›UIUC Young Alumni Award recipient
Opinions
- Inaction is worse than failure; execution velocity is the primary moat in AI.
- Being a 'wrapper' is an opportunity to focus on UX and distribution.
- Guardrails must be architectural components, not just post-processing filters.
- AI can solve the critical shortage of special educators in India.