Socio-technologist Dr Chintan Vaishnav has been appointed as the new Mission Director for Atal Innovation Mission (AIM), a flagship initiative of the Government of India under the auspices of NITI Aayog.

Dr Vaishnav will be moving from his present assignment at Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), USA, to head AIM. He will take over the charge from Ramanathan Ramanan who had been leading AIM as its first Mission Director since June 2017. He will be taking over the position from mid-April 2021.

Dr Vaishnav holds a PhD in technology, management, and policy from MIT. He has worked with the various parts of the innovation ecosystem, both in India and the US. Over the past decade, he has split his time between teaching and research at MIT and working with rural communities in India to build solutions that can overcome constraints fundamental to improving human conditions. He has co-founded both commercial and non-profit organisations and has also advised start-ups, corporations, and governments on tackling challenges at the intersection of technology and systems, development, and public policy.

AIM’s mission is to create and promote a vibrant ecosystem of innovation and entrepreneurship across the length and breadth of the country. To this end, AIM’s holistic and umbrella framework, along with its organizational approach, is designed to spur the emergence of a nation of innovators and job-creators. Over the past four years, since its inception, AIM’s various initiatives have achieved notable successes.

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