User:Vemote1991/sandbox

Sameer Garde is currently serving as the Chief Executive of Wadhwani Institute for Artificial Intelligence, a non-profit research institute based out of Mumbai, India.

Early life & Education
Sameer was born in Kolhapur in the state of Maharashtra,India and educated at The Frank Anthony Public School, New Delhi and St. Columba's School, Delhi. He earned a BTech in Mechanical Engineering degree in 1988 from the Indian Institute of Technology Delhi and a Post-Graduate Diploma in Finance Marketing from the Indian Institute of Management Kolkata in 1990.

Career
Sameer began his career with Nestlé in 1990. After five years, he joined PepsiCo as the Head of Key Accounts and Fountain Business for a brief tenure. He then transitioned to the B2B section and joined Whirlpool, where he went on to a Sales Director role in over six years. Sameer then joined Dell, India in the year 2003 and was appointed as the President in 2012. He also headed the Enterprise Business for Samsung for a brief tenure prior to joining Phillips India as the President for Phillips Healthcare in 2014.

In 2017, Sameer joined Cisco Systems as the President of Cisco India and SAARC; he was responsible for strategy, sales, engineering, operations, and strategic investments in the region. He then resigned from his role at Cisco in 2021 to join the Mumbai-based non-profit Wadhwani Institute for Artificial Intelligence, as he wanted to bring the benefits of technology to strengthen the social sector.

With over 30 years of experience in leading several billion-dollar businesses across information technology, healthcare, FMCG, and consumer electronics/durables. Sameer is known for transforming operations and cultures to drive growth at scale.

Personal Life
Sameer is married to Yukti Garde, and the couple resides in Bangalore, Karnataka with their two children. Sameer is a birding enthusiast and also enjoys long-distance running and riding.

Philanthropy
Sameer firmly believes that technology can play a significant role in addressing social challenges in the country. In the 30-years of his professional career, he has partnered with many government agencies, industry bodies, non-profits, venture capitalists, and startups to digitally transform critical sectors like healthcare, agriculture, education, connectivity, and governance in India.

He has also invested in India’s social sector to improve citizen services in India with the help of technology.