Innovate UK spotlights Joyeeta Das from Gyana through their inspiring women in innovation series.
Every so often an inspiring woman lights up the tech industry and the rest of us can do little more than pay attention and take note. It’s women like this who are shaping the business and wider world around us. This is why we wanted to shine a spotlight on Joyeeta Das, an inspiring innovator and CEO of Gyana.
Joyeeta’s Story
From training as an engineer in India, Joyeeta saw the difficulties of being a woman in the industry from an early age. She noticed that a woman’s involvement in class discussions were always viewed as slightly irregular. This didn’t dissuade her from following through on her aspirations and she later landed a job at Cisco. She went on to found Anahata Life before completing an MBA at the University of Oxford. It was whilst studying at Oxford that she came up with the concept of Gyana which would later see her selected for two Innovate UK entrepreneur missions to the US.
What is Gyana?
Gyana concerns itself with information search, but not as you may expect. The company attempts to bring AI and big data to consumers in a way that’s both affordable and accessible. The technology brings together information from social media, traffic/news updates, and weather to present a unique perspective about any given area. This will show what’s trending, what people are concerned about and even tell us the emotional ‘vibe’ of a place.
With this type of platform, the more data that’s put into it, the more understanding we’ll achieve. Ultimately, this will benefit consumers, the government and individual businesses in truly understanding specific areas and demographics.
Innovation, Technology, Big Data and a Bucket Load of Inspiration
What is it about Joyeeta that we find to be so inspiring? The truth is, her enthusiasm for her work is infectious. She’s always held resolute and determined to see her company succeed even when its future was less than certain. Her team share this quality too.
There have been times when the entire Gyana team were forced to work without pay after an investor dropped out. Joyeeta knew the implications of this and sought new investment with fierce tenacity. In January 2015 she secured that funding, by November 2015 she had secured an extra £1.5 million. By the following January, her team expanded to 15 and by July 2016 the product was launched.
What Advice Can Joyeeta Offer Us?
Joyeeta has some seriously strong advice for any entrepreneur or innovator who finds themselves struggling:
“You won’t be the best thing since sliced bread, ever. There’s obviously someone better than you, was better, will be better. That’s not the point, you don’t have to be the best. You just have to get through today, breathe. Tomorrow morning you won’t be feeling this way and you can get back to normal.”
As one of Innovate UK’s women in innovation ambassadors, Joyeeta Das regularly offers to help, mentor and support aspiring female entrepreneurs.
Story submitted by Charles Morley and Innovate UK. Innovate UK works with people, companies and partner organizations to find and drive the science and technology innovations that will grow the UK economy. It has helped more than 7,600 organisations with projects estimated to add more than £11.5 billion to the UK economy and create 55,000 extra new jobs.
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