Meet the Brilliant Minds Driving our Vision
At Vaia, our dynamic team combines expertise in investment, finance, law, engineering, sustainability, public policy, technology, and AI. With experience working with Fortune 500 clients across the globe, we craft tailored solutions for complex challenges. Our passion, expertise, and dedication drive our innovation and success. Meet the team that fuels our journey and sets us apart.
Shruthi Cauvery Iyer
Founder and Partner, Based in Bangalore, India
Background and Expertise
Meet Shruthi, the Founder and Managing Partner of Vaia Climate. With a diverse background spanning entrepreneurship, finance, and environmental engineering, Shruthi brings a wealth of experience and expertise to her role. Shruthi started her career as a commodities trader in South East Asia and worked in energy commodities. Post that, she spearheaded a skincare startup , Blend8 in Boston gaining invaluable insights into the world of entrepreneurship and consumer goods. She is an environmental engineer by training, and cares deeply about climate change which is the heart of Vaia Climate’s work.
Her journey in finance took her across the globe, from Indonesia and Hong Kong to pursuing an MBA with a major in Finance at Wharton Business School on a Forté Fellowship. She further honed her skills at the Harvard Kennedy School, where she pursued a Master of Public Administration (MPA) as a John F. Kennedy Fellow, while simultaneously running her ecommerce business.
With a strong foundation in environmental engineering and a track record of academic excellence, Shruthi graduated as valedictorian from Visveswaraya Technological University, setting the stage for her future endeavours in sustainability and investing.
Shruthi's diverse experiences and unwavering commitment to creating positive change make her a driving force behind Vaia's mission to catalyse investment solutions for a better tomorrow.
Tejas Vyas
Chief Product and Technology Officer
Background and Expertise
Tejas was part of the founding tech team at BigBasket which successfully pioneered the online grocery revolution and was subsequently acquired by the Tata Group. He led the Product function over 12.5 years which has seen the adoption of over 20 million users and is the highest rated shopping app on the Play Store. ​Before that, Tejas was the CTO at another internet startup which successfully built "Epic" – India's first Internet browser along with other consumer-facing products over 4 years. Tejas is an INSEAD Leadership Programme for Senior Executives alumnus and also has an MS in Computer Science.​​
Quirk of the Trade
Known for having solutions for any problem that comes his way. "Anything is possible"
Favourite Vaia Value
Execution. Believes that great companies are built by great teams that execute well.
Fun Fact
Life slogan is "Peace, Love and Happiness" which is also inscribed on a tattoo.