In the spirit of ideas worth spreading, TEDx is a program of local, self-organized events that bring people together to share a TED-like experience. At a TEDx event, TEDTalks video and live speakers combine to spark deep discussion and connection in a small group. These local, self-organized events are branded TEDx, where x = independently organized TED event. The TED Conference provides general guidance for the TEDx program, but individual TEDx events are self-organized (subject to certain rules and regulations).

Jamshed Bhabha Theatre, NCPA
NCPA Marg, Nariman Point
Mumbai, Maharashtra, 400021
India

Abha Narain Lambah

Architect

Abha Narain Lambah is an Indian conservation architect known for restoring India's UNESCO World Heritage Sites and Mumbai's Victorian buildings. Her firm has received multiple UNESCO Asia-Pacific Awards for Cultural Heritage Conservation. She is currently involved in projects such as the restoration of Mughal gardens and the management plan for Chandigarh Capitol Complex. Abha has also contributed to museum projects across the country and serves on the Governing Council of INTACH.

Agata Blasiak

Digital Healthcare Expert

Dr. Agata Blasiak is the Head of Digital Health Innovation at the Institute for Digital Medicine (WisDM) and the N.1 Institute for Health (N.1) at the National University of Singapore. She champions the development of digital healthtechnologies and has co-developed digital platforms for decentralized healthcare in Singapore’s public healthcare sector. Blasiak is a co-author of an upcoming Johns Hopkins University Press book Medicine without Meds: Transforming Patient Care with Digital Therapies. In addition to her current domain in digital health, Blasiak has a strong expertise in neurotechnology: from a collaboration with GlaxoSmithKline to model neurodegenerative diseases in vitro to developing neural interfaces for artificial prosthesis.

Alexander MacDonald

Economist

Alex MacDonald is the Chief Economist at NASA. In this capacity, he has worked on developing the Artemis Program and NASA’s strategy for Commercial Low-Earth Orbit activities, including serving as the program executive for the ISS National Lab. He has server at NASA in a variety of capacities for over a decade, including roles at NASA Ames, JPL and as the program executive of NASA’s Emerging Space Office at NASA Hq. He is the author and editor of a number of NASA reports as well as the book ‘The Long Space Age’ an economic history of US space exploration.

Anirudh Krishna

Public Policy Expert

Anirudh Krishna is a Professor of Public Policy and Political Science at Duke University. His research focuses on understanding how individuals and communities in developing countries navigate poverty and powerlessness. He has conducted extensive research on poverty dynamics, social mobility, spatial inequality, democratic governance, and urban slums. Krishna has authored several books and published numerous journal articles and book chapters on these topics. Before joining academia, Krishna served in the Indian Administrative Service for 14 years, where he was involved in managing rural and urban development initiatives. He has received several honors and awards for his contributions to the field, including an honorary doctorate from Uppsala University and the Dudley Seers Memorial Prize.

Arun Sundararajan

Economist

Arun Sundararajan is the Harold Price Professor of Entrepreneurship and Technology at New York University, and author of the best-selling and award-winning book “The Sharing Economy.” He is one of the world's experts on how digital technologies and artificial intelligence transforms business, government and civil society. He has given hundreds of keynotes including at the World Economic Forum in Davos, and his expert testimony has been sought by the US Congress, the European Parliament, the United Nations, companies, nonprofits and investors globally.

Daniel Bögre Udell

Language Activist

Daniel Bögre Udell is the co-founder and executive director of Wikitongues, which supports language revitalization around the world. He has a BFA in design and technology and a master's degree in historical studies from the New School University in New York City. He speaks English, Spanish, Catalan, and Portuguese.

Deepa Unnikrishnan (Dee MC)

Artist

A prominent face in the Indian Hip Hop scene, Dee MC is a storyteller at heart who pens her emotions through rhythm and poetry. She started her journey in 2011, having achieved multiple feats including featuring in the movie Gully Boy and being one of the squad bosses on MTV Hustle Season 2. Her music aims to empower women, challenge the existing socio-economic system and talks about the importance of taking care of one's mental health.

Dr. Aadeel Akhtar

Robotocist

Dr. Aadeel Akhtar is the CEO & Founder of PSYONIC, a company developing advanced bionic limbs that are accessible to people with limb differences and robots. He holds a PhD in Neuroscience and MS in Electrical & Computer Engineering from the University of Illinois. He developed the bionic Ability Hand, the fastest bionic hand on the market and the first with touch feedback.

Dr. Bharat Vatwani

Mental Health Activist

Dr. Bharat Vatwani is a Mumbai-based psychiatrist and co-founder of the Shraddha Rehabilitation Foundation. He, along with his wife Dr. Smitha, established the NGO in 1988 with the aim of rescuing, treating, rehabilitating, and reuniting mentally-ill destitutes with their families in India. Over the past 35 years, Shraddha has successfully reunited more than 10,000 destitutes with their families across different states in India. The organization provides free food, care, shelter, and psychiatric treatment to these individuals until they are able to return to their native homes. Dr. Vatwani was honored with the prestigious Ramon Magsaysay Award in 2018 for his exceptional dedication and outstanding work in this field

Dr. Michelle Drouin

Intimacy Expert

Michelle Drouin is a world-renowned expert in the areas of intimate relationships, sexuality, and the intersection between technology and relationships. She is the director of the Sexuality and Relationships Lab at Purdue University Fort Wayne, a senior research scientist at Parkview Mirro Center for Research and Innovation, and the author of "Out of Touch: How to Survive an Intimacy Famine." Dr. Drouin has been recognized as one of the world's top 2% of scientists, and her published research spans two decades.

Dr. Radhika Batra

Child Healthcare Expert

Dr. Radhika Batra is cofounder of the non-profit organization Every Infant Matters, which provides last-mile health solutions to disadvantaged children. Her main project is to reduce preventable blindness by dispensing Vitamin A to marginalized children. Within two years of launching, more than 23,000 children in India and Nigeria were prevented from possible blindness and 3,000 women received vitamins to boost the mother and child's nutrition. The organization also aims to promote breastfeeding and educate families on hygiene and proper hand washing techniques to improve childhood.

Foram Shah

Poet

Foram Shah is a spoken word artist and the co-founder of Spill Media LLP, one of India's largest and most loved art collectives. Her writing revolves around existential-realism and her poetry is featured across the country through performances and workshops. She holds an infectious belief in her ‘access for all’ ideology and aims to work in spaces that reflect that.

Ishpreet Balbir

Poet

Ishpreet Balbir is a poet, writer, and storyteller. His greatest strength is his ability to observe and identify unique human behavior and weave a compelling narrative through his words. An enthu cutlet in the true sense, he believes words have the power to change minds.

Kelly Wanser

Climate Innovator

Kelly Wanser is an innovator and the Executive Director of SilverLining, an organization dedicated to addressing climate change. She is involved in promoting scientific research, science-based policies, and international cooperation for rapid responses to climate change. Wanser co-founded the University of Washington Marine Cloud Brightening Project and serves as Senior Advisor. She also sits on the Board of Directors of Dendra Systems and is a member of the President's Circle of the National Academy of Sciences. Wanser has a background in technology and entrepreneurship and holds degrees in economics and philosophy. She is based in Boulder, Colorado, and Washington, D.C.

Khatija Rahman

Musician

Khatija Rahman is a musician, philantrophist, producer & director and trustee of the A R Rahman Foundation and an advocate of freedom and peace. Rahman’s many objectives is to create a safe and unbiased space for women in the arts. She has also been the recipient of numerous honours, including being deemed an Inspirational Women Achiever by Inspirational Global Women’s Awards, and has received the Trailblazer Award by Bhumi.

Madhusudan Rapole

Clean Energy Innovator

Madhusudan Rapole holds a Bachelors in Mechanical Engineering and has professional degrees from TERI University and Stanford Graduate School of Business. He is currently the Chair of Technical Group on Radiant Cooling in ISHRAE (Indian Society of Heating, Refrigeration and Air Conditioning Engineers) and is actively involved in various R&D activities in this space in India.

Marco Tempest

Creative Technologist

Marco Tempest is a Creative Technologist at the NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory, a Director’s Fellow Alumni at the MIT MediaLab, an Extended Reality Lead consultant & Luminary Alumni at Accenture and the Founder and Director of the MagicLab in New York City. As a regular speaker at TED conferences he is known for his work with digital technologies to create immersive, and often astonishing, experiences. Marco is continually looking for innovative ways to use technology to broadcast information and engage audience attention.

Mohit Raj

Prison Reformer

Mohit Raj is the founder of Project Second Chance (PSC), India. Established in April 2017, PSC is an innovative initiative that aims to transform prisons in India by empowering individuals with incarceration backgrounds to become social entrepreneurs and address systemic issues within the prison system. PSC fellows focus on areas such as mental health, post-release support, and exploring alternatives to imprisonment. With over 25 fellows graduated, 7 interventions incubated, and collaboration with more than 11,000 prisoners, PSC is driving sustainable and scalable entrepreneurial solutions for prison reform in India

Moran Cerf

Neuroscientist

Moran Cerf is an Israeli neuroscientist, business professor at Northwestern University, investor, and former white hat hacker. He is the founder of Think-Alike and B-Cube, and serves as the host and curator of PopTech, a leading conference. Cerf is also the president and co-founder of the Human Single Neuron Society. He has received several awards, including the Templeton Foundation's "Extraordinary Minds" award, and is recognized for his storytelling skills. Cerf is a screenwriting professor at the American Film Institute and a science consultant for Hollywood films and TV series. He frequently speaks on neuroscience, decision making, and hacking, and his perspectives on brain hacking have gained media attention

Piyachart Phiromswad

Economist

Dr. Piyachart Phiromswad is an economist and an Associate Professor at Sasin School of Management, Chulalongkorn University, Thailand. At Sasin, he is currently the Head of Research Unit in Finance & Sustainability in Disruption Era. Previously he was the Assistant Director for Academic Affaris, Director of Executive Education Program, Sasin Endowment Fund Committee, Director of Ph.D. Program.

Ralph Simon

Business Advisor

Simon, a global trailblazer and innovator, has played a significant role in developing and growing the global mobile entertainment and content industry. Known as the 'father of the ringtone,' he and his team created the first commercial ringtones worldwide in 1998. Simon has evangelized mobile operators, media companies, TV networks, brands, and ad agencies on maximizing mobile revenues and content impact. He co-founded the Zomba group, held executive positions at Capitol Records and Blue Note Records, and established EMI Music's New Media division. Simon also founded the influential Mobile Entertainment Forum and serves as its chairman and high-level advisor.

Ramanan Laxminarayan

Epidemiologist

Ramanan Laxminarayan is founder and director of the One Health Trust (formerly known as the Center for Disease Dynamics, Economics & Policy or CDDEP) in Washington, D.C. and New Delhi, a senior research scholar at Princeton University, and director of the WHO Collaborating Center on Antimicrobial Resistance in New Delhi. He is a global expert on infectious diseases.

Ramesh Raskar

Professor & Reserach Scientist

Ramesh Raskar is Associate Director and Professor at MIT Media Lab. He loves to start social movement based on cutting edge technology. In India, previously he worked on digital innovations for Kumbh Mela to create the safest festival in history. Now he is working on fast moving threats like the pandemic and social unrest using decentralization technologies.

Rashid Karimbanakkal

Innovator

Rashid Karimbanakkal is a purpose driven, young inspiring entrepreneur and innovator. His passion in social work and technology made him to start his first enlightened enterprise Genrobotics and developed the World’s first manhole cleaning robot ‘Bandicoot’ to eradicate manual scavenging and to benefit millions of manual scavengers around the world. Rashid also listed in Forbes30Under30 of 2023, and awarded with Government of India's Swachhata Startup Challenge Award 2022, Economic Times Social Enterprise Award 2021, The Hindu Business Line - Young Change Maker Award 2020.

Robert Katzschmann

Robotics Expert

Robert Katzschmann is an Assistant Professor of Robotics at ETH Zurich. He has made significant contributions to the field through his research on robotic manipulation technologies and the establishment of the Soft Robotics Lab. Robert's work has been published in reputable journals, including Science Robotics, and featured in notable media outlets. He is affiliated with esteemed research centers and serves in key roles such as an Area Chair for Robotics Science and Systems (RSS) and an Editor for the International Journal on Robotics Research (IJRR).

Rutwik Deshpande

Poet

Rutwik Deshpande is a Writer, Actor and Performer. He has performed for some of the biggest poetry collectives like Button Poetry and Kommune.

Sahil Vasudeva

Pianist

Amongst India's most talented pianists, Sahil’s experiments with different mediums – visual projection, photography, and theatre have been instrumental in taking the form outside conventional definition and shaped a performance style that is truly his. He studied piano under Dr. Nelson Harper at Denison University, Ohio (2004-2008), Irina Biryukova (2012-2015) and late John Raphael at the Delhi School of Music. He is currently working on releasing his first album Qinara - a collection of his pieces written for piano.

Saniya Mistri

Poet

A writer and rapper representing the slums of Govandi, Mumbai.

Smita Sharma

Photojournalist

Smita Sharma is a renowned Delhi-based photojournalist focused on documenting social issues, sexual crimes, and human trafficking in the Global South. Her work has been featured in prestigious publications, including National Geographic Magazine and The New York Times. Smita's powerful images have received recognition and awards, and she recently published a photo book called "We Cry In Silence." She is a member of photography communities and has undergone HEFAT training. Smita holds a degree in photojournalism from the International Center of Photography, New York.

Tharanga Goonetilleke

Soprano Opera Singer

Tharanga Goonetilleke is a renowned soprano opera singer from Sri Lanka. Recognized for her exceptional talent, she was the first Sri Lankan woman to attend the prestigious Juilliard School in New York City. Her career in opera has garnered international acclaim, and she has performed in various operas and concerts around the world. Notable performances include those with the Symphony Orchestra of Sri Lanka and as a member of the New York City Opera. Goonetilleke's musical achievements have contributed to cultural exchanges between Sri Lanka and other countries.