A single remark in a recent street interview pushed IIT Kanpur alumnus Siddhartha Saxena into the headlines. Asked about the highest amount he had ever earned, the young technology entrepreneur said he had made $8m, around ₹76.99 crore, in a single day. The comment, made during a conversation with content creator Viraj Ala, quickly went viral. It drew attention not only to the striking figure, but also to the journey of one of India’s emerging artificial-intelligence entrepreneurs.
Born in Alwar, Rajasthan, Saxena represents a new generation of Indian founders using strong academic training to build technology businesses with global ambitions. He graduated in 2019 with a Bachelor of Technology in Computer Science and Engineering from the Indian Institute of Technology Kanpur, one of India’s most competitive engineering institutions. In the interview, he described admission to IIT Kanpur’s computer-science programme as “20 times harder” than entering Harvard University. The comparison sparked debate online, though it should be read as his personal view rather than as an established statistical measure.
Unlike many entrepreneurs who move directly from college into startups, Saxena first built a strong base in research and engineering. At IIT Kanpur, he worked on machine learning and deep-learning research. He also spent time at Finland’s Aalto University and contributed to projects involving generative models and data-efficient learning. Earlier internships at Envestnet | Yodlee and Wadhwani AI exposed him to large-scale artificial-intelligence applications before generative AI became a mainstream business trend.
After graduating, Saxena joined Jumio Corporation in Canada as a machine-learning engineer, gaining industry experience before turning to entrepreneurship. In 2022, along with IIT Kanpur classmates Pratyush Rai and Sirsendu Sarkar, he co-founded Merlin, an AI-powered Chrome extension that helps users summarise content, write emails, answer questions and improve productivity within their web browsers. The company has grown quickly and has reportedly reached a valuation of about $50m, reflecting investor interest in AI-driven productivity tools.
Saxena is also associated with Thine, another technology venture, which points to his wider interest in building AI-first products rather than concentrating on a single startup. His career reflects a common path among successful AI entrepreneurs: combining academic research with practical engineering, and turning both into commercial products.
Although his claim of earning ₹76.99 crore in one day attracted wide attention, Saxena has not publicly explained the exact transaction behind the figure. It is widely assumed to relate to startup equity or a corporate event rather than salary or regular business income. Such sudden wealth creation is not unusual in the startup world, where funding rounds, acquisitions or secondary share sales can sharply increase a founder’s net worth.
Saxena’s comments on entrepreneurship are also notable. During the interview, he argued that many aspiring entrepreneurs in India operate with what he called a “scarcity mindset”, shaped by limited opportunities and a fear of risk. Successful founders, he said, need an “abundance mindset”: one that encourages experimentation, accepts uncertainty and looks for opportunity rather than merely seeking secure employment. That outlook appears to have shaped his own path, from academic research to building AI products for global users.
Siddhartha Saxena’s story is therefore about more than a viral financial claim. It reflects the growing influence of Indian engineering talent in the global artificial-intelligence ecosystem, where young founders are building products for worldwide markets rather than limiting themselves to India. Whether he is remembered for his ₹76.99-crore day or for helping create one of India’s notable AI startups, Saxena stands for a new generation of IIT graduates turning research skill into globally competitive technology businesses.
