Meet The Team
The Frugal AI Hub was founded to respond to the growing need for resource-efficient, inclusive, and sustainable AI. We bring together thought leaders, practitioners, and partners who believe AI can — and should — be designed to do more with less.
From our base at Cambridge Judge Business School, we collaborate globally to translate this vision into practice — through research, tools, events, and adoption labs across sectors and regions.
Venkata “Serish” Gandikota
Co-Lead, Frugal AI Hub
Visiting Fellow, Cambridge Judge Business School
Serish is an innovation strategist, impact & climate fund adviser, entrepreneur, and researcher focused on frugal innovation, sustainability, and impact investing. He has delivered EU-funded projects and founded InnoFrugal to advance accessible innovation globally.
Elizabeth Osta
Co-Lead, Frugal AI Hub
Visiting Fellow, Cambridge Judge Business School
Elizabeth is a digital and data strategist advising CXOs on AI, innovation, and responsible data use. Former Chief Data Officer at HEINEKEN, she also founded Digital Forward and holds leadership experience across banking, consumer goods, and social impact.
Prof Jaideep Prabhu
Cambridge Judge Business School
Jaideep is a leading global voice on frugal innovation. His research explores how businesses in emerging markets and beyond innovate efficiently under resource constraints. He recently authored “How Should a Government Be?”, and is the co-author of “Jugaad Innovation”, “Frugal Innovation”. Jaideep actively advises & mentors the Frugal AI Hub.
Dr Ronita Bardhan
Associate Professor of Sustainable Built Environment, University of Cambridge | Director – Cambridge Sustainable Design Group
Ronita uses data-driven computational methods to design built environment strategies aimed at precision prevention of health and energy burdens in a warming climate. Her work informs the health co-benefits of built environment–led climate mitigation and adaptation interventions. Ronita is an Advisor to the Frugal AI Hub.
Dr Maya Indira Ganesh
Associate Director (Research Partnerships) and Senior Research Associate Leverhulme Centre for the Future of Intelligence
Maya’s work explores how people, places, and institutions shape and are shaped by emerging technologies. She investigates AI as a social and cultural force, drawing on feminist theory, STS, and critical digital studies. Her research spans autonomous systems, AI in public spaces, and ethics, grounded in activist and policy experience. Maya is an Advisor to the Frugal AI Hub.
Dr Ramit Debnath
Assistant Professor, University of Cambridge
Ramit is an Assistant Professor at Cambridge, leading the Collective Intelligence & Design group and climaTRACES lab. His work bridges AI, systems thinking, and policy to tackle climate and sustainability challenges. His research explores how human behaviour and AI can jointly drive scalable climate solutions. He is affiliated with Caltech, Churchill College, Cambridge Zero, and multiple Cambridge research centres on AI and climate. Ramit is a Collaborator with the Frugal AI Hub.
Ravi Bhalla
Honorary Fellow, Cambridge Judge Business School
Ravi is an innovation and technology advisor. He was Former Head of Innovation for the FCA where he was responsible for driving forward the FCA’s responsible innovation agenda. In addition to working for the regulator, Ravi has worked in senior leadership positions across industry and consulting in financial services. Ravi is an Advisor to the Frugal AI Hub.
Federica Freddi
CoFounder, Sqwish
Federica is a founder and engineer driven by transforming bold ideas into impactful AI products. She co-leads Sqwish—building the performance layer for GenAI. She holds a First-Class MEng in Information Engineering from the University of Cambridge (Trinity College), where she was Senior Scholar and president of the Trinity Engineering Society. Federica is a Collaborator with the Frugal AI Hub.
Ushnish Sengupta
CoFounder, Sqwish
Ushnish builds toolsets that make AI more efficient and practical. As Co-Founder at Sqwish, he’s architecting high-performance infrastructure for generative AI. He earned his PhD in Engineering from the University of Cambridge . His thesis applied Bayesian ML to model and mitigate thermoacoustic instabilities. Ushnish is a Collaborator with the Frugal AI Hub.
Sarah Greasley
Fellow of the British Computing Society
Sarah is a senior technical leader and advisor focusing on sustainability, AI strategy and scaling, mentoring, and DEI. She was EMEA Director of Solutions Architecture on the AWS Senior Leadership Team, Group CTO at Direct Line Group, and Distinguished Engineer at IBM, and is a Fellow of both the British Computing Society and the Institute of Engineering and Technology. Sarah is an Advisor to the Frugal AI Hub.
Dael Williamson
EMEA CTO, Databricks
Dael is a seasoned CTO and business executive in a leading hyper-growth data and AI firm, with decades of experience in technology, data strategy, product leadership, and frugal innovation. He is active in the UK/EU start-up scene—serving on two advisory boards—and a published data scientist in protein molecular modelling for drug discovery and industrial waste bioremediation. Dael is an Advisor with the Frugal AI Hub.
Stephen Jull
Venture Partner, Emerge Capital
Visiting Fellow, Cambridge Judge Business School
Stephen, a Cambridge PhD graduate with roots in northern Canada’s classrooms, is a serial founder and strategic leader, innovating, building, and transforming educational technology for equity through education scale. Now leveraging his expertise, he guides high-impact organisations, companies, and decision makers shaping the future of learning. Stephen is an Advisor with the Frugal AI Hub.
Dr Mark Bloomfield
Visiting Fellow, Cambridge Judge Business School
Mark is a business and technology strategist who works across industries to help organisations apply AI and emerging technologies for measurable, commercial impact. With over 15 years of experience driving innovation and transformation, he operates at the intersection of business, technology, and academia. At Cambridge Judge he teaches on executive education programmes, bringing cutting-edge thinking from both research and practice. Mark is an Advisor to the Frugal AI Hub.