Chennai: Indian Institute of Technology Madras (IIT Madras) announced an endowment of Rs. 110 Crore by Mr. Sunil Wadhwani towards setting up the Wadhwani School of Data Science and AI. A distinguished alumnus of IIT Madras and the Co-founder of IGATE and Mastech Digital, Mr. Wadhwani’s gift is one of the largest gifts given by an alumnus to create a School at an educational institution in India. The MoU was signed today (30th Jan 2024) between Mr. Sunil Wadhwani and Prof. V. Kamakoti, Director, IIT Madras, in the presence of faculty, students, alumni, and researchers.  With a vision to be among the top AI-focused schools worldwide, Wadhwani School of Data Science and AI also aims to advise the Government and policymakers on Data Science and AI-related policy areas.Wadhwani School of Data Science and AI will offer the following courses:

• BTech programme in AI and Data Analytics
• MTech programme in Data Science and AI
• MS & PhD Programmes in Data Science and AI
• Joint MSc in Data Science and AI with the University of Birmingham, UK
• International Interdisciplinary Masters Programme in Data Science
• Interdisciplinary Dual Degree in Data Science
• Web-enabled MTech in Industrial AI 

Admissions will commence in July 2024. The school will also run a Joint MSc in Data Science and AI with the University of Birmingham, U.K., admitting 30 students and an International Interdisciplinary Masters Programme. The Applied Research Areas of this School will be:

• Healthcare
• Agriculture
• Smart cities and transportation
• Financial analytics
• Manufacturing
• Energy and Environment
• Defence
• Education
• Systems Biology

ABOUT MR. SUNIL WADHWANI:Mr. Sunil Wadhwani is an entrepreneur, investor, and philanthropist. He is best known as the co-founder of IGATE and Mastech Digital. Born in Delhi, India, Mr. Sunil Wadhwani obtained his B.Tech. Degree in Mechanical Engineering from IIT Madras in 1974 and a Master of Science in Industrial Administration from Carnegie-Mellon University at Pittsburgh in 1976.