In this captivating podcast, Priyanka Kasturi, the creator of Age of Geeks (formerly ML India), shares her inspiring journey from her early interest in understanding the human brain to building one of the most engaging tech communities online. Watch as she opens up about her challenges, triumphs, and the hard choices that shaped her path. In this first of two conversations, Abbhinav (123 of AI), and co-host Debayan (Microsoft) talk with Priyanka Kasture, Co-founder and Head of Community at Age of Geeks and Freelance community manager. P.S.: This episode was shot in late 2023. ### **Priyanka Reveals** - **Her Early Curiosity**: Priyanka reveals how her interest in understanding the brain led her to explore AI and machine learning, sparking the creation of ML India, which later evolved into the Age of Geeks. - **Content Creation Strategies**: Priyanka dives into how she creates engaging content using memes and infographics, explaining the importance of prioritization and sacrifices in pursuing her passions. - **Balancing Academic Struggles & Business Ambitions**: She shares the impact of focusing on her business, Art Nerd, and the challenges it posed to her academic journey, yet how those failures set her on the path to creating Age of Geeks. - **Behind the Scenes of Age of Geeks**: Priyanka provides insights into the workings of her community, from running workshops and collaborations to managing the community’s growth and revenue streams. - **Navigating FOMO & Uncertainty**: Without mentors, Priyanka had to learn by trial and error, using her missteps to fuel her success. # *TIMESTAMPS* 00:00 - Teaser 00:30 - Intro 01:28 - Infographics, & memes in educational content 04:35 - How it all started 08:00 - Content creation journey 12:45 - How to start content creation 15:55 - Transition from Artnerd to ML India 17:05 - Navigating without mentors 19:45 - Fearing of being ordinary 21:45 - How art shapes life 25:30 - Failures in life 28:05 - Managing business with College life 34:10 - Hard choices to make 36:05 - What is ML India 38:20 - How the age of geeks helps 40:40 - Bootstrapped or Funded 42:00 - Scaling Up 45:15 - Revenue generation 46:30 - Administrative structure in Age of Geeks 49:45 - Stay tuned for part 2 ### **Best Moments** **You make time for what you love**: Priyanka’s philosophy on prioritizing what matters most, and the choices successful people make daily. **Community growth through engagement**: Priyanka shares how early on, even with 3,000 to 6,000 followers, people actively contributed, drawn by the community's vibrant pattern, helping it grow rapidly and organically. **Balancing passions & academics**: Her decision to focus on her business came with consequences, including low attendance and missing exams, but led to greater opportunities. **Building a self-sustaining community**: Priyanka shares how community contributions turned Age of Geeks into a collaborative, thriving network. **Revenue streams & growth**: Workshops, sponsorships, and collaborations fuel the continued success of Age of Geeks. **GUEST LINKS (Priyanka Kasture)** LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/priyanka-kasture/ Age of Geeks: https://www.ageofgeeks.org/ **ABOUT THE HOSTS** 123 of AI, Website: https://www.123ofai.com LinkedIn: https://linkedin.com/in/abbhinavvenkat Instagram Channel: https://www.instagram.com/aiwithabbhinav Abbhinav Venkat, is the founder of 123 of AI, an ed-tech company enabling working professionals upskill in AI/ML. He is an entrepreneur, AI researcher, and podcaster. Prior to starting 123 of AI, he spent several years at multiple Silicon Valley startups as a Computer Vision Scientist. His academic career involved AI research at IIIT-H and Stanford University with several top-tier publications in BMVC, ICCV, ACPR. For his research, he was awarded Qualcomm’s Innovation Fellowship, felicitated by the Department of Science and Technology (DST), GOI, as well as invited for talks in 4 continents.

Chandradeep Pokhariya, an AI researcher at Brown University, and ex-IIIT-H MS, talks about his journey as a computer vision and 3D researcher, covering their experiences from startup to academia, their research projects, their views on AR/VR and generative AI, and the importance of collaboration and a fundamental approach to problem-solving. Join us, in the second of two-part conversation, with hosts Abbhinav (123 of AI) and Debayan (Microsoft)! *CHAN REVEALS:*

• His initial experiences in the field of Computer Vision, including their time at a startup and the challenges faced.
• Their transition to research, collaborating with professors, and getting accepted into the master's program at IIIT-H.
• Details about his research work, including projects on hand gesture recognition, 3D reconstruction of clothed humans, and surface parameterization.
• The future of AR/VR and generative AI in 3D
• His research fellowship at Brown University
• Following first-principles thinking for problem solving

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*GUEST LINKS (Chandradeep Pokhariya)* LinkedIn: / chandradeep2

*ABOUT THE HOSTS* 123 of AI, Website: https://www.123ofai.com LinkedIn: / abbhinavvenkat Instagram Channel: / aiwithabbhinav Abbhinav Venkat, is the founder of 123 of AI, an ed-tech company enabling working professionals upskill in AI/ML. He is an entrepreneur, AI researcher, and podcaster. Prior to starting 123 of AI, he spent several years at multiple Silicon Valley startups as a Computer Vision Scientist. His academic career involved AI research at IIIT-H and Stanford University with several top-tier publications in BMVC, ICCV, ACPR. For his research, he was awarded Qualcomm’s Innovation Fellowship, felicitated by the Department of Science and Technology (DST), GOI, as well as invited for talks in 4 continents. Debayan Das, is an Applied Scientist at Microsoft, and an expert on recommendation systems. He attained his BTech in Computer Science from IIIT-H, where he found his love for Machine Learning. He is ever-curious, an avid traveller and a space geek.

Chandradeep Pokhariya, an AI researcher at Brown University, and ex-IIIT-H MS, talks about his journey from a sleepy small town in Uttarakhand, to finding his way into the Ivy Leagues while overcoming challenges such as lack of access to the internet, infrastructure, and even language barriers.

Join us, in this first of a two-part conversation, with hosts Abbhinav (123 of AI) and Debayan (Microsoft)!

CHAN REVEALS:

• What it was like growing up in a remote village near the Nepal border, in a close-knit community
• The cultural shock he experienced when he first went to Kota for exam preparation and witnessed urban life.
• How he had to climb a hill to download videos for his studying AI and deep learning.
• His journey during undergrad at GB Pant University of Agriculture and Technology, where he pursued a bachelor's degree in industrial and production engineering
• His experiences in working in startups, the work culture, and the long hours he put in to stand up to peers from IITs, Stanford and MIT
• The language barrier he experienced when he moved to Bangalore
• Key problem statements he has worked on in 3D - Warping, Key-point detection, 3D Hand Modeling, and Object Detection.
• Trade-offs between working at a big company versus a startup and the importance of mental health

ABOUT THE FOUNDER

Abbhinav Venkat, is the founder of 123 of AI, an ed-tech company enabling working professionals upskill in AI/ML. He is an entrepreneur, AI researcher, and podcaster. Prior to starting 123 of AI, he spent several years at multiple Silicon Valley startups as a Computer Vision Scientist. His academic career involved AI research at IIIT-H and Stanford University with several top-tier publications in BMVC, ICCV, ACPR. For his research, he was awarded Qualcomm’s Innovation Fellowship, felicitated by the Department of Science and Technology (DST), GOI, as well as invited for talks in 4 continents.

123 of AI’s official website: https://www.123ofai.com

LinkedIn: https://linkedin.com/in/abbhinavvenkat