This Bhopal-based edtech startup aims to bridge the gap between academia and industry

After working at a Pune-based MNC for seven years, Ajay Singh Sisodiya found his calling elsewhere. When he started teaching as a guest lecturer, he realised that students were unable to link the industry with the theory being taught. Ajay took the plunge and decided to bridge the skill gap between his students and the current requirements of the industry by launching KI Technologies. Founder & CEO.

A product design and development professional FEA analyst, entrepreneur, technologist, and professional trainer with over 11 years of industry experience, working with many reputed USA, Germany and Indian clients, Ajay’s mission was to minimise the gap between industry and Mechanical Engineering students by providing quality industry-oriented training courses to make them industry-ready professionals.

How it works

Founded in 2019, Bhopal-based KI Technologies was formed with the idea of skill development, learning from industry experts, thereby turning students into employable-ready professionals. The startup has trained more than 6,000+ students, joining across the globe from universities like Coventry University, USA, Hochschule Esslingen University of Applied Sciences, Germany Aston University, UK, etc. Besides, it has also extended its aegis all over the engineering colleges in India with students joining from IIT Indore, IIT Guwahati, NIT Surat, NIT Bhopal, NIT Patna, NIT Agartala, and more.

Delving deeper into the aspects of real industry learning, KI Technologies works on three verticals:

• Job leading industry projects base - Skill-oriented professional live training courses for mechanical engineering students and working professionals, that would also include technical software-oriented mechanical/automobile industries courses, electric vehicle skill development courses, and industry 4.0 career-oriented courses.
• Ensuring end-to-end FEA consulting services - From conceptual designs to virtual product validation with extensive experience, KI Technologies provides a complete range of product design and validation of finite element analysis (FEA) consulting services for relevant industries.
• 3D printing services (Additive Manufacturing Technologies) - For a quick mockup, functional test, concept validation, or even to validate the final design, KI Technologies’ 3D printing, rapid prototyping, and 3D scanning with professional services ensure the best results.

Since it is a live platform, students are encouraged to open interaction with their trainers, while they are also trained to appear for interviews with the right kind of behavioral skills, including the overall grooming of the candidate.

Winning the market

Although the last two years have been fairly successful, Ajay aspires for more where he dreams of his company turning into a ‘Center of Excellence for product design, development and analysis, FEA & 3D printing services, and of course, to be regarded as the primary choice in technology and skill development training for students.

The journey was not without its fair share of struggles and obstacles. During the initial days, everyone was skeptical about online education or training. “Since we have online training projects that go live, it was quite difficult for us to convince the students at first. So, to gain their confidence and trust, we started giving free webinar sessions to make them realise the importance of the courses or training sessions informing their careers,” adds Ajay.

Currently, edtech platforms mostly hire professionals with one or two years of experience. But KI Technologies, apart from being an online course provider, is also working deeply with the industry. “We want to give the same experience to our students, while we are working with our clients. Our experts are directly connected to the industry and are aware of the everyday challenges, thus preparing students with the required skillsets for a particular project. That is how we stand apart from our competitors,” reveals Ajay.

Significance of a .in domain

Opting for the .in domain name was an easy decision for KI Technologies as the target audience base is Indian. “The primary reason to go online is to build trust, showcase testimonials, workshops, and our unique points to our clients,” says Ajay.

The National Internet Exchange for India (NIXI) is helping many businesses across the country to get a .in or .Bharat domain. Enterprises irrespective of their scale and size can avail a .in domain with the help of NIXI. It is affordable and can be availed in more than 22 languages for businesses coming from all regions of the country.

Ajay feels that the .in domain name extension has been instrumental in the growth of their overall online presence.

Growth and revenue

Recording an annual revenue growth of 80 percent, the numbers for KI Technologies rose from Rs. 10 lakh in FY 2019-20 to Rs. 30 lakh in FY 2020-21.

Currently, KI Technologies requires the backing of investors to enhance its presence, especially in the southern zone. “With the evolution of newer technologies, we feel there’s a greater scope for us to convey to the students in a better way, thereby increasing our business opportunities and revenue growth,” adds Ajay.

The pandemic has boosted the use of online platforms. “It seems that pandemic has become a boon for us,” he adds on a light-hearted note. “The entire base of the educational system including classes, live webinars, training sessions has shifted online and it is anticipated that this shift would only increase in the days to come. Based on that, we are trying to implement MOUs with universities and colleges, offering training courses, and hoping for significant growth in the years to come, despite a dearth in the funding,” conjectures Ajay.

The ‘Shaping India Inc's Online Growth’ series chronicles the journeys of startups and SMEs in India and how creating an online presence on the .in or .Bharat domain powered their success stories.