What were you doing at 16?
Studying for exams? Wondering what to wear to the next school event? Pranjali Awasthi was busy building a 100 crore AI startup that would catch the attention of Silicon Valley and India’s tech elite – before she even finished high school.
This is not just a story about technology or funding. It’s the story of a teen girl who turned her curiosity into code, her code into a company, and her company into a revolution.
From Bengaluru to the Bay: The Roots of a Visionary
Born and raised in India, Pranjali Awasthi grew up in a household that encouraged learning. Her father was a computer science engineer, and her environment was filled with books, computers, and questions.
She wasn’t spoon-fed answers. She was taught to explore. By the age of 7 or 8, while most kids were discovering cartoons, Pranjali was discovering code. Her love for problem-solving wasn’t just academic – it was personal.
At 11, she moved to the United States with her family. The shift was massive. A new culture, a new education system, but the same hunger to learn. What changed, however, was her access to tech resources, mentors, and global exposure. And this would become the fuel behind her future company.
Coding Before College: A Teen in Tech
By 13, she wasn’t just “into coding” – she was already interning at Florida International University’s research lab, surrounded by PhDs and data scientists. That experience introduced her to real-world AI, not just YouTube tutorials.
Her interest only deepened during the COVID-19 pandemic, when most teens were navigating online classes. Pranjali was building machine learning projects and experimenting with early versions of OpenAI’s GPT-3 beta, which later inspired her to work on data extraction and research summarization tools.
This period laid the groundwork for Delv.AI. She realized that structured and clean data was not a luxury – it was a necessity. That pain point became her mission: to simplify access to information for researchers worldwide.
The Birth of Delv.AI – Solving the Internet’s Information Chaos
The internet is rich in data, but poor in delivery. This is the problem Delv.AI set out to solve.
Founded by Pranjali in 2022, Delv.AI is an AI-powered tool that helps users extract clean, relevant data from massive unstructured text, such as research papers, articles, and long-form content.
Think of it as a turbo-charged search engine, but one built for researchers and data professionals.
The mission was simple: Don’t just find information. Understand it, structure it, and simplify it.
As large language models (LLMs) began dominating the AI space, Pranjali saw the opportunity. She didn’t just want to build on AI trends – she wanted to build tools that empower humans to work better with AI.
Her MVP (minimum viable product) was launched quietly among friends, researchers, and indie developers. The feedback was clear: this tool had legs.
The Y Combinator Breakthrough: A Giant Leap at 16
Her path to Y Combinator was preceded by participation in another AI startup accelerator held in Miami by Lucy Guo and Dave Fontenot. It was a pivotal moment that showcased her commitment – she even paused high school to fully immerse herself in the program.
Pranjali also credits Village Global and On Deck’s Catalyst program for early guidance and exposure. These accelerators played a vital role in helping her build investor networks, refine product strategy, and develop confidence as a teen founder.
She later applied to Y Combinator – one of the world’s most prestigious startup accelerators. At just 16, she became one of the youngest founders in YC’s history to be accepted into their Winter 2023 batch.
At YC, she worked around the clock – iterating the product, meeting mentors, and sharpening her pitch. She pitched Delv.AI as the future of structured intelligence—an AI research assistant that could change how the world consumes knowledge.
By the end of the program, Delv.AI had raised over $450,000 (~INR 3.7 crore) in pre-seed funding and was valued at $12 million (INR 100 crore). The startup’s beta launch on Product Hunt gained significant traction, validating the demand for AI-powered research tools.
Life as a Teen CEO – Grit Over Glamour
Being a female teen CEO isn’t all glamour. Pranjali often works 10–12-hour days – coding, taking investor meetings, reviewing UX, and talking to users.
Despite her young age, she manages coding, operations, and customer care – a hands-on leader who wears many hats. Her father, a computer science engineer, played a pivotal role in shaping her mindset early on, encouraging her to embrace curiosity and challenge convention.
While Indian parents often emphasize traditional education, Pranjali chose to defer college in favor of growing her company. She’s clear, though—she plans to return to school in the future to study business management, so she can lead not only with technical knowledge but strategic acumen.
She’s had to fight to be taken seriously, to prove her credibility again and again. She often enters rooms where she’s the youngest – and the only woman. Yet, she thrives.
Why the World Is Watching Pranjali Awasthi
Pranjali Awasthi is part of a new generation of Indian-origin entrepreneurs making global waves. Unlike the older generation that chased jobs in tech, this generation builds companies in tech.
Her story matters not because she’s young, but because she’s solving a real problem – and doing it better than most.
As AI becomes the most transformative force in business, research, and education, tools like Delv.AI will be essential. From academicians to market analysts, legal researchers to journalists – everyone struggles with finding accurate, structured information. Delv.AI is changing that. In many ways, Pranjali is not just building a company – she’s building a category.
Key Lessons for Aspiring Founders
Pranjali Awasthi’s story isn’t just inspiring, it’s instructive. Here are a few takeaways for anyone dreaming of starting up:
- Start Early, Fail Faster: You don’t need to wait for a degree to start building. Your skills are more important than your credentials.
- Focus on Real-World Problems: Don’t build products for hype. Solve something painful, repetitive, and widespread.
- Find Communities That Challenge You: Whether it’s online coding forums or elite accelerators like YC, be where the energy is.
- Stay Curious, Stay Obsessed: Her deep interest in AI wasn’t casual. It was obsessive. And obsession leads to innovation.
- Age Is a Number – Not a Barrier: If you can build, solve, and communicate, you’ll earn respect at any age.
The Road Ahead: Just Getting Started
As of 2025, Pranjali Awasthi is still just 17. Her journey has just begun, and already she’s setting benchmarks many only dream of. She continues to grow Delv.AI with new product lines, improved data accuracy, and smarter integrations. There’s talk of a Chrome extension, an API for developers, and even enterprise-level tools.
But for her, the goal remains the same: “Make research faster, clearer, and accessible to all.”
In a world filled with noise, her vision cuts through like a laser. She doesn’t just represent Indian innovation – she represents what’s possible when curiosity meets courage.
Final Thoughts
Not every 16-year-old gets a shot at building a global AI company. But Pranjali Awasthi didn’t wait for permission. She built her opportunity, one line of code at a time.
Her story is a beacon for every young coder, dreamer, or builder who thinks they’re “too early” to matter. Being early might be your greatest advantage.
So the next time someone tells you to “wait your turn,” remember Pranjali Awasthi – She didn’t wait. She built.
Inspired by Pranjali Awasthi’s story?
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