Indian Founders Launch An AI School With Apple Co-founder’s Tech Platform; Offer Students A Chance To Work With Silicon Valley Companies

By 2031, the artificial intelligence market in India is expected to reach a volume of USD 31.94 billion.

This is accompanied by a rise in courses that are dedicated to teaching artificial intelligence from all standpoints—of beginners, intermediate learners, and advanced practitioners.

“These courses do expose Indian students to AI. However, a global approach to teaching and learning AI practices is missing. We wanted to bring the AI expertise of Silicon Valley to India and help students learn from the best in the world,” Sarvesh Tusnial, co-founder of Mentogram, tells Startup Pedia in an exclusive interview.

Founded in 2024 by Siddharth Dangi, Sarvesh Tusnial, and Don Nations, Mentogram School of AI is an edtech startup that offers Indian students a chance to absorb global AI expertise, participate in live projects, connect with industry experts, learn how to use high-level AI tools, and ultimately secure jobs in Silicon Valley companies and ventures.

Mentogram has been established in partnership with Steve Wozniak’s (co-founder of Apple) tech school. The edtech platform is powered by WozU, the tech school founded by Steve that offers tech-based higher education to young students and professionals. 

FOUNDER STORY

Hailing from Kolkata, Sarvesh Tusnial attended the Nanyang Technological University in Singapore for his undergraduate degree in Mechatronics and Robotics. Post that, he entered the corporate world of fintech consulting.

At NTU, Sarvesh met Siddharth Dangi, who joined him to establish LaunchPilot, a Singapore-based global startup-focused business school.

Now, with Don Nations on board, the team has founded Mentogram’s School of AI.

Don has a background in academia and is the COO of Mentogram, bringing expertise in university and corporate partnerships in the United States. 

“When we came across what Steve Wozniak was doing with WozU, we wanted to replicate the same model, tailor it to Artificial Intelligence, and bring the benefits to Indian students and professionals. Even though AI is a buzzword in India, many young adults do not have access to AI-related skill training from an expert who uses new-age tools in real life as if it were second nature to them. This is the exact gap that Mentogram seeks to address,” entrepreneur Siddharth Dangi explains.

PARTNERING WITH STEVE WOZNIAK, CO-FOUNDER OF APPLE

Once Sarvesh, Siddharth, and Don were sure of the market gap, they decided to partner with someone who had already set a precedent when it comes to tech-related higher education.

The trio reached out to Steve Wozniak, co-founder of Apple, who is also the founder of WozU, an edtech platform that offers tech courses in the domain of data science and mobile app development.

“We held discussions with Steve and explained how we wanted to carry out the same model that WozU employs, but make it completely AI-dedicated for the Indian landscape. There was instant synergy, and the partnership was successful,” entrepreneur Sarvesh Tusnial shares.

Today, Mentogram, in partnership with WozU, leverages the United States’ artificial intelligence capabilities, structures them into a 12-month-long career-focused curriculum, and offers it as an MBA program to Indian students.

The catch? All of this comes at just one-third the price of a conventional MBA degree.

Also Read:'It Had All The Aesthetics…None Of The Soul': Anupam Mittal Says That Ghibli Isn’t ‘Authentic’

MENTOGRAM: SCHOOL OF AI

Mentogram School of AI is a TechMBA program that ensures students get a competitive edge in terms of knowledge and practical skills in the realm of artificial intelligence.

It leverages the GenAI experience and models followed by top-tier companies and organisations in Silicon Valley and blends them into a 12-month-long curriculum.

The founders emphasise that this TechMBA isn’t an ordinary AI course that touches on the basics of artificial intelligence and merely provides a certificate of completion at the end.

“Mentogram makes AI more tangible than ever. Our students get exposed to real-world, concrete application of AI and the context of that learning comes from Silicon Valley startups and companies that they even get to work with during the course of the curriculum,” Sarvesh Tusnial tells Startup Pedia.

1. Mentogram fully aligns with students, founders, product builders, and professionals who are looking to pivot towards a higher position or job that has aspects of AI and automation in it.

2. The TechMBA program has a 12-month duration with a curriculum that adopts the hybrid model of learning.

“90% of the program’s offerings can be utilized remotely, no matter which part of India you are in. The remaining 10% is a physical learning hub in Bangalore that we encourage students to attend and grow their network,” edtech entrepreneur Siddharth explains.

3. Mentogram’s faculty consists of industry experts who regularly use AI in their day-to-day jobs and roles in Silicon Valley companies. Students get to directly learn from the world’s top 1% of AI engineers, data scientists, and product leaders from Google, Meta, AWS, and other top-tier Silicon Valley startups.

4. Across six modules, topics and areas like Design Thinking, User Personas, Idea Generation & Validation, AI-driven Content Generation, AI-driven Marketing Analytics, Data Driven Decision Making​, Fundamentals of GenAI, Basics of LLM, and SCRUM & No-Code AI MVP are covered.

5. At Mentogram, students work on hands-on AI projects with partner companies in Silicon Valley and solve real business challenges while building scalable AI solutions. These live projects and internships become the foundation of their career-focused AI journey.

6. Additionally, the TechMBA program hosts short-term, intensive boot camps that focus on core AI areas like prompt engineering and automation.

7. Through this entire journey, students become part of a network that thrives on mutual learning and growth. 

“Imagine a student sitting in UP is in direct touch with a product leader at Google. This is what Mentogram is making possible. We believe that in today’s world, two important things propel growth: connection and attention,” Sarvesh shares.

Also Read: ‘Food Delivery Apps Are Turning Unemployed Youth Into Cheap Labour,’ Says Piyush Goyal; Aadit Palicha Responds

ACCREDITATION AND FEE

At the end of the program, students receive a university-accredited certificate from Woolf University and an AI-focused MBA degree in partnership with IBM.

The fee structure of the program ranges from Rs 2 lakh to Rs 3 lakh, depending on the type of scholarship a student secures.

“A typical MBA in India costs anywhere from Rs 15 lakh to Rs 20 lakh. Compared to that, Mentogram offers a degree comparable to an MBA at just one-third of the price. Plus, it is focused on the one thing that is a sure-shot way to enter the corporate corridors, future-proof your career, and drive change—artificial intelligence,” Siddharth Dangi affirms.

Also Read: Bihar Housewife Started Growing Mushrooms At Home With Just Rs 120; Now Clocks Rs 3 Lakh Monthly Revenue