The award was conferred for his outstanding contributions to India’s technology ecosystem across academia, industry, startup and advisory roles
Mr. Kris Gopalakrishnan, a technology veteran and co-founder of Infosys, was honoured with the Lifetime Achievement Award by The Institution of Engineering and Technology (IET) India, a global engineering body committed to promoting technology innovation and adoption for social impact. The award was conferred to commemorate Mr. Gopalakrishnan’s illustrious career in the technology industry and to recognise his significant contributions towards advancing India’s technology leadership on the global stage.
With a Padma Bhushan award to his credit, Mr. Gopalakrishnan is best known for his tenure as Vice President of Infosys from 2011 to 2014 and as CEO and Managing Director of Infosys from 2007 to 2011. Mr. Gopalakrishnan’s career is also marked by contributions across India’s technology ecosystem ranging from roles in academia and industry bodies to mentoring startups. He serves on the Board of Governors of Okinawa Institute of Science and Technology (OIST), is the Chairman of the Council, IISc Bangalore, and is the Chairman of the Board of Governors of IIIT, Bangalore. Currently, he is also the Chairman of Axilor Ventures, an accelerator that helps start-ups during the early stage of their business journey.
“India’s growth story is heavily reliant on the utilization of emerging technologies to boost efficiency, productivity and innovation across every industry. In this context, we must recognise and acknowledge the contributions of evangelists like Mr. Kris Gopalakrishnan, who has truly paved the way for India’s technology prowess. Mr. Gopalakrishnan’s successful career also demonstrates the impact of advisory contributions across various streams of the engineering ecosystem ranging from curricula to startups to industry bodies. I am confident that Mr. Gopalakrishnan’s journey will serve as an inspiration for today’s youth to shape the future of indigenous technology innovation, and it is our honour and privilege to felicitate him with this award”, says Shekhar Sanyal, Director and Country Head of IET India.
India is poised to be a global powerhouse for technological innovations, fuelled by the country’s expanding startup culture and increasing preference by multinational firms to host India as an R&D site. The IET India Lifetime Achievement Award, 1 of the 7 categories under the IET India Awards, aims to shine a spotlight on individuals who have displayed long-standing commitment and outstanding contributions towards advancing India’s engineering ecosystem.
The IET India awards motivate India’s large and rapidly expanding engineering talent to apply cutting-edge technologies to tackle world issues. The first edition of the IET India Awards was successfully concluded in 2021, simultaneously with the celebration of 150 years of the Institution of Engineering and Technology. Now in their third edition, the awards received a large number of entries from individuals and organizations across the country. The next edition of the awards will be announced in May 2024, and further details will be available on IET India’s website and social media handles.
About The Institution of Engineering and Technology (IET)
The IET is one of the world’s largest engineering institutions with over 168,000 members in 150 countries. It is also the most multidisciplinary – to reflect the increasingly diverse nature of engineering in the 21st century. The IET is working to engineer a better world by inspiring, informing and influencing its members, engineers, technicians and all those who are touched by or touch the work of engineers.