The STN Conclave 2025 officially opened on 27th November with a welcome address by Harish Arnezath, Regional Director, Stanford Seed South Asia. He emphasized the vital role of SMEs in shaping economies, celebrated the growing strength of the Seed Transformation Network, and highlighted how network members across regions continue to support and learn from one another.
This was followed by a commencement address from Kirthiga Reddy, CEO of OptimizeGeo and Verix, who reflected on her journey from corporate leader to entrepreneur. Her insights set an inspiring tone for the conclave. The inaugural commencement event honored the business leaders of the Seed Transformation Program Class of 2025, who received their Certificates of Completion and were formally inducted into the Seed Transformation Network.
Day 2 unfolded with powerful conversations, deep learning sessions, and dynamic peer-sharing formats that underscored the innovation and collective strength of the STN community. The day began with an address by Nasir Ali, President of STN South Asia, who highlighted the importance of collaborative leadership and transformative thinking for high-growth companies.
A keynote by Captain G. R. Gopinath, founder of Air Deccan, added a compelling perspective on vision, entrepreneurship, and resilience. Drawing on his diverse journey as an entrepreneur, veteran, and author, he urged leaders to create new possibilities for a prosperous future and encouraged deeper collaboration with policymakers to drive societal impact at scale, noting, “Never say ‘no’ too quickly, giving up is the real failure. True charity lies in creating jobs and uplifting communities. Entrepreneurs must forge new possibilities, endure challenges, and work with policymakers to drive meaningful change.”
The conclave also featured an engaging session by master storyteller Ravishankar Iyer, founder of StoryRules, who emphasized the growing importance of business storytelling in today’s fast-paced communication landscape. He demonstrated how clear, memorable narratives help leaders cut through noise and inspire action, bringing these ideas to life through an interactive activity.
In the afternoon, the prestigious STN Awards 2025 were presented to celebrate the transformation, social impact, and leadership of SMEs in South Asia. The ‘Seed Transformation Excellence’ awards were presented to Sukrit Bharti of Virtuoso Optoelectronics and to Raj Prakash & Vanchinathan, co-founders of Zifo. The ‘Seed Social Impact”’ award was conferred upon Dr. Shuchin Bajaj of Cygnus Medicare and Nidhi Pant of Science for Society Techno Services, recognizing their remarkable impact and commitment to societal progress.
Day 3 of the event opened with an address by Viraj Bahl, founder of Veeba Foods. He emphasized that quality and honesty are the true foundations of any successful business. He reminded leaders that companies must always retain a startup-like sense of “healthy insecurity” to stay vigilant and avoid complacency. He also underscored the importance of building the right team and culture, noting that the best gift a founder can give the company is a team that is even better than the founder
The conclave had several curated networking sessions that enabled participants to deepen connections and explore collaborative opportunities aligned with their growth aspirations. Participants also benefited from the SeedX parallel tracks that were designed to foster peer learning and real-world knowledge sharing across diverse themes.The conclave concluded with a festive Rajasthani-themed gala dinner, offering participants a memorable cultural finale.
