IBrief
Whose Values Get Encoded?
As India and the Global South adopt AI faster than the West, who decides the cultural defaults inside these systems, and how policy can answer.
Founder, Anar Ventures · Visiting Professor, UC Berkeley HaasSan Francisco · New Delhi · Davos
AI Governance · Digital Finance · Emerging Markets
Technology policy for governments, investors, and international convenings.
Sara Ahmadian brings Silicon Valley operating fluency into rooms where public leaders, investors, founders, and institutions are deciding how artificial intelligence and emerging technologies shape economic growth, cultural sovereignty, and civic wellbeing.
Stages & Convenings|World Economic Forum·Raisina Dialogue·United Nations·Observer Research Foundation·Government of Bhutan·Mongolia Economic Forum·Yerevan Dialogue·Cape Town Conversation
§ 01 — Biography
From software engineer to technology-policy voice.
Sara Ahmadian holds a B.S. in Computer Science and an M.S. in Information Systems Engineering, and built her early career shipping products and leading engineering teams. She founded and led Seamless Planet, an AI travel concierge that was later acquired, before turning to the policy questions now at the center of her work.
Today she is the founder of Anar Ventures, mentoring founders and building entrepreneurial ecosystems across the Middle East, India, Africa, and Latin America. Her position is consistent: technology should reflect the values, languages, and traditions of the people it serves — not a single global perspective.
She is a Visiting Professor of Entrepreneurship at the UC Berkeley Haas School of Business and a contributor to The Huffington Post. Beyond the stage, she co-founded The Laundry, a San Francisco space for cultural programming; serves on the board of the Tupac Shakur Foundation; and leads an initiative bringing traditional Persian meals to children for Nowruz.
“India now uses ChatGPT more than the United States. The question is whose values, and whose framing, get encoded as the default.”— Sara Ahmadian
20+
Global speaking appearances
13
Countries on record
4
Continents of founder work
10+
Years of policy convening
§ 02 — Briefings
Keynotes and private briefings currently in rotation.
Each session is tailored to the room — whether briefing ministers, institutional investors, or policy faculty.
IIBrief
Sovereignty Without Isolation
How nations protect their languages, data, and local industry while still opening to global innovation and trusted collaboration.
IIIBrief
Tech Diplomacy in an Age of Uncertainty
Building cross-border governance among allies and emerging economies as AI reshapes the balance of power.
IVBrief
Wellbeing as Infrastructure
Designing AI cities and national policy around mental health and human flourishing — from Bhutan's GNH to the WEF C4IR.
VBrief
Capital at the Edges
Why the next decade of returns and resilience lies with founders in the Middle East, India, Africa, and Latin America.
VIBrief
Inclusive Capital, Global Scale
Policy incentives that increase investment access for women, youth, and overlooked regions.
§ 03 — On the Record
Selected appearances across the international policy circuit.
From the United Nations to Dharamshala: convenings, panels, and conversations across the globe.
Plate 02New Delhi
Raisina Dialogue — AI and global governance, alongside Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
Plate 03New York
India Day, United Nations General Assembly — AI and indigenous knowledge.
Plate 04Davos
World Economic Forum — AI cities and the C4IR initiative.
Plate 05Ulaanbaatar
Mongolia Economic Forum — sustainable innovation and COP17 preparation.
Plate 06Bermuda
Digital Finance Forum — regulated digital finance and institutional adoption.
Plate 07Bhutan
Gross National Happiness Forum — national wellbeing as long-term development.
Plate 08Dharamshala
Monlam IT Center — AI for Tibetan-language preservation.
Plate 09Yerevan
Yerevan Dialogue — regional security and inclusive growth.
Plate 10Antarctica
Women leaders convening on climate and planetary resilience.
§ 04 — Positions
Core arguments shaping her policy work.
i.
Cultural context over global default
AI systems should be grounded in the context of each region rather than shaped solely by Western framing. As adoption shifts to the Global South, the stakes of whose worldview is encoded rise sharply.
ii.
Wellbeing as policy infrastructure
The cities and systems of the future must be designed not only through hard infrastructure, but by prioritizing mental health, citizen interaction, and human wellbeing.
iii.
Sovereignty without isolation
Nations can protect digital and cultural sovereignty — their languages, data, and local industries — while still embracing innovation and trusted cross-border collaboration.
§ 05 — Anar Ventures
An advisory practice for the innovation economy of emerging markets.
Anar Ventures mentors founders and builds entrepreneurial ecosystems across the Middle East, India, Africa, and Latin America — making the innovation economy accessible beyond Silicon Valley.
01 /04
Innovation Ecosystem Building
Fundraising proficiency, individualized founder strategy, and technology integration across emerging markets.
02 /04
Economic Empowerment
Early access to technology trends for entrepreneurs, social-impact organizations, and environmental groups.
03 /04
Emerging Ecosystems
Investment in infrastructure and accelerator support with resources, mentorship, and convening networks.
04 /04
Locally Rooted Strategy
Deep local understanding paired with strategies that respect each geography's culture and language.
Middle East
Tech hubs & innovation
India
Startup capital of the East
LATAM
Rising frontier markets
Africa
Youth-powered development
§ 06 — Speaking Record
A chronological record of forums and policy rooms.
2026
Bermuda
Digital Finance Forum
Emerging technologies and investment in digital ecosystems.
San Francisco
Canada Space Day, Consulate of Canada
Dual-use space technology, sovereignty, and allied partnership.
Fireside
Future of AI & the India AI Summit
In conversation with former Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper.
Iceland
Iceland Eclipse
A global gathering of artists, thinkers, and explorers.
2025
New Delhi
Raisina Dialogue
AI and global governance, alongside Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
Davos
World Economic Forum — AI City / C4IR
Vietnam's first AI city model.
Hungary
AI Sovereignty Convening
National sovereignty in the age of artificial intelligence.
Fiji
Evolve X
AI and indigenous knowledge.
Mongolia
Economic Forum
Sustainable innovation and agricultural startups for COP17.
New York
UNGA India Day
Policy, indigenous knowledge, and cultural frames in AI.
2024
New Delhi
Raisina Dialogue
Technology policy and cross-border governance.
Yerevan
Yerevan Dialogue
Regional growth and innovation.
Antarctica
Women & Climate Gathering
Planetary resilience and women's leadership.
2015 – 2023
Cape Town
Cape Town Conversations · ORF
Youth-powered development in Africa.
New Delhi
CYFY · Observer Research Foundation
Technology in international relations.
Barcelona
iBridge
Interviewed by astronaut Anousheh Ansari.
Washington, DC
Obama White House · GES delegate
Global Emerging Entrepreneurship initiative, 2015.
§ 07 — Honors
Distinctions and institutional recognition.
- 2015
Selected delegate to the Obama White House global entrepreneurship initiative.
- Since 2017
Recurring contributor at the Observer Research Foundation on technology in international relations.
- 2016
Recognized among notable Iranian-American entrepreneurs; interviewed by astronaut Anousheh Ansari at iBridge, Barcelona.
- Early career
Recognized by Google for Entrepreneurs, O'Reilly Media, and McGill University.
§ 08 — Shared Platforms
Has appeared alongside.
- Prime Minister Narendra Modi — Raisina Dialogue
- Carl Bildt — former Prime Minister of Sweden
- Eleni Kounalakis — Lieutenant Governor of California
- Rt. Hon. Stephen Harper — former Prime Minister of Canada
- Samir Saran — President, Observer Research Foundation
- Anousheh Ansari — astronaut and CEO, XPRIZE Foundation
§ 09 — Civic Practice
Cultural infrastructure and civic service beyond the stage.
The Laundry, San Francisco
Co-founded an arts and culture space for immersive experiences, performance, and community programming.
Tupac Shakur Foundation
Board member supporting initiatives in community care, mental-health access, and youth empowerment.
Nowruz Meal Initiative
Persian New Year meal programs for Oakland students and families — food as cultural bridge.
UC Berkeley Haas
Visiting Professor of Entrepreneurship, teaching founders the operating side of policy and capital.
§ 10 — Writing & Press
Selected writing and media.
Keynotes · Panels · Private Briefings
Invite Sara to brief your audience on the policy choices shaping technology.
San Francisco, California · Anar Ventures