AI Conf 2026

Speaker

Amit Timalsina

Software Developer & AI Consultant

Amit builds practical AI systems that solve real-world problems. Currently consulting at Leapfrog Technology, he specializes in machine learning, generative AI, and backend engineering. As founder of Blintic AI (no-code agent builder) and Algentech (AI-native consulting), he helps teams ship AI-powered MVPs and production systems fast.

He focuses on integrating AI into products and workflows, from conversational agents for websites and D2C stores to establishing AI-first development practices. Beyond delivery, he's learning to bridge technical innovation with market fit to ship solutions that stick.

Speaker

Dijup Tuladhar

Sr. Principal Product Designer, Infinite | Founder, Chordpedia

Dijup Tuladhar is a design leader with extensive experience shaping digital products at scale. With a background spanning UI/UX, product strategy, and design systems, he has spent years helping teams move beyond execution toward clarity, alignment, and impact. His work sits at the intersection of design leadership, technology, and strategic decision-making.

Currently, Dijup focuses on how AI is transforming the role of designers - from hands-on creators to high-leverage creative leaders. He actively explores AI-driven workflows that accelerate research, streamline design operations, and support faster, more confident decisions. Having spoken on multiple platforms and led internal sessions on AI and design, Dijup is passionate about sharing practical, real-world insights that help designers adapt, lead, and thrive in an AI-powered future.

Speaker

Sayantika Banik

Founder, DataJourneyHQ • Maintainer, DataJourney toolkit

Sayantika stitches design-first principles with AI innovation and open source.

Founder @DataJourneyHQ and maintainer of DataJourney, a design-first open source data management toolkit backed by the GitHub Secure Open Source fund.

Open source contributor to scientific computing packages (SciPy, NumPy, and others). She teaches, mentors, and advocates for open science globally alongside PSF Diversity & Inclusion WG, R-Ladies Global, DigitalBoost, PyLadies, and the PyData ecosystem.

Speaker

Vlad Dyachenko

Platform Engineer | OSS Contributor

Vlad is a seasoned full-stack developer with over a decade of experience building and maintaining scalable B2B platforms, and a dedicated open-source contributor. At Cybergizer he works in a hybrid SWE/CRE/SRE role focused on production reliability, systems design, and cross-functional engineering using Ruby, Elixir, and Rust.

He is a member of the Diesel.rs contributor team and the creator of opencryptolist.xyz, fostering OSS contributions in the blockchain industry. He has open-sourced, maintained, and contributed to several libraries in the Ruby and Rust ecosystems (including finance-rb, solscan-mcp, and visual-cryptography).

Speaker

Manu Chatterjee

VP & Head of AI @ Leapfrog Technology, Inc.

Manu is a hands-on engineering leader who prototypes and ships new tech to market. He pairs deep experience in speech recognition, ML, image processing, and cloud software with a passion for people and collaboration.

An experienced presenter and writer, he focuses on solving real problems with pragmatic AI systems.

Speaker

Saugat Acharya

Principal Engineer, Laudio

Saugat is an open source and tech enthusiast with 10+ years building web platforms and cloud infrastructure. At Laudio he leads engineering for healthcare operations products, lately diving deep into LLMs and AI tooling.

He will share lessons from shipping AI features that must be observable, evaluated, and cost-aware while still delivering reliable UX.

Speaker

Pranjal Timsina

Synapse Technologies | Kanoon AI

Pranjal has been working in tech for a couple of years and is currently building kanoonportal.com, an early-stage legal tech platform that's mostly a knowledge repository with a touch of AI.

At Synapse Technologies, he handles whatever the situation demands and also serves as a visiting lecturer of Cloud Computing & Machine Learning at ISMT college.

He enjoys sharing ideas and having discussions.

He spoke at the Asia-Pacific Regional Internet Governance Forum about AI and security in the Justice sector alongside Jaco Du Toit, Prof. Dr. Durgambini Patel, and Hon. Justice Nahakul Subedi earlier this year. He also gave a talk during yIGF Nepal 2024.

Speaker

Haihao Liu

ML Researcher, Algoverse | Founder, Ternity Education

After growing up in equal parts China, US, and Hong Kong, Haihao graduated summa cum laude from Rice University with degrees in materials science and mathematics. He previously worked as an NSF Graduate Research Fellow and PhD candidate at MIT, researching machine learning for making new materials and (L)LMs before they were "large".

Haihao has also worked and volunteered as a teacher with various organizations, and is passionate about education equity and reform. He is pursuing a Master of Education in Learning Design, Innovation, and Technology at Harvard, and previously served as the Education Director for the nonprofit Asian Community Development Center.

Since 2023, Haihao has been involved with AI safety and responsible tech, including facilitating for BlueDot's AI alignment course, as well as working with AIS Asia, AIS Global Society, and Cooperative AI Foundation on field-building. He is currently an ML researcher at Algoverse, mentoring advanced high school and college students conducting AI research.

Haihao founded the nonprofit startup Ternity Education, which aims to combine the bleeding edge of AI with our modern understanding of neuroscience and learning sciences. He can be found writing and sharing content on LinkedIn, combatting AI hype and asking deeper questions about AI.

Speaker

Dr. Dovan Rai

Computer scientist, educator, and writer

Dovan Rai is the Director of Research and Development at Body & Data, a nonprofit organization advocating for digital rights and feminist internet. She holds a Ph.D. in Computer Science from WPI, USA, with research focused on the use of artificial intelligence in education.

She has worked as a software engineer, designer, researcher, and educator, teaching in Nepal and the USA. She has developed technology platforms for youth education and initiated educational programs in data science and machine learning. She writes about socio-political issues in Nepal.

Moderator

Alok Khatri

AI adoption & learning

Alok specializes in helping non-technical teams confidently adopt AI in daily work. At NAAMII, Nepal's leading AI research center, he turns cutting-edge research into simple, actionable learning. Through Tangible Careers, he supports companies in building the skilled, AI-ready teams they need to thrive.

Panelist

Hempal Shrestha

Technologist, technopreneur, and social researcher

Hempal Shrestha is dedicated to merging technology, innovation, law, and entrepreneurship for meaningful change. With 20+ years of global experience, he has pioneered ICT4D (Technology for Development), #LegalTech, and #Knowledge Management projects that help organizations and communities thrive in the digital age.

He builds tech-driven solutions, mentors startups and SMEs on ethical scale, IP laws, and sustainable tech practices, and advises governments, NGOs, and academia on ICT4D, organizational change, and legal frameworks for innovation.

As a lifelong learner and technopreneur, he focuses on turning ideas into action and creating systems where technology uplifts people and planet.

Panelist

Prajani KC

IT project management & strategy

Prajani KC is passionate about tech, strategy, and making things work smoothly. With 17+ years of experience in IT project management, audits, policy creation, and business strategy, she has led teams, streamlined processes, and driven impact across industries.

Panelist

Roshan Pokhrel

Director of Product Security, Logpoint

Roshan Pokhrel is committed to fostering a risk-based approach to security and building a robust security program aligned with business objectives. He is also an experienced faculty member, sharing cybersecurity knowledge with the next generation of security professionals.