Economist and builder. Former Advisor at India's UN Mission, where I shipped AI-driven negotiation tools and moved 6 multilateral resolutions. Columbia & LSE trained. GRE 334/340. Now building Komal.
I'm the Co-Founder & CEO of Komal. For the past 6 years, I've built operating systems for complex, high-stakes environments — places where trust, coalitions, and speed determine outcomes.
At India's UN Mission, I noticed most delegations don't lose because they're wrong — they lose because they're slow. So I built a lightweight negotiation operating system: a tracker mapping draft paragraphs to who cared, why, and what they'd trade, paired with a briefing workflow that turned hallway intelligence into one-page decision memos leadership could act on immediately. That compressed our internal cycle time and made us sharper in the room, where speed is leverage and credibility is currency.
At UN-OHRLLS, I built econometric models and co-developed dashboards monitoring 32 of the world's most vulnerable countries — as the youngest among peer economists from top institutes. I reported directly to country leadership (Ambassadors, Foreign Ministers, PMs/Presidents) and helped lobby ~$3M from advanced economies.
At the U.S. Department of Commerce, I led firm-level and macro-level analysis for an AI early warning system that used export anomalies and supply-demand gaps to improve trade monitoring efficiency by ~25%, saving significant enforcement resources.
Graduate of Columbia University (MPA, STEM) and the London School of Economics. Based in New York.
I build operating playbooks and analytics systems for environments where trust, coalitions, and high-speed decision loops determine outcomes.
A lightweight tracker mapping draft paragraphs to who cared, why, and what they'd trade — paired with a briefing workflow that turned hallway intelligence into one-page decision memos leadership could act on immediately. Compressed internal cycle time, reduced surprise amendments, and sharpened India's position in the room.
Interviewed 50+ stakeholders over 2 weeks, spotted anomalies in fragmented public data and narrative reports. Used Python and Stata to co-develop monitoring dashboards for 32 of the world's most vulnerable countries, as the youngest among peer economists from top institutes.
Built a federal AI early warning framework for trade circumvention and dumping risk. Led firm-level and macro-level analysis using export anomalies and supply-demand gaps to flag enforcement targets before they became crises.
Built a geopolitical dashboard, automated briefing system, and negotiation tracker that gave India's mission real-time intelligence on shifting positions across delegations, blocs, and lobby signals.
Advised on economic and policy issues at the UN, helping shape India's positions in multilateral negotiations and high-level forums. Covered India's full AI governance portfolio.
Supported analytical and policy work for Least Developed Countries, Landlocked Developing Countries and Small Island Developing States, contributing to UN reports and climate-development briefs.
Covered India's full AI governance portfolio, representing the nation in all AI-related multilateral discussions and negotiations at the UN in New York.
Successfully negotiated resolutions including NAM, WSIS+20, ICZM, and AgTech at the United Nations, shaping international policy outcomes.
Developed a negotiation tracker, automated briefing system, and geopolitical dashboard that improved efficiency within the Permanent Mission of India to the UN.
Produced a comprehensive macroeconomic handbook consolidating 80+ indicators for 32 landlocked developing countries, used by UN agencies for monitoring and policy.
Scored 98.8%, Rank 5 nationally in Economics across India's board examinations.
Top 6 out of 500+ entries nationwide. Conducted by Meghnad Desai Academy of Economics (2018).
Awarded Best Speaker at Christ University's Department of Economics (2019).
Recognised for outstanding academic performance throughout undergraduate studies. GPA: 3.84/4.0.
Scored in the 99th percentile on the Graduate Record Examination, reflecting strong quantitative and verbal reasoning.
Built advanced capability in macro-econometrics, international trade and finance, and quantitative methods. Quant GPA: 3.8/4.0.
Developed rigorous foundations in micro, macro, welfare analysis and political science to examine inequality and development.
Used Structural Equation Modelling to explain participation in gig and shared economies, demonstrating strong applied multivariate modelling skills. Earned 4.0/4.0.
Earned graduate degrees from Columbia University (MPA, Quant GPA 3.8) and the London School of Economics, plus a First Class Honours BA from Christ University (GPA 3.84).
Studied under and was advised by Prof. Arvind Panagariya — current Chairperson of India's Finance Commission, first Vice Chairman of NITI Aayog, and former Chief Economist of ADB.
Advised on economic and policy issues at the UN, helping shape India's positions in multilateral negotiations and high-level forums. Represented India in all AI governance discussions. Negotiated multilateral resolutions (NAM, WSIS+20, ICZM, AgTech). Developed AI-driven tools including a negotiation tracker, automated briefing system, and geopolitical dashboard.
Supported analytical and policy work for Least Developed Countries, Landlocked Developing Countries and Small Island Developing States. Authored a policy handbook for 32 LLDCs with 80+ indicators. Used R to estimate gravity models quantifying trade penalties from infrastructure gaps.
Applied quantitative and policy tools to address a live economic/commerce problem. Developed an AI-based Early Warning System for trade circumvention. Led firm-level and macro-level steel trade analysis using STATA and R.
Supported graduate-level teaching in economics/policy, reinforcing course delivery and providing academic support to MPA students. Mentored students, contributing to a 5% improvement in overall course grades.
Led econometric analysis for "Decoding State Growth." Built a state growth model and conducted OLS regressions to quantify drivers of GDPPC growth.
Led an editorial team to curate and publish policy and economics content, strengthening campus discourse on public affairs and mentoring junior writers.
Contributed to initiatives improving financial awareness, helping students and community members make more informed financial decisions.
Helped design and execute campus events, enhancing engagement between students, faculty and external speakers.
International Finance & Economic Policy; Data Analytics & Quantitative Analysis. Quant GPA: 3.8/4.0. Built advanced capability in macro-econometrics, international trade and finance, and quantitative methods.
Specialisation in Inequality & Poverty. Developed rigorous foundations in micro, macro, welfare analysis and political science to examine inequality and development.
First Class, GPA: 3.84/4.0. 10,000-word dissertation using Structural Equation Modelling, earning a Distinction (4.0/4.0).
Produced an empirical study on shared and gig economies using Structural Equation Modelling, providing evidence-based insights on user behaviour for researchers, co-working spaces and policymakers.
Explored how gig platforms may reshape employment, informing debates on labour policy and future of work.
Led the econometric analysis for "Decoding State Growth," constructing state-level growth determinants and validating key growth hypotheses using OLS regression in STATA and R.
“Saarthak brings a rare combination of rigorous quantitative skills and grounded policy judgment. His work at the UN mission consistently improved the quality of our briefs and negotiations.”
“In my course, Saarthak stood out for his ability to translate complex econometric concepts into actionable insights for real‑world policy problems.”
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