Vishnu Nanduri, PhD

Vishnu Nanduri, PhD

I help organizations turn AI ambition into AI that runs in production.

I have done the research, built the products, run the teams, and set the strategy. Now I lead the ASEAN AI Innovation Lab in Singapore.

NowHead of AI and Innovation, ASEAN and Korea, Kyndryl

Connect on LinkedInAbout me
Vishnu Nanduri on stage at GovInsider AIxGov beside a screen reading AI Ambition to AI Operations
GovInsider AIxGov, Singapore, 2026

On stage at

  • Google Cloud Next
  • Microsoft AI Tour
  • GovInsider AIxGov
  • Data Centre World Asia
  • Spark Summit
  • INFORMS
  • IEEE Power and Energy Society

In the press

  • HRM Asia
  • iTnews Asia
  • GovInsider
  • Twimbit
  • Asian Business Review
  • Kyndryl newsroom
  • Corner Magazine PH
  • CRN Asia
  • Digital News Asia
  • Singapore Economic Development Board

What I believe

Positions I have taken in public, each linked to where I said it.

  • The model is maybe 10% of the problem.

    Agentic systems that work in a demo die quietly in production. The rest is data, integration, deterministic boundaries, and the people who run it.

    GovInsider AIxGov, 2026

  • AI speeds up modernization. It will not fix broken foundations.

    Generated code that compiles is not proof that it works, and weak knowledge of the system stalls the project.

    iTnews Asia, 2026

  • Agents that act on their own need enforceable limits.

    Policy as code, clear decision rights, and human oversight are what let agents scale.

    Frontier Enterprise, 2026

  • AI is embedding faster than workforces are adapting.

    Companies scale AI faster than they change how work gets done. Roles need to be redesigned around working with AI.

    HRM Asia, 2026

Six threads, one career

Research, teaching, teams, products, strategy, and now a lab. Each thread links to the record behind it.

  1. Lab and regional leadership

    I launched the Kyndryl ASEAN AI Innovation Lab in Singapore in June 2025 with Google Cloud and Digital Industry Singapore. Today I lead AI and innovation for ASEAN and Korea, taking agentic AI from pilot to production.

    The labRecent stages

  2. AI strategy

    At Prudential I put many predictive models into production. At Munich Re I owned AI and machine learning strategy across Asia. Then I led insurance AI at Accenture and helped build the global AI practice at Kyndryl. The approach I argue for on stage: outcome first, governance early, production ready.

    Career

  3. Product building

    Distributed reinforcement learning on Spark. IT operations analytics at IBM. Predictive models in production across Prudential. An image-based motor claims product at Munich Re. Agentic systems running for clients at Kyndryl.

    Work

  4. Team building

    I have built and led data science and engineering teams at Impetus, IBM, Munich Re, and Kyndryl, across Southeast Asia, Japan, Korea, and India.

    Career

  5. Teaching

    Tenure-track professor at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee, with its College of Engineering teaching excellence award. Today an adjunct lecturer at NUS, teaching AI in financial services and responsible AI.

    Teaching

  6. Research

    A PhD in reinforcement learning and game theory, applied to electricity and carbon markets. My 2007 IEEE Transactions paper on market power is still cited in research today.

    PublicationsGoogle Scholar

Around the world

From Singapore and Seoul to Paris, Buenos Aires, and San Francisco. I have lived and worked in India, the United States, and Singapore, and led teams across Southeast Asia, Japan, Korea, and India.

World map of cities where I have spoken, across Asia, North America, Europe, and South America. Lived and worked in India, the United States, and Singapore. Seoul, South KoreaAmes, United StatesBengaluru, IndiaCharlotte, United StatesJakarta, IndonesiaKuala Lumpur, MalaysiaMelbourne, FL, United StatesPittsburgh, United StatesSan Francisco, United StatesWashington, D.C., United StatesAustin, United StatesBandung, IndonesiaBangkok, ThailandBoston, United StatesBuenos Aires, ArgentinaColumbus, United StatesDenver, United StatesDetroit, United StatesKharagpur, IndiaLas Vegas, United StatesMiami, United StatesMinneapolis, United StatesNew Delhi, IndiaParis, FranceSan Diego, United StatesSan Juan, Puerto RicoSeattle, United StatesShanghai, ChinaTampa, United StatesSingapore, Singapore
Spoken inLived and workedHome base today: Singapore

Where I have spoken

Selected sessions

More than 100 talks, panels, and lectures, from INFORMS and IEEE to Google Cloud Next and the Microsoft AI Tour.

  • Sep 29 to 30 2026

    Data Centre World Asia (Singapore Tech Week)

    Are Your Facilities Ready for AI Workloads?

    With Amit Agrawal (Techno Digital), Travis Deutmeyer (ABB). Moderated by Virat Patel (Pioneer Consulting Asia-Pacific)

    PanelSingapore
  • May 5 2026

    GovInsider AIxGov 2026

    From AI Ambition to AI Operations: why agentic AI that works in a demo dies quietly in production

    TalkSingapore
  • Mar 2026

    Microsoft AI Tour Seoul

    From AI assistants to agentic, AI-native architectures

    TalkSeoul
  • Jun 24 2025

    Launch of the Kyndryl ASEAN AI Innovation Lab

    Opening the lab with Digital Industry Singapore and Google Cloud

    With Philbert Gomez (DISG), Andrew Lim (Kyndryl), Mark Micallef (Google Cloud)

    LaunchSingapore
  • Apr 2024

    Google Cloud Next '24

    Taking GenAI from prototype to production, responsibly

    With Manoj Palaniswamy

    TalkLas Vegas
  • Jun 2019

    Munich Re 5th Regional CEO Summit

    Turning Insurance Data to Revenue Using AI and ML

    TalkSingapore

The full programme

The ASEAN AI Innovation Lab

In June 2025 we opened the Kyndryl ASEAN AI Innovation Lab in Singapore with Google Cloud and Digital Industry Singapore. It is where enterprises and governments take agentic AI from pilot to production.

The model is maybe ten percent of the problem. The rest is data, integration, deterministic boundaries around what an agent may do, and the people who will run it. The lab is built for the other ninety.

Public work Launch announcement, Singapore EDB

Writing

Bylines and essays on AI in production, governance, insurance, and building data science teams.

All writing