‘SmartBridge Empowers First-Gen Graduates from Tier 2/Tier 3 Cities with Skills-Based Learning’: Amarendar Katkam, Founder & CEO, SmartBridge

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In this exclusive interview, Amarendar Katkam, Founder & CEO of SmartBridge, shares with Anannya Saraswat, Reporter (Public Sector and Leadership) at APAC Media, the vision behind building a leading skilling platform. Drawing from a decade of experience, he discusses the gaps between education and employability, the rise of skill-first learning, and how AI-powered platforms are transforming talent development at scale.

From impactful collaborations with global technology leaders to empowering millions of learners across India and beyond, Amarendar offers deep insights into shaping a future-ready workforce for a skills-driven economy.

What gaps in the academic-to-industry pipeline led you to build SmartBridge?

When I started working, I always observed that what students were learning in college didn’t fully match what companies needed. Even in core subjects, students often lacked hands-on practice, exposure to real projects, and an understanding of new technologies. Because of this, many bright and motivated graduates weren’t truly job-ready.

That realization led me to start SmartBridge in 2015. Our mission was clear Connect academia with industry by giving students practical, industry-focused learning experiences.

We focus on areas that matter most today: AI, Cloud, Data Analytics, Software Engineering, and Enterprise Technologies. Our goal is to make these skills accessible and build an industry-ready talent pool so every student has the chance to graduate with confidence and be ready for the workforce.

What began as a response to a gap has grown into a movement helping build a future-ready workforce and giving organizations access to talent that is both academically strong and practically skilled.

How do you identify the skills that industries need most? What has been your most successful industry collaboration so far, and why?

We identify the skills industries need most by staying closely connected with our technology partners, strategic partners, and talent partners. These ongoing conversations and our partnerships give us a clear picture of what companies are actually hiring for, and by continuously tracking advancements in technology, we make sure our programs remain current and relevant.

Over the years, we’ve built several strong collaborations, but one that stands out is the Salesforce-supported Virtual Internship Program, which we launched in 2022 with Salesforce and AICTE. This program has been fully hands-on and deeply industry-aligned, training more than 100,000 students and helping over 20,000 learners secure placements with leading organizations such as TCS, Accenture, Deloitte, Cognizant, and many others.

What makes it so successful is that it gives students real-world experience along with globally recognized certifications, opening doors to meaningful careers and building a strong foundation in technology.

For me personally, this program is a powerful testament to the vision we had when we started SmartBridge, creating opportunities that truly prepare students for the future of work and building a movement that serves the nation.

How do you ensure students gain hands-on experience rather than just theoretical knowledge?

We make hands-on learning the foundation of everything we do, not just an add-on. Students work on real-world, industry-aligned projects that mirror actual business challenges. This ensures they’re applying what they learn in a practical way, rather than limiting their education to theory.

A strong example of this is our credit-based courses under the Naan Mudhalvan Project in Tamil Nadu, launched by the Hon’ble Chief Minister. These courses are embedded directly into the academic curriculum, carry credits, and are fully project-based. Since its launch, the initiative has reached more than 200,000 students and faculty across 900+ colleges, with over 5,000 faculty members actively involved in skill development.

The impact has gone beyond just skill enhancement; it has significantly improved students’ practical expertise, employability, and placement outcomes, making them truly future-ready.

What tech platforms or tools power SmartBridge’s learning model? How are you integrating AI into training, mentorship, or assessments?

We are an AI-first organization, and our entire learning model is driven by technology platforms designed to build real, job-ready skills. These platforms operate as a unified ecosystem that supports learning, assessment, mentorship, and employability—helping learners develop skills that align closely with industry needs.

At the center of this ecosystem is Skill Wallet, an AI-powered platform that enables structured training and continuous learning. It brings together courses, hands-on projects, assessments, and credentials into a single, verified skill profile. This allows students to monitor their progress, follow personalized learning paths, and confidently present their capabilities to employers.

For accurate and meaningful evaluation, we integrate AI into assessments through Troven, an advanced skill assessment platform. Troven uses AI-driven question creation, practical challenges, and secure proctoring to evaluate real-world competencies rather than just theoretical knowledge.

Together, these platforms integrate AI across the entire skilling journey—from learning and mentoring to assessment and career outcomes—ensuring learners are industry-aligned, validated, and ready for the future.

How do you keep your content updated as technologies change quickly?

Technology moves fast, and so do we. At SmartBridge, we make sure our content evolves just as quickly by working closely with industry partners, tech experts, and enterprise leaders to track the latest trends & advancements. Our learning modules are regularly updated, and we integrate capstone projects, technical bootcamps, and skill assessments so that learners are practicing on the newest tools and technologies as they emerge.

We also gather feedback from students and educators to fine-tune what we teach, ensuring it’s always relevant and aligned with the skills the industry is looking for. The goal is simple: learners should never feel behind — they are always equipped with the skills that matter today & tomorrow.

How do you measure the impact of your programs on student employability?

We measure the impact of our programs by looking at both skill development and employability outcomes. On the skill side, we track students’ performance through hands-on projects, global certifications, and practical assessments. On the employability side, we work closely with employers, also gathering feedback from employers on how job-ready our talent pool is and what kind of additional components can make them deployable.

The results have been remarkable in these 10 years of talent excellence, over 2 million students trained, 40000+ educators upskilled, and 2,500+ learning modules developed across emerging technologies. Beyond the numbers, the real impact is seeing students confidently step into careers, secure meaningful opportunities, and apply their learning to create real-world success. That’s what tells us we’re truly making a difference.

What challenges have you faced while scaling Smartbridge across institutions? How do you plan to expand into new regions or sectors?

Scaling SmartBridge across institutions has been both exciting and complex. Every college and region brings its own infrastructure, readiness levels, and unique skilling needs. Ensuring our programs remain practical, accessible, and high-quality requires close collaboration with educators, industry partners, and skilling councils.

With SmartBridge already operating globally, we are now extending this reach through Skill Wallet—a global, AI-powered skill portfolio and competency management platform. Skill Wallet unifies courses, projects, assessments, and credits into a single ecosystem, giving learners a verifiable skill identity and enabling institutions to execute skilling at scale with precision and control.

In parallel, SmartBridge is making a strategic entry into the Pharma sector, driving transformation in AI-powered Healthcare. We are building a next-generation ecosystem where AI, Healthcare, and Education converge, enabling future-ready talent through hands-on learning and real-world advancement.

With an active presence across Singapore, the Philippines, Indonesia, Saudi Arabia, and Thailand, SmartBridge is equipping learners worldwide with emerging technology skills, ensuring they stay relevant in an increasingly AI-driven future.

What role do you see Smartbridge playing as India moves toward a skills-first economy?

As India moves toward a skills-first economy, SmartBridge plays a key role in empowering first-generation graduates, particularly from Tier 2 and Tier 3 cities, with access to in-demand technologies. We focus on delivering free and affordable, industry-aligned programs that equip students with practical, job-ready skills—helping them secure meaningful employment, uplift their families, and build the future they envision.

What sets SmartBridge apart is that we are not just an education provider—we are a talent accelerator, committed to creating the workforce of the next generation. Our mission is to ensure that geography or background never limits opportunity by extending high-quality skilling to underserved regions. By doing so, we give learners the confidence, capabilities, and tools they need to thrive in a rapidly evolving, skills-driven economy.

What innovations or models are you exploring to strengthen the academia-industry link?

SmartBridge is strengthening the industry-academia link by pioneering skill-first, outcome-driven models that move beyond traditional degree-centric education.

A key innovation is Skill Wallet, which transforms learning into a measurable digital skill net worth—giving students employability beyond GPA and enabling recruiters to instantly access verified skills and real project work. What makes this model future-ready is our AI-first approach: an AI mentor bot available 24×7 to guide learners, recommend pathways based on industry demand, support assessments, and track progress continuously. AI also provides institutions with real-time insights into skill acquisition and curriculum alignment, ensuring relevance without disrupting existing structures.

Alongside these platforms, SmartBridge’s association with national initiatives such as the India AI Mission for AI Awareness reinforces this direction, creating momentum at scale while our technology ecosystem converts awareness into action and action into employability. Together, these innovations are building a trusted, transparent, and scalable bridge where learning, hiring, and industry needs stay perfectly in sync.