This child prodigy who joined MIT when he was just 14 and has now crafted one of the world’s most advanced air purification systems. Meet Angad Daryani, the 25-year-old founder of Praan, Inc., a deep-tech startup based out of Mumbai.
Angad Daryani’s journey began in Mumbai, where he struggled with asthma every winter due to high air pollution. His family would often leave the city during festive seasons to help him breathe better. Despite his health problems, solving real-world problems has always excited him.
At the young age of 8, Angad Daryani built his first robot and a solar-powered boat. By 13, he had created a homegrown 3D printer, and by 15, he developed an e-reader called the Virtual Brailler for the visually impaired. However, Angad felt disillusioned with the rote learning-based state board education system and briefly dropped out of school.
During this time, Angad Daryani reached out to Professor Ramesh Raskar from MIT, expressing his desire to contribute to solving real-world problems. To his surprise, Professor Raskar responded promptly and Angad ended up collaborating with MIT through their India Initiative for two years.
After he collaborated with MIT, Angad resumed his education, attending an IB school and later studying electrical engineering at the prestigious Georgia Institute of Technology (Georgia Tech). It was during his college years that Angad decided to tackle the pressing issue of air pollution.
In 2017, Angad began working on solutions for city air pollution. With little money, making a safe test chamber was tough. So, Angad started making prototypes of air purifiers at his apartment near Georgia Tech.
In simple terms, the device works like this: it uses fans to pull in particles from the air. These particles are then charged in a small space, separated from the air, and pushed down into a collection bucket in short bursts. Basically, it pulls in dirty air, removes the particles using Praan’s unique filterless technology, collects them in a tray, and releases cleaner air back out.
Today, Angad Daryani’s startup has developed one of the most advanced air purification technologies globally. It utilizes a special blend of electrical charge dispersion and airflow optimization methods.
This system charges particles and generates electric fields to guide them into a collection chamber. Angad’s expertise in electrical engineering, product design, IoT, process engineering, and manufacturing all contributed to the creation of this innovative line of air purifiers.
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