MAM
MaxIQ plugs in AI ace Sastry Malladi as CTO to power up its next big leap
MUMBAI: MaxIQ didn’t just hire a CTO; it summoned a Silicon Valley warlock. With three decades of engineering sorcery under his belt, Sastry Malladi has joined the AI startup as chief technology officer—and he’s not here to play nice with traditional revenue models. Backed by Dell Technologies Capital and Intel Capital, MaxIQ just added a whole lot of firepower to its AI engine.
The appointment of Malladi comes at a time when MaxIQ is gearing up for hypergrowth. He will lead the company’s product and engineering teams as they expand their Revenue AI platform—a brainy beast designed to help B2B SaaS teams turn messy sales pipelines into clean, predictable growth machines.
Malladi is no stranger to the startup trenches. He co-founded FogHorn Systems (later snapped up by Johnson Controls), built large-scale platforms at eBay and Oracle, and holds the kind of AI chops that make recruiters weep with envy. Now, he’s bringing that playbook to MaxIQ.
“I’m thrilled to join the leadership team at MaxIQ during this pivotal growth phase. Today’s revenue teams are operating in silos—disconnected tools for sales and success lead to inaccurate forecasts, missed handoffs, and lost opportunities. With Revenue AI, we have the chance to change the game. I’m excited to build the platform that brings it all together,” said Malladi.
At MaxIQ, he’ll lead the development of its Agentic AI capabilities. That includes forecasting, onboarding, product adoption, and revenue expansion—all in one unified dashboard that’s less spreadsheet, more smart rocket.
His arrival follows MaxIQ’s recent $7.8 million seed round, led by Dell Technologies Capital and supported by Intel Capital. With fresh funding and a battle-tested CTO in place, the company is ready to turbocharge its R&D roadmap and hire globally.
CEO Matt Hickey didn’t hold back on the praise. “Sastry’s track record of technical excellence and entrepreneurial success speaks for itself. He’s the right leader to help us scale the next-generation platform that today’s GTM teams have been waiting for.”
As B2B SaaS companies scramble to align sales, customer success, and RevOps, MaxIQ is rolling out the AI red carpet. From deal qualification to onboarding and renewals, it’s offering a one-stop revenue command centre—and with Malladi now at the helm, the platform is only getting sharper.
Brands
SPNI promotes Tavishi Budhiraja to vice president for HR and DEI
Longtime HR leader steps up to drive revenue teams and inclusion agenda
GURUGRAM: Sony Pictures Networks India has elevated Tavishi Budhiraja to vice president, HR business partner for revenue functions and diversity and inclusion, strengthening its people leadership across key business verticals.
In her expanded role, Budhiraja will oversee HR strategy for revenue-facing teams including ad sales across linear and digital, distribution and international business, while continuing to lead the company’s diversity and inclusion initiatives.
Budhiraja has been with the network for over 15 years, rising through the ranks from HR business partner for ad sales to assistant vice president, where she also took on the diversity and inclusion mandate. Her elevation reflects both continuity and a sharper focus on aligning people strategy with business growth.
Prior to joining SPNI, she worked with Reliance Communications as deputy manager, gaining early experience in human resources.
Announcing the move, Budhiraja said she looks forward to deepening impact and strengthening people strategies across teams, while continuing to grow within the organisation.
The promotion comes as media companies increasingly invest in talent and workplace culture to support evolving revenue models and digital expansion, making HR leadership a critical lever for long-term growth.
