Pravar brings a blend of venture capital, early-stage startup operator, and research translation experience to the table. Currently, he supports venture building, deal sourcing, investment due diligence as well as portfolio development at a Singapore government backed venture capital firm.
Previously, Pravar was employee #2 building a 0-to-1 deep-tech startup with a combinational product for launch as a regulated medical device in respiratory care. It achieved significant commercial, regulatory, clinical, and product development milestones.
Pravar honed his research translation expertise at the intersection of Embedded Systems and Human-Computer Interaction. His works have garnered viral media coverage, were showcased to VIPs such as the Deputy Prime Minister of Singapore, and featured at prestigious venues like the Cooper Hewitt Smithsonian Design Museum in New York.
In the early 2010s, Pravar ran a student startup focused on designing and developing web applications. Working alongside Varun Mayya, Abhinav Chhikara, and Kartik Luke, this entrepreneurial stint also marked his first foray into cryptocurrency.
Pravar majored in Biomedical Engineering, earning a Master of Engineering from the National University of Singapore and a Bachelor of Technology from Manipal Institute of Technology, India. He has been the recipient of a number of awards recognizing excellence in academics and service.
Outside of work, Pravar is an aspiring chef and an ardent believer in karma.
Awards
2023, Singapore Biodesign-Fogarty Innovation BOLT Initiative Fellowship
2021, Best VR Game – Taipei Game Show Indie Game Awards (The Lost Foxfire)
2020, SG$ 150,000 Digisolution Accelerator – P&G and A* Star (Neuroempathy)
2020, SG$ 200,000 Technology Acceleration Programme – NUS ILO (iPAPR)
2019, SG$ 50,000 Seed Capital – Lotus-NUS Healthcare Innovation Fund (Flavour Augmenting Utensils)
2019, SG$ 12,000 Development Fund – SIGCHI (Blended Reality Summer School)
2017, SG$ 180,000 Research Translation Grant – SG Enable, Enabling Lives Initiative (EnPower)
2017, Silver Award – EMedIC Global (Soft Robotic Exosock for Prevention of Deep Vein Thrombosis)
2017, Young Creators Award – IES Prestigious Engineering Achievement Awards (Florisensors)
2017, ACM SIGCHI Student Scholarship – 50th Celebration of the A. M. Turing Awards
2015, Academic Excellence (Silver), Biomedical Engr. – Manipal Institute of Technology (2011-15)
2014, Academic Excellence (Gold), Biomedical Engr. – Manipal Institute of Technology (AY 2013-14)
2014, Invitation – Inaugural MITx Global Entrepreneurship Bootcamp (declined)
2013, Academic Excellence (Bronze), Biomedical Engr. – Manipal Institute of Technology (AY 2012-13)
2012, Participant – Guinness World Records, World’s largest coding marathon (18 Hours), Windows 8
Publications
Peer-Reviewed Papers
EnPower: Haptic Interfaces for Deafblind Individuals to Interact, Communicate, and Entertain. FTC 2020 – Virtual.
Exploring the Use of Olfactory Stimuli Towards Reducing Visually Induced Motion Sickness in Virtual Reality. SUI 2020 – Virtual. [YouTube]
The Effect of Patient Education and Telemedicine Reminders on Adherence to Eyedrops for Glaucoma. Ophthalmology Glaucoma 2020.
Ultra-portable low-cost improvised powered air-purifying respirator: feasibility study. The British Journal of Anaesthesia 2020 (Impact Factor: 9.16).
Season Traveller: Multisensory Narration for Enhancing the Virtual Reality Experience. CHI 2018 – Montréal, Canada (Acceptance Rate: 25.7%). [YouTube]
Ambiotherm: Enhancing Sense of Presence in Virtual Reality by Simulating Real-World Environmental Conditions. CHI 2017 – Denver, USA (Acceptance Rate: 25%).
Virtual Lemonade: Let’s Teleport Your Lemonade! TEI 2017 – Yokohama, Japan (Acceptance Rate: 27%).
Peer-Reviewed Abstracts / Posters / Invited Presentations
A Demonstration of Season Traveller: Multisensory Narration for Enhancing the Virtual Reality Experience. CHI EA 2018 – Montréal, Canada (Acceptance Rate: 25.7%).
Enriching the Lives of Deafblind Individuals Through Sensory Substitution (Interfaces to Interact, Communicate, and Entertain). Amplify @ CHI 2017 – Denver, USA.
AmbioTherm: Simulating Ambient Temperatures and Wind Conditions in VR Environments. UIST 2016 – Tokyo, Japan (Acceptance Rate: 21%).
Graphite-based resistive stretch sensor for feedback control of soft actuators. ICBME 2016 – Singapore.
Dissertation / Thesis
Design, Characterization and Implementation of a Graphite-based Stretchable Strain Sensor for Soft Robotic Applications. Master’s Dissertation 2017 – National University of Singapore, Singapore.
Continuous Health Monitoring & Remote Diagnostic System. Bachelor’s Thesis 2015 – Manipal Institute of Technology, India.
Exhibitions
First Responder Safety & Performance Symposium 2019 / “The Lost Foxfire” at Max Atria @ Singapore Expo / November 2019.
Designing Our Age-Friendly City / “Flipod” at The Urban Redevelopment Authority Center, Singapore / October 2019.
Tokyo Game Show – Sense of Wonder Night 2019 / “The Lost Foxfire” at Makuhari-Messe, Chiba – Japan / September 2019.
Cooper Hewitt, Smithsonian Design Museum, NYC / “Laba Speakers and Prototypes” in “The Senses: Design Beyond Vision” / commissioned by curator Ellen Lupton / April 2018.
CHI Expo 2018 / “A Demonstration of Season Traveller: Multisensory Narration for Enhancing the Virtual Reality Experience” at Palais des Congrès de Montréal, Canada / April 2018.
KMD Forum 2017 / “Virtual Lemonade: Let’s Teleport Your Lemonade!” at Keio University – Yokohama, Japan / November 2017.
22nd Joint Singapore-Malaysia Nursing Conference / “Flipod” at Furama Riverfront Hotel, Singapore / October 2017.
InnovFest unBound 2017 / “Ambiotherm” at Marina Bay Sands Convention Centre, Singapore / May 2017.
InnovFest unBound 2017 / “Tactile communication tools for the deafblind” at Marina Bay Sands Convention Centre, Singapore / May 2017.
TEI 2017 / “Virtual Lemonade: Let’s Teleport Your Lemonade!” at Keio University – Yokohama, Japan / March 2017.
UIST 2016 / “AmbioTherm: Simulating Ambient Temperatures and Wind Conditions in VR Environments” at Hitotsubashi Hall, National Center of Sciences Building – Tokyo, Japan / October 2016.
Patents
Devices for alignment of a subject positioned on a support. Worldwide Application WO2023033746A2.
An air-purifying respiration assembly. Worldwide Application WO2021216002A1.
Electrode design for the delivery of electrical stimuli. Worldwide Application WO2021101441A1.
Multi-sensory stimulation system and assembly. Worldwide Application WO2021040616A1.
Press
2020 EBS Docuprime TV (South Korea), “The Science of Cooking Episode 4 – Flavor”
2020 CNA – Why It Matters 4, “Ep 2: How To Survive A Pandemic: Living Virtually”
2020 NHK World Premium TV (Japan), Tokoro-san, It’s an Incident!
2019 World Economic Forum, “This VR game can create realistic touch, heat and smell”
2019 NUS News, “NUS team creates interactive, multisensory VR game”
2019 Yahoo Japan, “［TGS 2019］“熱”と“ニオイ”で本物のキツネを見つけ出せ！VRゲーム「迷い狐火」のプレイレポート”
2018 Galileo TV (Germany), “Neues Wunderbesteck verspricht Salzgeschmack auf Knopfdruck”
2017 Galileo TV (Germany), “Limonade per App: Mit diesem geraet kannst du geschmack verschicken”
2017 The Straits Times, “Multi-agency effort to boost use of artificial intelligence”
2017 Today, “S$150m kitty to use AI to tackle variety of issues”
2017 Reuters, “Singapore researchers turn water into ‘virtual lemonade’ but is it tart enough?”
2017 Today, “NUS researchers invent way to ‘teleport’ drinks over the Internet”
2017 New Scientist, “Virtual lemonade sends colour and taste to a glass of water”
2017 BBC, “Sipping on virtual lemonade, has the future arrived?”
2017 The Straits Times, “Singapore researchers turn water into ‘lemonade'”
2017 Science Magazine, “Are we about to start sharing taste through the internet?”
2017 Engadget, “You can share the taste of lemonade through the internet”
2017 Channel NewsAsia, “Singapore researchers turn water into ‘virtual lemonade'”
2017 ACM TechNews, “Virtual Lemonade Sends Color and Taste to a Glass of Water”
2017 Futurism, “Now, You Can Send Lemonade Over the Internet”
2017 CNET, “Singapore scientists teleport lemonade over the internet”
2017 New Scientist, “Virtual reality weather add-ons let you feel the sun and wind”
2017 Futurism, “Now You Can Feel Wind and Temperature While in Virtual Reality”
2016 Futurism, “Now You Can Taste And Chew In Virtual Reality”
2016 New Scientist, “Face electrodes let you taste and chew in virtual reality”
Service
2017, ACM SIGCHI Student Representative – 50th Celebration of the A. M. Turing Awards
2018 & 2017, ACM Multimedia Program Committee
Reviewer
ACM MM 2017
ACM MVAR 2016
IEEE WHC 2017
Demos (presented to)
Philips
Hitachi
Ferrero
Facebook
Fraser and Neave
French Chamber of Commerce
Thomson Reuters
CNET
Today
Mr. Teo Chee Hean – Deputy Prime Minister (Singapore)
Dr. Yaacob Ibrahim – Minister for Communications and Information (Singapore)
Mr. Taizo Son – GungHo Gaming
Prof. Tan Chorh Chuan – President (National University of Singapore)
2014, MIT Manipal Curriculum Conclave – Student Representative for Biomedical Engineering
2012, Category Head – Graphics & Web Design for Techtatva, MIT Manipal’s National Level Tech Fest
2011 – 2013, Creative Head and Executive Board Member – Biomedical Engineering Society of India (BMESI), Manipal Chapter