Aarushi is the Senior Research Manager at Digital Futures Lab. With expertise in AI ethics, gender relations, and digital governance, she spearheads key projects at DFL, bridging both theoretical and applied research. Her recent work delves into gender biases in large language models designed for Indian languages, with a focus on critical social sectors such as healthcare and agriculture. As part of the Gates Foundation’s Global Grand Challenges 2023, she has also worked with AI developers across South Asia and Africa, offering advisory support on responsible AI practices spanning model evaluation, user testing, and deployment processes. She was also part of the team working on the Global Index on Responsible AI, supervising data collection efforts for India.
Additionally, Aarushi has also led DFL’s research initiatives on digital public infrastructure, developing a conceptual framework to assess DPI’s relevance and suitability across different sectors. She has also contributed policy briefs to the T20 Brazil and India – G20 Presidencies’ official research groups — offering critical insights into the conceptual definitions of DPI and addressing key challenges in implementing interoperability.
Prior to DFL, Aarushi was leading the Social Protection Initiative at Dvara Research, conducting empirical research on digital cash transfers, especially in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic.
She holds a Master’s degree in Public Policy from the National Law School University of India (NLSIU) and a BA (Hons) degree in Economics from Christ University, Bangalore.
Prior to her foray into the public policy space, she spent three years at Ernst & Young as a Consultant for their Fraud Investigation & Dispute Services team.