Hrishi is the Co-founder and CTO of Greywing, a company that automates crew changes and vessel operations. 

Most recently, Greywing raised US$2.5M from Y Combinator, the founders of Flexport, Instacart, Motion Ventures, and other strategic maritime investors. 

Prior to Greywing, Hrishi spent time in academic publishing about randomness in electric circuits, improving X-Ray crystallography, and sensory substitution.

👋🏼 How would you explain your job to someone outside tech?

My job, on my best days, is to learn from the people in shipping and to combine it with my technical expertise to figure out what can exist today that would help them. I then build and ship it as a reliable product as it rolls down the expressway. 

🧐 What's something about you or your job that would surprise us?

I knew nothing about maritime before Greywing. It has been a whirlwind of new information as we integrate with each new layer of shipping, from marine travel to port agents to fuel calculations. 

It keeps me on my toes and reminds me that I don't know what I don't know, but I'm also fortunate to work with the most intelligent people in these areas that I can rely on.

🏆 What has been the biggest highlight of your career so far?

During the pandemic, we heard from customers that thousands of seafarers were trapped on vessels due to changing restrictions and from crew managers who weren't sure how to find a path through.

I spent three all-nighters in a row putting together a dynamic routing system with restrictions, visas, and flights that Nick (my Co-Founder and Greywing's CEO) would sell and onboard in the morning as I built it.

Two weeks in, we had five thousand ships on the software performing different operations as we helped organize crew change exercises and evacuate wounded seafarers. Our tech positively impacted real lives in real time — that was an incredible moment to be a part of.

I had my share of losses during the pandemic, but being able to help in my way helps me remember that time well. Two guys with Macbooks is how Nick put it — and that's how I remember it.

🔍 What's a startup trend or space you're watching this year?‍

I see a lot of interest in Large Language Models for generating things. But while we weren't looking, Natural Language Processing has just jumped a few light years in the span of a few months. LLMs (and GPT) are going to truly transform the way we communicate with each other. Chances are the language we use - online, offline, and in our products - will change very quickly.

💼 What advice would you give someone starting out in your industry? 

Don't let knowledge be a barrier to entry. Fundamental industries in the world, especially when they're over a hundred years old, have a lot of accumulated knowledge. In my experience with shipping, these industries are full of good people that are happy to help and teach, and you might find that you have a part to play in making things better.

The second is not to let the banal be the enemy of the exciting — which is my way of saying don't let shine drive your career. Most major innovations today were perceived as boring until the people behind them proved their worth.

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🗣 What's one thing you can keep talking about for hours? 

Every friend of mine has been pulled into a discussion on the nature of consciousness and if we're getting any closer to understanding the mechanics of the brain. The success of Large Language Models and how intelligent they sound lend some credence to the idea that the brain is one circuit repeated endlessly, and we're just smarter autocorrects that learned the language well, but I'll stop myself. 

Computational neuroscience is today where computing was in 1837. I'm excited for what comes next.

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🎥 What's your favorite movie/TV show? 

I've loved The Expanse and the adaptation of Foundation that recently came out. I'm a sucker for good world-building, but I also shows that make you happy to be human, like Ted Lasso.

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🍨 What's your go-to ice cream flavor?‍

I hear collective sighs from the people in my life as I say Vanilla. 

It's pretty bad because I find myself picking the closest flavor to Vanilla when I go to a place with no boring flavors.

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