SHRIYA SEKHSARIA
Author · Founder · Researcher
"I like to think of life as a series of side quests."
Who are you?
Hi! I'm Shriya. I grew up in India, studied in the US, and now live in Europe. I love making things like companies and movies, while also chasing adventures like Samurai training and Parisian sunsets.
What do you do?
I care about helping humans achieve more, without sacrificing who they are. More specifically, I build things to help us improve our capacity (e.g. investing in companies, building AI tools) while also retaining our humanity (e.g. writing romance novels, building apps to make us stay in love). I especially love science experiments, so most of my companies, stories and games often come from my original research.
What do you actually care about?
On a day-to-day basis, I love solving business problems. On an existential scale, I care about love, and our capacity for it - especially when so much technology seems stacked against it. I also care about liberty, like people getting to choose their own careers. On a personal note, I'm obsessed with sports, cinema, and side quests, most of which you can read about in my diary :)
Currently
Journey
South Asia's First Clothing Lines for Female Athletes
My brothers and I played football daily, but I never had girls' jerseys — so I designed some of South Asia's first, winning my first national award in the process.
Bestselling Novel, National Writing Award
My first novel, ONE, was published after almost 100 rejections and sold out its first edition in 45 minutes; my autobiographical essay won a national award.
Lumhaa: My First Startup
When my psychology thesis showed that even 5 minutes with "memory jars" made people happier, I built Lumhaa to fight the loneliness I saw around me in college. It's since scaled to 194 countries.
Princeton → Goldman Sachs
I graduated with highest honors and 4 degrees, then spent my days trading FX and commodities on the Goldman Sachs Sales & Trading floor while still building Lumhaa on the side.
Startup Exit → Moving back to India
After exiting BodhiMetrics (a cognitive-testing company I co-founded and ran) at 23 for a $20M valuation, I moved back to India and spent years scaling Lumhaa amid its entrepreneurial boom.
AI Research in Paris + Building the field of Relational Computing
I'm building the field of Relational Computing — how human relationships and technology affect each other — while doing AI research on the global food chain at the Institut d'études avancées de Paris (Paris IAS) :)
Cambridge
Incoming to the University of Cambridge as a Cambridge Trust International Scholar, researching Human-Inspired AI. Also building CapRac — a race to protect the human capacities AI quietly erodes.
Ventures
BodhiMetrics (exited in 2020)
Cognitive testing platform for sports and performance optimization. Co-founded and served as CEO. Exited at $20M valuation. Worked with athletes and organizations to enhance decision-making through personality and cognitive assessments.
Also Building
A booking platform for Indian service providers with WhatsApp integration, admin panels, and payment processing. Helping neighborhood professionals get online and making local services more accessible across India
Personality-based trading coaching platform. Helps traders understand their relationship with risk and become better investors through psychological insights and personalized strategies.
Literary publishing imprint celebrating South Asian narratives. Published "With Stars Louder Than Us" — a quotella that became a bestseller across multiple Amazon categories. Bringing authentic desi stories to life through poetry, rom-coms, and more.
A fun little daily word-guessing game — the word changes letter by letter, and you guess it as it goes. Part of The Open Question universe.
Other Business Activity
My Dad introduced me to trading when I was a child. After that, I interned all over Dalal Street (the Indian Wall Street) as a teenager, and then worked at Goldman Sachs on Wall Street (FX and Commodities Systematic Trading Strategies desks). Now, I trade an equity portfolio guided by four high growth Indian investment themes that I call WASE: Wellness, Access, Space, and Exploration
I love it when people bring me their business problems, especially when they can't figure out what's wrong with their business, or if their business is dying. I especially enjoy fixing strategy and narratives, and often also build pitches, new internal tools, and AI processes.
Get in touch →Writing & Media
The Ishq Series #1
with stars louder than us
A quotella (short book filled with quotes and memories) about love that feels like floating. Celebrating blissful love of 4 types: carefree joy, domestic warmth, playful chaos, and intimate devotion. A reminder of the love we all deserve — the kind that feels like breathing. Bestseller across multiple Amazon categories.
Get the book
Debut Novel
ONE
My debut novel exploring friendship and identity, published at age 15 after almost 100 rejections. The first edition sold out in 45 minutes and featured on local bestseller lists. A story about finding yourself and the people who help you do it.
Get the book
Bringing Back the Magic
The Dil Desi Rom-Com Series
Rom-coms with a desi tadka to light up your movie screens and book shelves. Stories of love, family, chaos, and the beautiful messiness of South Asian romance. Currently in development.
View Journalism & Media
Princeton features, and The Open Question podcast
+
View Journalism & Media
Princeton features, and The Open Question podcast
The Olympic Series
The Daily Princetonian
Details the lives of all 101 Princetonians who participated in the Olympic Games since 1896. Includes live coverage of 2016 Olympic events and interviews with all living Tiger Olympians about their favorite and least favorite memories.
Black History Month Series
The Daily Princetonian
A decade-by-decade feature series tracing the lives of African American students at Princeton from the 1800s to 2015. Featured interviews of 100+ alumni. Awarded by the New Jersey Press Foundation for outstanding journalism.
🏆 New Jersey Press Foundation Award
Women's History Month Series
The Daily Princetonian
Overview of the lives of women at Princeton University from the first female undergraduates in the 1960s to present day. Details women's admissions, residences, and roles in academics, athletics, and campus organizations.
University Community on Campus Suicides
The Daily Princetonian
Feature detailing all known suicides on Princeton University's campus along with reactions from key stakeholders on campus and beyond. Recognized for sensitive, important coverage.
Let's TOQ
Ishq & Insight
A podcast on The Open Question — conversations with scientists, technologists, and thinkers about where AI, research, and society are headed.
For my latest creative work, visit Ishq & Insight →
Research
Humanity × Capacity
Most of my research centers around humanity and capacity — especially love, loneliness, and what AI quietly costs us. My current focus is building the field of relational computing, which examines how human relationships and technology (especially AI) affect each other. Currently based at the Paris Institute for Advanced Study
Underneath most of this is relational computing, which examines how human relationships and technology affect each other — disappearing dialogues led to the creation of Snapchat, while people forming relationships with AI chatbots has dramatically changed their human relationships.
Memories, Wellbeing, and Loneliness
Award-winning Princeton psychology research on "Underappreciated benefits of reading own — and others' memories." Won the Edward Jones Memorial Prize. Research showed that even 5 minutes with memory jars significantly improved wellbeing and connection. Published in Social Cognition.
View More Research
AI intimacy, food sustainability, and early psychology studies
+
View More Research
AI intimacy, food sustainability, and early psychology studies
Language and Movie Experiences
Native languages inscribe higher degrees of empathy towards film characters in balanced bilinguals, irrespective of their native language and despite language of immersion.
Rhetoric and Negotiations
Admitting bias (Aristotelian concession rhetoric) increases persuasion in conflicts. Study showed admitting self-serving bias led to increased interest in negotiation amongst opponents across affiliation, cognitive dissonance, and self-serving biases.
Reducing Child Marriage in India
Examined new techniques to reduce child marriage through priming and information provision about dowry and reputation benefits. Research conducted with farmers in Chhattisgarh emphasizing fidelity of information provision models in the field.
Friend Breakups
Friend breakups are affected by demographic, cognitive, and social factors including age, individualism, race, gender, attachment styles, and self-efficacy. Similar to romantic breakups in social support but different in negative affect and coping mechanisms.
Cognitive Dissonance and College Choices
Behavioral study showing positive associations with college choice rise with commitment, stay high through experience, then decline before graduation. Highlighted flexibility of implicit associations in how drastically and quickly they can change.
Culture and Ownership
The endowment effect for items owned by mothers is the same as for self in Indian participants but less than self in American participants, highlighting effects of close relationships and cultural differences.
For my latest research, visit my research blog →
Sports
Archery Career
The shooting line will forever be one of my favorite places in the world. Including my college archery record below :)
- 🥇 Gold — Indoor Overall, Senior Year (2017-18)
- 🌎 Top 10 Team, Top 20 Individual — NOCC/Outdoor Worlds Qualifiers, Senior Year
- 🏆 3x All-East Honors (Indoor + Outdoor), 2016–2018
- 🥇 Gold — Eastern Seaboard Championship, Senior Year
- 🥇 3x Gold — Ivy Championship (Team), Sophomore–Senior
- 🥇 Gold — Columbia University Pink Arrow Project, Senior Year
View full archery record
Freshman Year (2014-15)
- 🥇 Gold — Indoor Nationals (Harrisonburg, VA)
- 🥈 Silver — Indoor Overall
Sophomore Year (2015-16)
- 🥇 Gold — Ivy Championship (Team)
- 🥇 Gold — Mid-Atlantic Star FITA (Perry Hall, MD)
- 🥉 Bronze — Indoor States (Monmouth Junction, NJ)
- 🥇 Gold — Indoor Nationals (Lancaster, PA)
- 🥈 Silver — Indoor Overall
- 🏆 All-East Honors (Indoor + Outdoor)
Junior Year (2016-17)
- 🥇 Gold — Ivy Championship (Team)
- 🥇 Gold — Indoor Nationals (Harrisonburg, VA)
- 🥇 Gold — Outdoor Regionals (Williamsport, PA)
- 🥈 Silver — Indoor Overall
- 🏆 All-East Honors (Indoor + Outdoor)
- 🌍 Top 30 — NOCC/Outdoor Worlds Qualifiers (Chula Vista, CA)
Senior Year (2017-18)
- 🥇 Gold — Ivy Championship (Monmouth Junction, NJ)
- 🥇 Gold — Eastern Seaboard Championship (Mays Landing, NJ)
- 🥇 Gold — Indoor States (Monmouth Junction, NJ)
- 🥇 Gold — Columbia University Pink Arrow Project
- 🥇 Gold — Indoor Nationals (Lancaster, PA)
- 🥇 Gold — Outdoor Regionals (Williamsport, PA)
- 🥇 Gold — Indoor Overall
- 🏆 All-East Honors (Indoor + Outdoor)
- 🌎 Top 10 Team, Top 20 Individual — NOCC/Outdoor Worlds Quals (Newberry, FL)
Global Archery Programs
When I took over Princeton's archery team, we didn't even have a place to practice or store equipment on campus. After proposals, paperwork, and help from USA Archery and the US Olympic Committee, we established a full program with our own field — lovingly called "Sekhsaria Fields." Since then, helped other Ivies and schools in the tristate area establish their own archery programs.
Other Athletic Adventures
A grab bag of other physical pursuits I couldn't resist trying, wherever in the world I happened to be. • Boxing (USA, India, France) • Fencing (PUC Paris) • Diving (Bali) • Surfing (Pondicherry) • Hoplite Training (Athens) • Samurai Training (Tokyo) • Rifle & Pistol Shooting (Coimbatore)
Fun fact: I created one of India's first online fan clubs for Women's Cricket in 2011 — and since there was no media coverage of actual games, I used to write a fictional Women's Premier League myself. I couldn't believe it when the real league actually launched, post-COVID. See the original 2011 posts →
Other Initiatives
I Spread Love: Adopting Villages
Organization that sold Valentine's items in school (song dedications, roses, stickers) to fund computer labs for nearby villages. When students showed love for people around them, they "spread the love" to underserved communities
Language Conservation
Started a national language conservation drive after winning the national linguistics championship and learning about the language "Bo" becoming extinct. Addressed thousands of students to save Dravidian languages from extinction
The Elixir Newspaper
Started a newspaper for my boarding school when we grew from 100 to 300+ students and felt community cracks. That's why I started The Elixir, a newspaper for our high school where we could express ourselves and stay up-to-date with what was going on in our school
Bets I'm Placing
Vision & Hypotheses
Where I think the world is going — running theses I've held since the year noted, updated as I learn more.
#1: Relational Wellness
The 1960s-2000s belonged to physical wellness. The 2000s-2020s belong to mental wellness. The next few decades will belong to relational wellness (our relationships with ourselves + other people).
#2: The Quantum Revolution
Classical compute is running into real limits. I think quantum-native architectures are what unlock the next real jump in AI capability, not just bigger models on the same substrate.
#3: AI Aids
AI has tremendous potential to improve human lives. Two areas I'm actively exploring are AI coaches (especially for trading) and AI-humanoids for domestic help.
#4: Alternative Payments
People should be able to pay with whatever they have: for example, with their time instead of money. I think we'll have 3+ way marketplaces allowing users to do that.
#5: Women's Sports
I've been an athlete for over a decade. If I could invest in one thing that's going to 10x, it would be this.
#6: The India Story
India is the place to be. I've spent 4+ years traveling through the country and building different businesses here. I also actively invest in the markets. The talent is unreal!
Let's Talk
For narrative consulting, business fixes, media inquiries, or just to say hi.