Student Spotlight: From Student to Start-up
Neha Suresh Kumar (MSSM '24) has paired her previous experience and education to create a start-up that is ready to change the speed of API testing with AI.
By Hannah Brelsford
Between classes, assignments, and her start-up, Flame, Neha Suresh Kumar strikes the balance of both being a student and a professional. Currently, she is pursuing her Master of Science in Software Management (MSSM) after 7 years within the engineering industry.
After years of professional experience, Neha sought additional education to pivot into a management-focused role, leading her to the Integrated Innovation Institute (iii). The MSSM program was the perfect fit.
The Fast Facts: A Summary of Neha’s Time in the MSSM Program
In the Classroom 📚
- Multiple industry perspectives
- A confident speaker and decision-maker
Involvement ☕
- Leading as a Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Belonging (DEIB) Fellow
- Improving digital accessibility for students
- Hosts biweekly Coffee Chats centered around DEIB and creating a closer community in Silicon Valley
Innovation 🔥
- Using concepts learned in class to co-found start-up, Flame
What’s Next 🎓
- Completing the MSSM degree
- Raising VC funding for Flame and applying to accelerators
Go Deeper
In the Classroom
In the MSSM program, Neha enjoys being part of the tight community and takes advantage of all the opportunities the space provides. One of her favorite things about the program is the management skills she learns in her classes.“These skills will be very valuable to my future,” says Neha. “They have transformed me into a confident speaker and decision-maker.”
Neha brought a technical background to the MSSM program, which made her appreciate approaching problems from a new perspective by learning alongside her classmates on interdisciplinary teams.
Involvement
During her time at the Silicon Valley campus, Neha extends her reach in the community beyond being a student, as the Institute’s Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Belonging Fellow, a highlight of her time at the iii.
As the MSSM DEIB Fellow, she works closely with Nitya Mathur (the Master of Integrated Innovation for Products and Services (MIIPS) DEIB Fellow in Pittsburgh) and Leia Delabahan (Senior Academic and Student Services Advisor for MSSM). Together, the fellows host coffee chats on their respective campuses where they work with their peers to create a better community.
Neha acknowledges the importance of DEIB work within industry saying, “If we are mindful about DEI it makes things better for everybody and every organization.”
One of Neha’s favorite projects as a DEIB Fellow is the accessibility project she worked on alongside Nitya. The project focused on how classes could be made more accessible for students and involved the creation of a “step-by-step routine for faculty to improve the digital accessibility of all the resources they put out to students.”
Innovation
Outside of the classroom, Neha’s focus has been on her start-up, Flame, a multi-modal Application Programming Interface (API) testing application that is powered by artificial intelligence. Flame has made API testing simple, using just one click. The application has saved engineers hours of work already and will continue to boost productivity in the future.
Neha got the idea for Flame when she and her co-founder were working on customer discovery. During the discovery process, they used the different challenges they faced, and identified API testing as a key stressor.
“Throughout the production of Flame, the CMU community has been really helpful.”
“We’ve gotten to talk to alumni and make connections with many people around the iii community to make the start-up come to life!”
What’s Next
Looking forward, Neha is excited for the future of her start-up.
“It’s been quite a ride and it’s still going on. We are still learning how to raise funds and get it up and going properly.”
The next step is to generate revenue and get it off the ground all while finishing her MSSM degree.
“We are getting our early customers. After we meet our fundraising goal, we hope to join a prominent accelerator and start generating revenue.”