Ecommerce founder reveals how her startup raised millions and won international acclaim

Adhithi Aji and her startup have been riding a wave of positive momentum for the last decade. 

Aji, 38, moved from Bangalore, India, to Pittsburgh in 2014 to study engineering and technology management at Carnegie Mellon University. Two years later, she founded Adrich, an AI-powered ecommerce platform — which has since become an award-winning platform that’s raised several rounds totaling more than $3.5 million, according to PitchBook. 

By placing Adrich’s patented smart label sensor on consumer goods, companies can gather data on how much product is being used in real-time and automate the reordering process. 

The startup’s platform is used by several Fortune 500 Consumer Packaged Goods companies and won an international award in 2024 for its efforts. 

Aji traveled back to her hometown, Bangalore, in December for the TiE Women Global competition, an international competition that celebrates women-led startups from all over the world, where Adrich won first place against 42 other ventures. 

“I was representing Pittsburgh, which gave me all the support for building the startup,” Aji told Technical.ly, “but I went back to my roots.” It was a “full-circle moment” in her life, she said. 

Aji’s success comes from her years of hard work and dedication to her customers, but also her adventurous spirit, she said. In her free time, Aji likes to bungee jump, scuba dive and go river rafting. For Adrich, that attitude could bring it international. The startup is looking to expand, Aji said, with interest coming from India and Europe. 

In this edition of Technical.ly’s How I Got Here series, Aji discusses her journey from tech-obsessed kid to successful entrepreneur, and shares her advice for taking those first steps as a startup founder. 

This Q&A has been edited for length and clarity. 

How did your tech journey begin? 

I started at a very young age. I remember I was probably just 10 years old when I got introduced to computer science, coding, computers in general, and I just fell in love with that. I knew I had developed a passion for technology, so I pursued my degree in electrical engineering, and kept that passion going. 

Then, I worked in research and development for Robert Bosch, where I got to work on very interesting projects, like the cruise control systems you see in cars today. That’s where I saw the power of sensors. 

As you grow, your passion changes. For me, my passion for technology didn’t change, but my interest in business caught up. I didn’t want to just keep coding and be behind computers. I love talking to people, so I decided to be on the business forefront of technology. 

I got my MBA in supply chains, and then came to the US to study at Carnegie Mellon, where I did my master’s in management. That’s how I made the switch from being a very technical person to someone asking, how can I use technology to change the world and create a business that makes an impact? 

Has being an immigrant impacted your tech journey? 

I often joke that with a startup, you have to figure out a lot of things. What’s the product market fit? What is the technology? How do you build it? With immigration, you have to figure out, how do you run a startup, given the situation?

There’s a way, if you want to do it, and I think I managed to learn what is needed. At the end of the day, if you really want to do startups, you can do it. 

The opportunities unfolded for me with the evolution of me coming to the US. The startup ecosystem in Pittsburgh really helped, especially the entrepreneurship center at Carnegie Mellon, plus Innovation Works. In the early days when you don’t know if your dream can even materialize, having that guidance, support and encouragement was really very instrumental in making it happen.

What is an average day for you as a CEO? 

The job gets interesting by the hour. The role of a CEO evolves from day one of a startup to when you’re a couple of years into it. On day one, you’re cleaning the lab, making sure customers are happy and showing that you have an office, even if it is just a bay in a coworking space. You’re making ends meet and making sure the startup still exists. 

The challenges change as you mature, and the learning never stops. It’s always an adventure with a new set of challenges. 

My day-to-day starts with, how can I first solve my customers’ problems? “Customer first” is something that Adrich has incorporated into its culture. That comes from my experience in corporate America, where I worked at all these organizations, like Siemens and Robert Bosch, which were “customer first.” Also, my parents ran family businesses, and they were always like, “customer is king.” 

The next challenge is making sure the team is happy. Startups are different, and they need to be motivated. I call it not a job, but a journey because it takes a village to make this happen. 

What challenges have you faced as a founder and how did you overcome them?

When you’re creating something disruptive, especially changing people’s behavior, things that they’ve done for the last 30 years, it can be hard getting the first customer and investor. For example, we work in consumer products, and we work with some very big customers, you know, like Unilever, Amazon and Clorox. In those scenarios, you’re a much smaller company than them, and so to change the way that they’ve done business for the last 30 years is a hard sell. 

More recently, the challenge is maintaining work-life balance as an entrepreneur. Burnout is real. I would like to tell all the entrepreneurs out there that you think you can just keep going on, but at some point it catches up. I did go through a health scare, and keeping the company going through COVID with my health scare that came just about then was challenging. Coming out of it, there’s a story about resilience there.

What advice would you give other female entrepreneurs in tech who want to find similar success?

Women in tech is something very close to my heart. I do want to support them in every way I can, so Adrich gives internships to women in STEM and tech to encourage female entrepreneurs. 

Take baby steps. It might look overwhelming, but you’ll figure it out. If you don’t start, you’ll never be able to do it. 

Today, there are a lot of avenues to start, and it can even be as simple as taking a smartphone and changing something in it or learning more about a piece of technology you like, and then the path unfolds. It’s about taking that first step, however small it is. 

Also, keep an eye out for support programs that can help. Practical experience is important. Startups are a great way to get that. Lots of startups have these small projects that they’d love to get help with, but they also serve as a great learning opportunity. You can only do so much reading, but when you get a practical feel for it, it’s a different story.

This story, and all of Technical.ly's immigration reporting, is made possible by the WES Mariam Assefa Fund.

The WES Mariam Assefa Fund supports catalytic efforts to create more inclusive economies for immigrants and refugees in the US and Canada. It works closely with organizations and leaders focused on ensuring more equitable access to opportunity and wealth.