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Mayank Jani: Leading with Heart and Technology to Shape Experiences

When industries face complex challenges, Mayank Jani thrives on turning them into opportunities. As Director of Nanta Tech Limited, he operates at the convergence of AI, robotics, and audio-visual technology, leading solutions that redefine operational efficiency and user experience. Under his leadership, Nanta Tech has emerged as a premier hub for enterprise-grade B2B innovation, with service robots deployed across more than 15 major Indian airports and hospitals, delivering reliable, homegrown technology while advancing the Make in India vision.

Mayank brings a rare blend of strategic foresight and executional depth, shaped by leadership and sales roles at global technology leaders including TE Connectivity, Kramer Electronics, CommScope, and MNT Info Vision. These experiences exposed him to enterprise-scale challenges worldwide, insights he now applies to building India’s indigenous service robotics ecosystem. He has driven the evolution of advanced AV solutions while expanding Nanta Tech into robotics and networking, ensuring scalability and long-term impact.

At the core of his leadership is a people-first philosophy. By blending AI-driven automation with human-centric design, Mayank ensures technology builds trust, enhances experiences, and serves communities not just businesses.

He shares more details with TradeFlock.

• How has your career shaped your leadership and problem-solving approach?

My journey with Nanta began on the ground, deploying our earliest service robots in busy airports and hospital lobbies. Watching people interact with these machines, some curious, some cautious, taught me that leadership in service robotics is about orchestrating trust. It isn’t only about technical problem-solving; it’s about creating seamless, reassuring experiences in unpredictable public environments. This insight shaped my empathy-first approach, where designing for human emotional response is as important as engineering reliability.
Two lessons from those early deployments continue to guide me. First, fluency matters more than features. Our initial concierge robot could recall entire facility maps flawlessly, yet its interactions felt stiff. In public spaces, a patient pause, a simple gesture, or a natural response often outweighs a long list of capabilities, driving stronger adoption.
Second, the environment is the first designer. A perfect lab demo struggled in a crowded mall, where lighting, noise, and foot traffic changed everything. Today, I ensure teams are immersed in real settings early, so solutions work for people, not just machines.

• How do you stay focused during high-stakes decisions?

For Nanta, high-stakes decisions often revolve around public safety and brand trust, so my approach is guided by three principles. First is the public trust filter: every decision must honour our promise to assist, never intrude, ensuring robots feel helpful, non-intimidating, and respectful of privacy. Second is live environment simulation. We test concepts in full-scale airport and hospital mock-ups with real people, because observing a child or elderly person interact with a prototype reveals insights no lab can.

Third is the long-term ambassador lens, asking whether the robot will be welcomed by communities years from now, not just succeed in the short term.

• How will technology reshape leadership, and what should leaders do?

AI and robotics will make service leaders curators of public experience. Leaders must ensure technology enhances care without replacing human connection, guiding robots to complement staff while building community trust. I prepare by shadowing interactions weekly and leading ethics reviews focused on social impact, including algorithmic bias in robot engagement.

• How do you foster innovation at the crossroads of AI, robotics, and AV?

At Nanta, we drive innovation through ambient intelligence, bringing together robotics, AI, and computer vision experts in simulated public spaces. Our robots anticipate needs, recognise returning guests, and assist lost travellers. The latest concierge robot reads body language, offers help in preferred languages, and reduces wayfinding time by 60%, creating seamless, context-aware experiences.

• Which skills and mindset matter most to you?

I champion a “sociotechnical symphony” mindset, blending advanced technology with human-centred social science. Leaders need both technical precision and emotional intelligence, balancing data-driven insights with user experience stories. 
My mantra, “Design for the glance, build for the years,” reflects this approach, fostering instant connections, lasting trust, and meaningful engagement.

• What's your vision for Nanta Tech in the next 3-5 years?

We’re steering Nanta Tech toward ambitious horizons, expanding service robotics across Southeast Asia, developing AI companions for eldercare, and forging strategic partnerships with European technology leaders. 
Our vision is to position Nanta Tech as India’s answer to global robotics giants, proving that homegrown innovation can compete worldwide while staying rooted in Indian values of hospitality and human connection. We also aim to integrate robotics into smart city ecosystems, enhancing urban living without compromising the human touch.

• Quick Fire 40

•    Age: 38 
•    Location: Ahmedabad, Gujarat
•    Secret Sauce of Leadership: Listen like a host, decide like an architect, empower like a conductor
•    Favourite Book: The Design of Everyday Things by Don Norman
•    Hidden Talent: Shadow observation. I spend hours watching human-robot interactions incognito.
•    Biggest Inspiration: The unsung hospitality workers who create warmth and order in chaotic spaces
•    Morning Ritual: Reviewing overnight robot interaction logs with my coffee
•    Best Advice: A robot's success isn't measured by tasks completed but by smiles elicited.
•    What Keeps Me Up at Night: Ensuring our robots never make someone feel uncomfortable or excluded
•    Proudest Moment: Watching a young girl wave goodbye to our airport robot; she'd named it "Didi".