Sankar Dasiga

Fusing Tradition & Tech in Yoga's Evolution

Sankar Dasiga

Chief Technology Officer ,

Wellnesys

Yoga, traditionally considered a timeless sanctuary untouched by the digital wave, has undergone a transformative evolution with the advent of technology. Sankar Dasiga, the CTO of Wellnesys, is at the forefront of this intersection between ancient wisdom and modern innovation, reshaping the essence of yoga through visionary contributions.
Sankar’s Odyssey represents a groundbreaking fusion of ancient yogic traditions and the dynamic prowess of technology. His mission with YogiFi stands as a testament to this harmonious union, marking a pioneering stride in amplifying the core essence of yoga through innovative technological integration. YogiFi embodies a revolutionary approach, seamlessly integrating yoga with IoT, AI, and cloud technologies. This integration not only preserves the intrinsic values of yoga but also elevates the entire yoga experience, offering a seamless blend of tradition and innovation.
The Smart YogiFi Mat, positioned at the forefront of this transformative movement, reflects Sankar’s strong technical strengths and focus in the wellness domain. While retaining the tactile familiarity of a conventional yoga mat, YogiFi discreetly embeds many sensor points. These sensors, in collaboration with advanced AI models, capture and interpret the intricate nuances of yoga postures. Drawing from a wealth of data and programes curated with renowned yoga experts and research institutions, YogiFi provides practitioners with highly personalised guidance and feedback, elevating their experience of accomplisment of goals, wellness or therapeutical.
Sankar’s influence extends beyond technological innovation; his work serves as a bridge between tradition and modernity, fostering an inclusive and adaptable approach to yoga. Beyond revolutionising yoga practice, Wellnesys and Sankar reshape its societal perception, positioning it in harmony with our ever-evolving world. Through YogiFi, he champions a profound positive change, making yoga more accessible and redefining its significance in our dynamically shifting landscape. TradeFlock engaged with Sankar to delve into this relentless pursuit of his.

What's your role as CTO, and how does your tech background align with the company's mission for digital health solutions?

My focus centres on innovation and product engineering, particularly within a startup landscape like ours, shaping novel ideas into tangible products like YogiFi. My role at Wellnesys demands crisp research, innovation, and prototyping. My diverse corporate background in hardware, software, and academic engagement has equipped me with a comprehensive understanding of IoT and AI, the backbone of our work. With my ingrained interest in emerging tech trends and alertness to innovative ideas, I thrive on creating products that are relevant and aligned with current technologies and customer needs. In leading engineering teams, I foster an environment that empowers the younger talent to make use of the latest tools, environments and libraries that they are proficient in and strike the balance by adhering to engineering fundamentals, be it in the processing of analogue signals or thread synchronisation, etc., in the product implementation. In the fiercely competitive digital health domain, Wellnesys thrives by championing simplicity and originality. Our innovation process involves drawing from personal domain experiences, developing and analysing numerous PoCs and prototypes.

Thoughts on IoT's importance due to data security? Also, how do you tackle this threat?

Ensuring data security is a paramount concern in our product development. We take meticulous measures to protect data at every stage, spanning from design through testing and across hardware, communication, storage, processing, and access. Our defences against potential threats are fortified through routine internal and external reviews and audits.

How do you handle technical debt while still delivering new features?

When creating a new product category and overseeing the development of both hardware and software, the management of technical debt becomes increasingly crucial. In the initial phases, as we iterate through proofs of concept, the accumulation of unused components is inevitable. As the CTO, addressing this debt while making pivotal hardware and software decisions becomes of utmost importance. Experience has taught me the importance of managing multiple software versions and also the fact that optimal hardware design emerges after some iterations only. Unforeseen events, such as the recent pandemic-induced shortage of System on Modules (SoM), necessitated a swift transition to cloud computing for YogiFi. This shift demanded substantial modifications to both hardware and software, testing our team’s agility and proficiency in adopting IoT alternatives and efficient version management. Moreover, recognising the longer turnaround time for hardware development as compared to the agility of software sprints is crucial. Anticipating potential shortages or end-of-life scenarios for the hardware components during the product lifecycle requires preparedness and adeptness to spin and manage HW board revisions. Strategies encompassing continuous reviews, rigorous testing, effective version management, and the critical ability to discard unnecessary elements are essential for a CTO to navigate and minimise technical debt. Importantly, it’s the CTO’s duty to ensure that the development is always aligned with the domain affiliation of the company and to have a grasp of all the assets created and the deftness to maximise their use across product variants and adjacencies.