Shashi Tharoor impressed by 16-year-old AI techie; interaction in Vande Bharat train journey goes viral | WATCH

Shashi Tharoor shared that his recent train journey on Vande Bharat was special, as he met the 16-year-old Raul John Aju, who's working seriously in the direction of artificial intelligence. scroll down to see their viral interaction.

Viral news: The interaction of a popular Indian politician and public intellectual, Shashi Tharoor, with a 16-year-old AI ‘tech wiz’ has left him ‘illuminated’. The interaction was shared by Tharoor on his X (formerly Twitter) handle. He mentioned that he met the young man, Raul John Aju, on his Vande Bharat train journey. The leader stated that they had a brief discussion surrounding the topic of artificial intelligence (AI). You can watch the interaction video here.

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Shashi Tharoor’s interaction with a 16-year-old AI ‘tech wiz’

Shashi Tharoor shared that his recent train journey on Vande Bharat was special, as he met the 16-year-old Raul John Aju, who’s working seriously in the direction of artificial intelligence. He wrote, “We spoke about the necessity for AI to transcend borders and, crucially, to speak the vernacular of our diverse land.”

Tharoor stated that he learnt about John’s team too, who are working to develop voice processing systems across languages like Hindi, Malayalam, and Urdu. He added, “It was heartening to learn that Raul and his team (including a friend named Ishaan—a name that certainly rings a bell in my household!) are already building systems capable of voice processing in Malayalam, Hindi, and Urdu.”

Viral interaction between Shashi Tharoor and Raul John Aju

Encounters on the Vande Bharat are often pleasant, but rarely this illuminating!

​I had the pleasure of meeting Raul John Aju, a 16-year-old tech whiz who is doing incredible work in the field of Artificial Intelligence. We spoke about the necessity for AI to transcend borders… pic.twitter.com/xyaUfPgrkk

— Shashi Tharoor (@ShashiTharoor) January 7, 2026

Shashi Tharoor’s vision for youth

Shashi Tharoor concluded the message saying, “It is young minds like his that will define India’s 21st-century growth story,” highlighting his vision for the country’s youth.