Revathi Advaithi, Chief Executive Officer of global manufacturing company Flex, and her husband, Jeevan Mulgund, have announced a $1 million endowment to establish scholarships for women at BITS Pilani, the institution where Advaithi began her engineering journey. The initiative aims to provide financial assistance to female students from economically disadvantaged backgrounds, helping them pursue higher education without financial barriers.
The announcement was made during BITS Pilani’s 2026 convocation ceremony, where Advaithi returned to her alma mater as the chief guest. Addressing the graduating class, she reflected on her personal and professional journey while congratulating the 1,477 students who received their degrees at the Pilani campus.
The scholarship has been dedicated to the memory and influence of the mothers of both Advaithi and Mulgund, recognizing the critical role they played in encouraging education and perseverance. By honoring their mothers through this endowment, the couple hopes to inspire future generations of women to pursue academic and professional success.
Advaithi graduated from BITS Pilani in 1990 with a degree in mechanical engineering. At the time, she was the only woman in her graduating class, making her achievements especially significant in an industry where female representation was limited. Since then, she has built an accomplished international career spanning manufacturing, engineering, and technology before becoming CEO of Flex in 2019.
Under Advaithi’s leadership, Flex has strengthened its global manufacturing and supply chain operations across nearly 30 countries, serving industries including healthcare, automotive, communications, and consumer technology. Her career has made her one of the most prominent Indian-origin executives leading a multinational corporation.
Born in India and of Tamil heritage, Advaithi has often spoken about the influence of her mother, who raised five daughters after the passing of their father and remained committed to ensuring each received a quality education. Those experiences helped shape Advaithi’s dedication to improving educational access and expanding opportunities for women pursuing careers in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM).
Advaithi met her husband, Jeevan Mulgund, while living in Kansas, and the couple married in 1998. Their professional journeys have taken them to several cities around the world before eventually settling in the San Francisco Bay Area with their two children.
In addition to her corporate responsibilities, Advaithi has consistently championed workplace diversity, inclusion, and greater representation of women in engineering and technology. Through the newly established scholarship at BITS Pilani, she hopes to remove financial obstacles for aspiring women engineers while encouraging more young women to build successful careers in STEM fields.
