Co-founder profile

Pavan Guntupalli and his role at Rapido

Pavan Guntupalli is an IIT Kharagpur engineer who left a Samsung job to build Rapido with two co-founders.

Pavan Guntupalli is one of three co-founders of Rapido, the Bengaluru mobility company. The others are Aravind Sanka and SR Rishikesh. The company began in 2015 as theKarrier.

He is from Telangana and studied electronics and communication engineering at IIT Kharagpur, graduating in 2012. He then worked as a software developer at Samsung Research India in Bengaluru.

He later co-founded Roppen Labs, the company behind Rapido. Founder accounts say the team faced dozens of investor rejections before the business gained traction.

Rapido started with bike taxis and added autos, cabs and parcel delivery. It reached unicorn status in September 2024 and raised $240M in May 2026 at about a $3B valuation.

Read the full Rapido founder story

What is Pavan Guntupalli's education?

Pavan Guntupalli completed a B.Tech in electronics and electrical communication engineering at IIT Kharagpur, from 2008 to 2012.

What did Pavan Guntupalli do before Rapido?

He worked as a software developer at Samsung Research India in Bengaluru. He then co-founded Roppen Labs, which became Rapido.

What is Pavan Guntupalli's role at Rapido?

He is one of the three co-founders of Rapido, with Aravind Sanka and SR Rishikesh. The company began in 2015 as theKarrier.