Shireen Santosham
Let’s create technology to serve everyone — not just the select few building it
$500m in Public Private partnerships
$24M Digital Inclusion Fund for San Jose
40+ countries with on the ground field experience
AI & Tech policy and advocy globally
I've spent my career at the intersection of technology and public life — building companies and institutions, shaping policy, and making sure the communities most affected by technology decisions have a voice in them.
That work has taken me across 40+ countries, from sub-Saharan Africa to South Asia to Silicon Valley, doing direct field research with low-income communities, bridging the digital divide, and advocating for pro-consumer technology here in the U.S. as the chief innovation officer for San Jose, CA and within tech companies and startups. My passion for this work started early, fueled by a childhood spent among indigenous and marginalized communities that shaped how I see who technology serves and who it leaves behind.
ABout
As San Jose's first Chief Innovation Officer, I secured $500M in private infrastructure investment to create a $24M Digital Inclusion Fund, built the city's open data and privacy framework, and laid the groundwork for nation's leading municipal AI governance frameworks.
I founded and launched the Nextdoor Kind Foundation - from launching the first grants to standing up the foundation, to partnering with organizations like the Gates Foundation and NAACP, and working with product teams to reduce platform anti-social behavior.
I've testified before Congress, served on the FCC National Broadband Deployment Advisory Commission, and published 50+ reports driving international policy on mobile internet access. I served on faculty as a Lecturer at Stanford Graduate School of Business on the Future of Cities.
I hold an MBA from Harvard Business School, an MPA in International Development from Harvard Kennedy School, a BS in Economics from the Wharton School, and a BA in International Relations from the University of Pennsylvania.
Companies
Zillow
Stanford GSB (Faculty Lecturer)
Nextdoor
Plenty
San Jose Mayor’s Office
GSMA
Oceana
McKinsey
Vulcan Capital
Affiliations
Council on foreign relations
Bosch Foundation Global Governance Futures Fellow
Committee on US CHina Relations Young Global leader forum
Stanford GSB Impact fund advisor
CETF Board Member
FCC National Broadband Deployment Advisory Committee
Awards
BuiltIn · Moxie Award
Silver Stevie Award — Female Executive of the Year
VERGE Vanguard Award
StateScoop Top Women in Technology
GovTech
Top 25 Doers, Dreamers & Drivers
Speaking Engagements
Cityscape Global Riyadh, Saudi Arabia
NAACP National Convention, Boston, MA
Brookings Institution Women in civic tech: Engaging citizens and technology toward the public good
Aspen Institute Where the Sidewalk Ended: The Future of Smart Cities after the Toronto Waterfront Demise
National Academy of Sciences — Sustainable & Resilient Supply Chains
Harvard Kennedy School — AI, Employment & the Opportunity Gap
GSMA Mobile World Conference, Barcelona, Spain
Congressional Testimony — Subcommittee on Communications & Technology, 2017
U.N. Conference on Women (Beijing +20)
Africa Development Bank Annual Conference, Abidjan, Cote de Ivoire
Publications & Media
S1 · Ep. 106. Hulu "The Next Thing You Eat" with David Chang
The Kamala Show “Women in Tech Series: Shireen Santosham, Chief Innovation Officer, City of San Jose”
Note to Self Podcast with Manoush Zomorodi
Bloomberg "The FCC Is Leaving Low-Income Americans Out of the 5G Rollout"
Governing Magazine "A Model for Closing the Digital Divide"
GSMA Bridging the gender gap: Mobile access and usage in low- and middle-income countries
Crunchbase "Shireen Santosham on an Eclectic Career & Passion for Mission-Driven Companies"
Center for Public Integrity “FCC packs broadband advisory group with big telecom firms, trade groups”
KQED “Living Without the Internet in the Heart of Silicon Valley”