(L-R) Amber Nigam and Abraar Karan / Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health
Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health recognized Indian-origin public health leaders among the recipients of its 2026 Alumni Awards, honoring their contributions to healthcare innovation and infectious disease preparedness.
Amber Nigam received the Public Health Innovator Award and Abraar Karan received the Emerging Public Health Professional Award. The awards will be presented during the school's Alumni Weekend, scheduled for Sept. 25-26.
Nigam, co-founder and chief executive officer of Basys.ai, received the award for his work developing explainable artificial intelligence solutions aimed at improving the affordability, efficiency and transparency of healthcare.
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A 2023 graduate of Harvard Chan School's Health Data Science program, Nigam has led Basys.ai in partnering with organizations including the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services and the Mayo Clinic to reduce administrative burdens and improve decision-making across health systems.
In addition to leading Basys.ai, he teaches collaborative data science for healthcare at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and frequently speaks on artificial intelligence, entrepreneurship and healthcare innovation. His work has also been featured in Harvard Business Review and Forbes.
Karan, an infectious disease physician, epidemiologist and entrepreneur, received the award, which recognizes outstanding achievements by graduates within 10 years of earning their degree.
A 2017 Master of Public Health graduate and adjunct professor at Stanford University, Karan focuses on outbreak prevention, biosecurity and emerging infectious disease preparedness.
During the COVID-19 pandemic, Karan supported the Massachusetts Department of Public Health's response while completing his residency at Brigham and Women's Hospital. His research has contributed to understanding COVID-19 transmission, Mpox, Ebola, Marburg virus and H5N1 avian influenza. He also founded Sentiveil, a health technology company developing AI-powered tools to detect disease outbreaks in congregate care settings.
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