Anand Karat is a leader in assessment modernization, known for combining technological vision with practical, scalable solutions that drive impact across education, training, and certification systems worldwide. As CEO of Vretta, an award-winning Canadian assessment technology organization, he has led the organization to become a trusted partner to ministries of education, academic institutions, and assessment organizations across multiple jurisdictions in Canada and internationally.

Anand holds a Bachelor of Engineering in Electrical and Electronics from Bangalore University (IND) and an MBA from the Smith School of Business at Queen’s University (CA). He is currently pursuing a part-time doctorate in AI and Data Science at the University of Derby (UK), deepening his expertise in responsible AI for assessment.

Anand’s passion for technology transformations began during his engineering program, where he worked on state-of-the-art communication systems for India’s Light Combat Aircraft (LCA). After graduating, he led large-scale technology implementations across the Air Force, Telecommunications, and Railway sectors. These roles placed him at the intersection of innovation and operations, collaborating with multinational teams to launch systems that improved efficiency and performance at scale.

In 2007, Anand completed his MBA in Science and Technology at Queen’s University in Canada, where he served as President of the Executive Student Council, leading a diverse cohort from 17 countries. The program strengthened his understanding of global strategy, finance, and entrepreneurship. These were key skills that would shape his leadership journey.

Motivated by the power of technology to improve lives, Anand entered the education technology sector, leading the development of digital learning platforms and classroom assessment solutions across Canada and the United States. These initiatives advanced financial literacy and demonstrated the potential of technology-enabled learning models to create meaningful societal impact.

During his work in post-secondary education, research in Canada and internationally was revealing a significant challenge within institutions: a persistent numeracy gap that caused a large percentage of learners to drop out of their academic programs. Motivated to help address this systemic issue, Anand co-founded Vretta in 2010 with Charles Anifowose, a highly creative education technology architect. Together with a specialized team of instructional designers and engineers, they developed formative assessment and learning resources in mathematics that raised numeracy levels across the country, preparing learners for success in post-secondary education and beyond. Within a few years, over 80 percent of colleges in Canada had adopted Vretta’s solutions to support success in mathematics.

Building on this momentum, Vretta expanded internationally, partnering with ministries of education in Luxembourg and France, as well as academic institutions in Portugal, Israel, and the United Kingdom, to measure progress and support success in K–12 and lifelong learning contexts. This positioned Vretta as a global leader in assessment modernization.

Over the past decade, Vretta has supported the end-to-end modernization of large-scale assessments for ministries of education and assessment agencies in Ontario, British Columbia, Alberta, Saskatchewan, New Brunswick, Nova Scotia, Newfoundland and Labrador, Yukon, and the Northwest Territories. The company also delivers validated, research-backed, AI-powered measurement and learning solutions that support the success of students in the early years from kindergarten to grade 3 and beyond.

Looking ahead, Anand sees AI as a catalyst for shifting assessment from disconnected and anxiety-inducing to continuous and supportive. He emphasizes that AI-powered systems must enhance feedback loops, increase accessibility, and personalize learning while preserving integrity and trust. He acknowledges the challenges of deploying AI responsibly, including data privacy, evolving regulations, and secure system architectures. To address these issues, he works closely with government AI task forces across jurisdictions, engages in proactive policy discussions, and invests in research, transparency, and stakeholder communication.

Anand attributes Vretta’s success to being a Canadian organization grounded in strong values such as equity, bilingualism, integrity, and collaboration, as well as careful hiring and long-term partnerships. He notes that Vretta has evolved from being perceived as a technology vendor to becoming a specialized assessment organization with comprehensive capabilities from design to delivery and a broader vision of improving humanity through measurement. The company’s solutions emphasize agility, accessibility, adaptability, and analytics to support success across diverse contexts.

Vretta’s commitment to improving lives extends beyond education. A core initiative is achieving a carbon-neutral footprint through tree-planting partnerships in Canada and abroad. By measuring and offsetting emissions, the company integrates sustainability into its operations and long-term vision.

Outside of his professional work, Anand speaks about his philosophy of work-life integration. He prioritizes family time with his two toddlers and continues his lifelong passion for playing the violin, which he began at an early age. This balance reflects the same values he brings to leadership, including discipline, creativity, and empathy.

Anand’s work blends technology, humanity, and purpose. Through Vretta, he continues to shape the future of assessment and learning by combining AI innovation with trusted partnerships and a global commitment to quality, integrity, and success.