Armen Berjikly

Armen Berjikly is an Armenian-American entrepreneur and technologist. He is known for founding the artificial intelligence company Kanjoya and the social network Experience Project. Currently, he serves as the Chief Technology Officer at BetterUp.
Early life and education
Berjikly was born and raised in Los Angeles, California. He attended Stanford University, where he earned a bachelor's degree in computer science with an emphasis on human-computer interaction in 2001. He continued his studies at Stanford, obtaining a master's degree in management science and engineering with an emphasis on high-tech entrepreneurship in 2002.
Career
Inspired by a friend's diagnosis with multiple sclerosis, he created This is MS, an online forum for patients and caregivers. This initiative led to the founding of Experience Project in 2004, a social network designed to connect people through shared experiences. At its peak in 2012, Experience Project was ranked among the top 2500 websites worldwide, and by 2016, it had facilitated over 67 million shared experiences.
In 2006, Berjikly founded Kanjoya, a company specializing in natural language processing to understand human emotions. Kanjoya's technology was used in various applications, including measuring emotional reactions during political debates and understanding consumer sentiment. The company provided workforce intelligence solutions to major clients such as Cisco, Microsoft, Bain, and Twitter. In 2016, Kanjoya was acquired by Ultimate Software, and Berjikly became Senior Director of Strategy at Ultimate Software, focusing on AI initiatives.
In 2019, he co-founded Motive Software, which focused on emotion AI and people technology. Motive Software was acquired by BetterUp in 2021, and Berjikly joined BetterUp as Chief Technology Officer.
Views on technology and empathy
Berjikly has been a proponent of using technology to enhance empathy and human connection. In his TEDx talk at TEDxYerevan in 2012, titled "When Change is not a Choice," he discussed the role of technology in fostering understanding and support among individuals facing similar challenges. At BetterUp, he continues to explore the intersection of AI and human emotions to improve coaching and personal development.

Main Menu

See Also

Main Menu