Upside AI Revolutionizes Investing by Eliminating Human Bias with Machine Learning

In the high-pressure world of the stock market, the biggest enemy isn't the competition or the economic cycle—it's the human brain. Decades of research show that emotions, cognitive shortcuts, and social pressure lead investors to make poor decisions at exactly the wrong times. Atanuu Agarrwal, Co-founder of Upside AI, is on a mission to excise these biases from the equation. By applying Machine Learning (ML) to fundamental analysis, Atanuu and his team are building a systematic, rules-based approach to wealth management that thinks like an expert but acts with the cold, calculated precision of a machine.

Atanuu Agarrwal’s background is a perfect blend of "old-school" fundamental rigor and "new-age" technological prowess. An IIT Bombay graduate, Atanuu spent nearly a decade in New York at Vedanta Capital, a multi-strategy fund, where he learned the art of deep fundamental research. Alongside his co-founders Kanika Agarrwal (a top-ranked CA and CFA) and Nikhil Hooda (an IIT Bombay CS PhD), Atanuu founded Upside AI to prove that unbiased machines can deliver superior long-term alpha compared to their emotional human counterparts.

The Problem: The Fragility of the "Stock Picker"

Traditional fundamental analysis is about "telling a story." An analyst looks at a company’s management, its sector, and its financial statements to decide if it's a good bet. While the theory is sound, the execution is often flawed. Analysts get attached to companies, refuse to admit they were wrong, or follow the crowd during market bubbles.

"The Genesis of Upside AI comes from the belief that you can build a human-independent system," Atanuu explains. "People think fundamental analysis is a science, but most of the time it's just biased storytelling. We wanted to use technology to drive exactly what we should be doing, without the human element interfering."

The Solution: Systematic Fundamental Analysis

Upside AI is a SEBI-registered Portfolio Management Service (PMS) that operates as a technology company first. Their system performs the work of thousands of analysts by scanning the entire market through a fundamental lens, but it does so using a rules-based framework.

The Tech: Machine Learning Meets Benjamin Graham

While many quant funds focus on "technical indicators" (price and volume), Upside AI focuses on "fundamentals" (cash flow, debt, growth). They take the timeless principles of value investing—championed by legends like Benjamin Graham—and turn them into a computational model.

"Fundamental analysis is about understanding the business," Atanuu notes. "We've just found a way to do it at scale. By using ML, we can identify micro-signals in company balance sheets that a human would miss, and we can do it across the entire universe of stocks instantly."

Building a Quantitative Powerhouse

Finding the right team for a quant fund is a specialized challenge. You need people who understand the nuances of the Indian market but have the coding skills to systematize it. Atanuu credits the company's culture—built on meritocracy and transparency—as the primary reason for their rapid scale.

"We are a tech-first organization," he asserts. "Our team is completely aligned with the vision that unbiased systems are the future. We don't just hire developers; we hire builders who are excited about redefining an entire industry."

The Meaning of Entrepreneurship

For Atanuu, being an entrepreneur isn't about the glamour—it's about the creation. He defines it as the energy of taking a blank canvas and building a system that solves a real problem for society. He also believes that a co-founder's role is primarily psychological: sharing the weight of the vision and providing a fresh perspective during tough times.

"Entrepreneurship is about readiness for change," he reflects. "It's about identifying a problem that people didn't even realize was obvious until after you solved it. That is the real meaning of being a founder."

Key Lessons for Success

1. Profits Over Hype

Atanuu warns founders not to get lost in the venture capital hype cycle. "Focus on running profitably and generating revenue. Capital is always available for products that solve real problems and manage money well."

2. Build for Scale from Day One

If your solution only works for a handful of people, it isn't a venture. Upside AI was designed to manage institutional-grade capital, which required a scalable platform approach rather than a services-led one.

3. Transparency is Vital

In the world of finance, trust is the only currency. Upside AI wins by being completely transparent about its rules and algorithms, removing the "black box" mystery that plagues many other funds.

Upside AI is proving that the future of wealth management is systematic. By combining the best of fundamental human wisdom with the unbiased power of machine learning, Atanuu Agarrwal and his team are ensuring that for the modern investor, the only way is up.

About the Guest

Atanuu Agarrwal is a Co-founder of Upside AI and the current CEO of Distil. An alumnus of IIT Bombay, he brings extensive experience in global finance and investment management, having spent nearly a decade at Vedanta Capital in New York. Under his leadership, Upside AI grew into one of India’s premier quant-based PMS firms, leveraging technology to revolutionize investment decision-making. He is a passionate advocate for systematic, rules-based investing and technological innovation in the BFSI sector.

Upside AI is a SEBI-registered Portfolio Management Service based in Mumbai. The firm uses machine learning and proprietary algorithms to perform systematic fundamental analysis, aiming to deliver consistent alpha for HNIs and institutional investors by eliminating human emotional bias from the investment process.