It’s often said that two heads are better than one. For Luis Fernando and Madhumitha Somu Dinakaran, this adage proves just as true as ever, with this dynamic duo having joined forces to transform the procurement process with artificial intelligence. From growing up on opposite ends of the world to becoming San Francisco startup successes, Luis and Madhu are combining their unique skills to create Lumaa, an AI platform that automates a critical part of the sales process: responding to requests for proposals quickly and without error.
Learn more about how the dynamic duo got started, how they joined forces, and how they are revamping procurement with Lumaa.
A Tale of Two Founders
Luis Fernando
Hailing from Feira de Santana, Brazil, Luis Fernando was always fascinated by technology — computers especially. At just 12 years old, he was already disassembling old computers to understand how they worked, then putting them back together again. At 14, Luis was coding with various programming languages and creating projects of his own. He always thought it was inevitable that this passion would become his career, and it wasn’t long before this dream manifested itself.
At the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, Luis’ university plans were suddenly disrupted, causing him to defer his studies. But instead of letting this hiccup derail his life, he seized an opportunity to start working as a junior software engineer at a local company.
His role rapidly evolved when the senior engineer on staff left just two weeks later, with Luis suddenly finding himself responsible for maintaining a large code base while developing new features. It was a trial by fire that forced him to develop advanced problem-solving skills and technical acumen that would normally be expected of a professional 10 years his senior.
Over the next few years, he worked at a London startup as a software engineer, studied at Minerva University, mentored his peers in Python, and joined Tern as an intern — but was promoted to lead software engineer just months later.
He got his first taste of the big leagues when he made it as a software engineer intern at Microsoft in 2023. It was there that he worked on the missions engineering team, where he developed a reputation for incredible efficiency — able to complete projects in a fraction of the expected time. As a result, Luis was entrusted with critical government projects that no intern had previously handled.
After his internship with Microsoft, Luis decided to dedicate himself full-time to Lumaa, the AI startup he cofounded with Madhu.
Madhumitha Somu Dinakaran
Born in Tamil Nadu, South India, and raised on a coconut farm, Madhumitha Somu Dinakaran was determined to make a positive impact on the world at a young age. Having witnessed firsthand the inefficiencies and challenges that rural communities face, especially in healthcare, she became passionate about finding innovative solutions for detrimental systemic flaws.
At 14, Madhu secured $250,000 to study at Think Global School, a traveling high school that emphasizes project-based learning. This program allowed for a unique educational experience, giving her the opportunity to study in 12 different countries and work on impactful projects.
In Panama, for example, she developed goggles for visually impaired people to help them better navigate their surroundings. In Japan, she created a virtual reality film about the Hiroshima bombing, capturing the devastating impact the bomb had on the city and allowing modern users to witness it for themselves. This latter project was so impactful that it was showcased at a United Nations session in Germany, where Madhu had the opportunity to show her work and discuss the potential of virtual reality as an educational tool.
After graduating high school in 2021, Madhu continued her education at Minerva University, where she obtained an additional $100,000 in scholarships. There, she majored in social sciences and arts & humanities, developing a better understanding of human behavior and societal structures.
Like at TGS, her time at Minerva was complemented by a host of real-world projects that made tangible impacts on human lives.
In South Korea, she designed a community project that would combat loneliness among the elderly through art. By providing seniors with a creative outlet and a sense of community, she was able to address a significant issue in modern society. In Argentina, she worked with a UX designer to develop a landing page for a Caminito — one of Buenos Aires’ oldest neighborhoods — aiming to preserve and share the stories of local residents, as well as highlight the cultural and historical significance of the area.
Finally, in Argentina, Madhu also began researching the inefficiencies that riddle the procurement process, laying the groundwork for what would eventually become Lumaa.
Where Worlds Collide
Observant readers will have realized that these two founders share something in common: their time at Minerva University. It was, in fact, here that Luis and Madhu met during their undergraduate studies. Their first collaboration was a university project, at which point they quickly realized that they had complementary skills that could be leveraged to solve challenges on a grander scale.
Luis, backed by an impressive resume and a true wealth of technical skill, was uniquely equipped to drive technological innovation. Madhu, armed with a long history of developing successful projects that have incredible societal impact, had the power to bring any task to fruition.
Together, they knew their potential was near-limitless.
After extensive research and several conversations with industry professionals, they soon identified a common pain point across manufacturing, healthcare, pharmaceutical, and technology sectors: the cumbersome and error-prone process of intaking, processing, and responding to requests for proposals and security questionnaires — a manual process that’s quite time-consuming and fraught with inefficiencies, leading to various delays and increased costs.
Luis realized that procurement was the perfect use case for artificial intelligence, which could transform this cumbersome process into a streamlined, automated workflow. He’s a firm believer in the transformative power of AI: “Automation isn’t just a trend,” he says. “It’s the future of scalable business operations.”
After identifying their goal, Luis and Madhu went on a spree of late-night brainstorming sessions and weekend coding marathons, tirelessly working to develop a prototype.
The result was Lumaa.
Lumaa: Using Artificial Intelligence to Solve Procurement
Lumaa leverages advanced AI algorithms to process and understand requests for proposals by analyzing company-provided context, preapproved answers, and previous RFPs. Using this information, Lumaa can generate accurate and tailored responses that align with the specific requirements of an RFP, speeding up the process considerably and enabling companies to handle a higher volume of requests without the need for additional personnel.
“As soon as a company receives an RFP, Lumaa finds it and gets to work,” Madhu explains. “It examines whether the company is a good fit by evaluating various factors such as past performances, current capabilities, and specific requirements of the request.”
Once this initial assessment is complete, Lumaa’s AI engine automatically responds to the request. To populate the response, it pulls all relevant data from the company’s repository of preapproved answers and contextual information, ensuring that each data point is precise, accurate, and comprehensive. For any questions that require additional information or specific expertise beyond whatever data is available already, Lumaa uses its seamless integrations with communication platforms like Slack and Google Workspace to message the relevant team members and get the necessary information.
Managers can then review these automated responses and make edits as needed, at which point Lumaa learns from the edits and continually improves its accuracy and effectiveness with each iteration. As the platform becomes more proficient over time, it further minimizes the potential for errors.
By transforming such a traditionally labor-intensive process into a streamlined, automated workflow, Lumaa enables companies to focus on critical tasks that require human intervention. It also allows businesses to respond to more RFPs, increase their chances of securing new contracts, and expand their market presence.
Finding Success
Luis and Madhu knew that they were a powerhouse team, and they knew they had something special on their hands with Lumaa, but they still had to sell the idea.
How they sold their idea to investors is one of sheer perseverance, and their first major breakthrough came when they would camp and work outside Founders, Inc., a startup pre-accelerator, hoping to catch the attention of key figures.
“We were there literally every single day,” Madhu recalls, “knocking on their doors for 30 days straight. We were working there from early morning until late at night, hammering away at our computers and showing our dedication.”
Their persistence paid off when the founders finally noticed their commitment and agreed to meet with them. As a result of their relentless pursuit, Founders, Inc. became their first investor by the end of February 2024.
Their credibility significantly improved thanks to this initial investment, and Luis and Madhu found it much easier to build momentum and bring Lumaa to life. They then successfully applied to Neo, a prestigious startup accelerator that gave them access to a network of experienced mentors, strategic advisors, and other founders. It was this support that helped them accelerate their growth and solidify their trajectory.
The Future of Lumaa and the Dynamic Duo
Looking ahead, Luis Fernando and Madhumitha Somu Dinakaran envision Lumaa scaling to become a global leader in AI-driven business solutions. They plan to expand its capabilities across various industries and make the procurement process so seamless that it can be completed in days rather than months.
The duo’s journey from university classmates to cofounders of an AI startup is a fascinating tale of shared vision and collaboration, their success a testament to the possibilities of partnership. Madhu credits this partnership as one of the only reasons Lumaa has found such success, stating, “I believe finding the right co-founder changes everything. Without Luis, Lumaa wouldn’t be where it is now.”
But the story of Lumaa is just beginning, and with this dynamic duo at the helm, the future looks promising.
