Maanasa Mendu
Student. Scientist. Advocate
About Me
Maanasa Mendu is a current student at Harvard College, studying bioengineering and global health and health policy. After seeing the effects of energy poverty in rural India, Maanasa developed HARVEST, a bio-inspired sustainable power solution. For her work on HARVEST, Maanasa has been named “America’s Top Young Scientist 2016” and recognized by the House of Representatives, Ohio EPA, and Forbes 30 Under 30. Furthermore, Maanasa developed LeafAI, a practical, fast machine learning tool that identifies common plant diseases, in collaboration with plant pathologists and farmers and has received honors from the Google Science Fair and Junior Science & Humanities Symposium. Alongside research, Maanasa is passionate about sharing her experiences as a young person in STEM in hopes of inspiring others. In her free time, Maanasa enjoys traveling, hiking, and finding new ice cream places to try!
Video Gallery
Press
- 9/17/19 Forbes – 25 Young Heroes Who Are Tackling Environmental And Social Issues”
- 8/25/19 Microsoft Blog – AI for Good Idea Challenge winners for 2019
- 8/20/18 Best Schools – World’s 50 Smartest Teenagers
- 7/3/18 BBC Mundo – El ingenioso invento de Maanasa Mendu
- 11/1/17 Teen Vogue 21 Under 21
- 7/7/17 ASME – Ohio Teen Harvests Energy
- 3/25/17 Girls & Co – Interview with America’s Top Young Scientist
- 2/20/17 Smithsonian Magazine – Are artificial trees the future of renewable energy?
- 1/11/17 WLWT Cincinnati – Youngest person on Forbes 30 Under 30 List is Mason HS Student
- 10/31/16 Fast Company – This Ninth Grader Invented A Cheap Device That Harvests Power From Wind, Sun, And Rain
- 10/19/16 India West – Indian American Teen Maanasa Mendu Named America’s Top Young Scientist for Energy Device, Wins $25,000
Cool Things I've Done

















