In conversation with Alina Alam, Founder of Mitti Cafe'

Mitti Cafe' stands as a beacon of empowerment, embodying the belief that every individual, regardless of their challenges, possesses immense potential waiting to be unlocked. Founded by Alina Alam, Mitti Cafe' is not merely a chain of restaurants; it's a testament to the transformative power of inclusion and compassion. With over 1 billion people worldwide living with disabilities, Mitti Cafe' defies limitations and fosters a society where abilities are celebrated above all else. Through its innovative approach, Mitti Cafe' has skillfully empowered over 5000 individuals with disabilities, providing them not only with employment but also with confidence and independence. With 44 cafes and counting (including at the Mumbai and Bangalore Airports, the Rashtrapati Bhavan, and the Supreme Court), Mitti Cafe's impact reverberates far beyond its walls, breaking down barriers and inspiring change across communities. Join us in celebrating the journey of Mitti Cafe', where every meal served is a step towards a more inclusive and equitable world. Read on to discover the remarkable story behind Mitti Cafe's mission and how it's transforming lives, one meal at a time.

Alina Alam, Co-founder & CEO at Mitti Cafe' in conversation with Akash Raman, The/Nudge Social Entrepreneurship Team

Tell us about your early life and the motivation behind pursuing an entrepreneurial life.

My journey into entrepreneurship wasn’t something I planned - it evolved from a deep frustration with the system I was working within. After finishing law school, I followed a traditional legal career path: clerking at the Supreme Court, practicing trial law in district courts, and arguing cases before the High Courts and Supreme Court. As a young lawyer, I was wide-eyed and idealistic, driven by a deep desire to serve vulnerable communities and contribute to justice for all.

It became clear that no amount of front-end advocacy could deliver justice when the back-end systems were fundamentally broken. The delays, inefficiencies, and inaccessibility of the judicial system weren’t just operational challenges - they were systemic barriers that disproportionately impacted the most vulnerable.

This realisation led me to explore systemic solutions. I worked with the Law Commission of India, contributing to reports on judicial backlogs, and later with Dr. Arvind Subramanian at the Ministry of Finance, crafting policy recommendations for the Economic Survey of India. These experiences sharpened my understanding of the problem but also revealed a stark truth: reports and policy recommendations, no matter how well-researched, rarely translated into action.

I turned to academia to deepen my understanding of systemic change. Pursuing Master’s degrees in Law and Development Economics and a PhD in Public Policy gave me two critical insights. First, it taught me the power of evidence-based approaches to drive change. Second, it exposed me to technological innovations transforming other fields, like healthcare and education, which inspired me to think about how similar tools could be applied to the justice system.

Another pivotal influence was my best friend in graduate school, who built the highly successful education non-profit, Darsel, from scratch. Watching him navigate the complexities of starting an organisation demystified the process for me. It showed me that with a clear vision and relentless focus, it was possible to solve even deeply entrenched problems.

What was the point at which you took the plunge and founded Adalat AI? How did your product evolve over the years?

The tipping point came during my PhD research at Oxford, where I was investigating systemic inefficiencies in judicial systems. While governments and courts were well aware of the challenges, I realised the proposed solutions often lacked technological depth, scalability, and the ability to drive real change. Courts, particularly in resource-constrained settings, didn’t have access to cutting-edge technology or the talent needed to build it. It became clear that these solutions had to be developed externally but in close partnership with the courts.

In 2023, during a fellowship at MIT, I collaborated with graduate students to build a minimum viable product (MVP) - a speech-to-text tool designed specifically for Indian courtrooms, supporting multiple languages. The initial results were promising, and pilots with courts confirmed its transformative potential. What began as a research experiment to explore how AI could reduce judicial delays quickly took on a life of its own. Encouragement from judges and court staff convinced me to incorporate Adalat AI as a full-fledged initiative, dedicated to using technology to achieve timely justice for all.

The real inflection point, however, came when I met my co-founder, Arghya Bhattacharya - a young and passionate machine learning engineer with an impressive technical background and a drive to make an impact. Arghya’s vision turbocharged Adalat AI’s mission, giving it a robust technological foundation and a clear strategy to scale. His leadership brought a deep technical rigor to the team and ensured that our solutions were not only innovative but also practical and user-friendly for courtrooms across India.

Since then, Adalat AI has evolved into an end-to-end justice tech stack. It now offers two flagship solutions:

Speech-to-Text Transcription: This tool records evidence, oral arguments, and judgments in real-time. It solves critical problems—such as the delays caused by slow stenographers in urban courts and the complete absence of stenographers in smaller towns, where judges often resort to writing by hand.
Case Flow Management System: Think of it as Salesforce or HubSpot for courts. This AI-powered dashboard streamlines live court workflows, integrates order formats, and provides tools for managing cases efficiently, saving significant time and reducing administrative burdens.

What started as a small experiment is now operational in 8 states across India, driving measurable impact and significantly reducing case delays. Adalat AI is proof that even deeply entrenched systems like the judiciary can be transformed with the right blend of technology and collaboration.

What is your impact to date, plans going forward, and what are your key strategies for success?

Impact to Date:

Currently operational in 8 Indian states, reaching over 2,000 courtrooms across the country (15% of India’s courts).
Demonstrated efficiency gains, with case resolution times reduced by 30-50% depending on the case stage and type.
Particularly impactful for rural and marginalised communities, where access to justice is most constrained.

Plans Going Forward:

Expand to cover 50% of India’s courts by 2025.
Deepen adoption by integrating more AI-driven features, such as advanced OCR tools and predictive case analytics.
Begin scaling operations in other Global South countries with similar justice system challenges.

Key Strategies for Success:

Building partnerships with state High Courts to embed solutions into judicial workflows.
Collaborating with academic institutions like MIT and J-PAL to rigorously measure and validate impact.
Leveraging philanthropic funding to ensure affordability and sustainability for under-resourced courts.

What specific measures does Adalat AI have in place to ensure that it makes a meaningful impact on the lives of people who need it the most? What are your aspirations on the depth and breadth of scale and how do you plan to achieve them?

Delays and backlogs disproportionately hurt the poorest. Nearly 80% of prisoners in India are undertrials awaiting trial, and more than two-thirds belong to the most vulnerable populations. These individuals are often trapped in cycles of poverty—losing employment due to the stigma of prison and litigation while their families incur crippling debt to fund prolonged hearings. By expediting cases, Adalat AI aims to alleviate the plight of these underprivileged communities, ensuring that justice doesn’t come at the cost of livelihoods or dignity.

Faster justice ensures that court hearings don’t disrupt daily wages or destroy livelihoods. But beyond speed, we have designed Adalat AI to center on inclusivity and equity, ensuring that no one is left behind:

Accessibility: Our AI models support multiple Indian languages, bridging linguistic barriers for rural litigants. We endeavor to incorporate training data from the most remote corners of the country, and we ensure compatibility with diverse dialects and accents, making the solution relevant for all.
Affordability: As a non-profit, Adalat AI relies on grants and CSR funding to make its solutions cost-effective for under-resourced district courts. This ensures that the benefits of technology aren’t limited to metropolitan areas but extend to the underserved regions where the need is most acute.
Training & Integration: We conduct workshops and offer hands-on support to judges and court staff to ensure seamless adoption of the technology. We also sensitize them to unique use cases where our solutions are particularly impactful - for instance, in cases of sexual violence, judges can examine victims and witnesses in safe, guideline-compliant environments. Without slow typists in the room interrupting sensitive testimonies, these examinations are recorded accurately and respectfully, facilitating better justice outcomes.
Local Relevance: By tailoring our solutions to the unique challenges of under-resourced courts, we directly address the pain points faced by marginalised communities. Our team collaborates with court staff, judges, lawyers, and litigants in these regions to ensure that limited resources don’t obstruct implementation or impact.

At Adalat AI, our vision is simple but profound: to ensure that every citizen, regardless of socio-economic background, can access timely, fair, and equitable justice.

What are the insights or lessons you've gained through your engagements with a variety of stakeholders? (including communities, non-profits, tech companies, and governments, in the context of your efforts)

Collaboration is Key: Working with judges, lawyers, and court staff has reinforced the importance of co-creating solutions that integrate seamlessly into existing workflows.
Patience with Government Processes: Change in public systems takes time, but persistence and evidence-based advocacy yield results.
Tech Alone Isn’t Enough: While AI is a powerful tool, its impact depends on training, usability, and integration with human workflows.
Stakeholder Alignment: Engaging with philanthropies, non-profits, and tech companies has taught us the value of aligning diverse interests to achieve a shared mission.

Please share a few key reflections on the trials and tribulations of being a founder working towards improving the efficiency of the judicial system

Working within the judicial system has been both rewarding and challenging. Some reflections:

Resistance to Change: Courts and judges operate within long-standing traditions, and introducing new technology often meets initial skepticism. Building trust and demonstrating value has been critical to gaining buy-in.
Balancing Speed with Precision: Legal systems demand extreme accuracy, where even minor errors can have significant consequences. Deploying AI solutions required meticulous testing and validation to ensure they meet the high standards of judicial integrity.
Resource Constraints: Operating as a non-profit in the tech space means navigating tight budgets while striving for excellence. This has required us to innovate and achieve more with fewer resources.
Privacy and Confidentiality: The judicial system handles highly sensitive data, requiring us to prioritise state-of-the-art security solutions. Significant time and resources go into building systems that uphold the strictest standards of data protection and confidentiality.
Attracting Talent: Competing with tech giants to recruit top AI engineers is a challenge, especially in a market saturated with lucrative opportunities. Convincing them to join a mission-driven initiative in an opaque and largely hidden space like the justice system requires a deeper effort. We’ve made it a priority to take prospective candidates to courts, showing them firsthand how impactful their work can be.

Despite these challenges, the tangible impact - like witnessing a rural court process cases three times faster - is what makes the journey worthwhile. It’s these moments of transformation that reaffirm our mission to make justice accessible, timely, and fair for all.

Would you like to share anything else with your fellow entrepreneurs?

I am still new to this space and learning. I also believe that advice should be context-specific and is hard to generalise. But here are a few things we have learned along the way that may be interesting for other founders:

Partner with the State: Collaborating with the state can offer unparalleled opportunities for scale and impact. By complementing existing systems and filling critical gaps you can drive transformative change. This partnership-based approach ensures that solutions are deeply embedded and sustainable.
Focus on Impact: Building solutions for public systems may lack the allure of more commercial ventures, but the impact is profound and deeply rewarding. Staying committed to the mission, even when progress feels incremental, is key to driving systemic change.
Invest in Relationships: Trust is the foundation of any successful venture, especially in public systems. Whether it’s with a judge, a funder, or a technologist, relationships built on mutual respect and understanding are your most valuable assets.
Iterate Relentlessly: Real-world challenges often necessitate adjustments to your solutions. Be open to feedback, adapt quickly, and refine your approach continuously. Progress isn’t always linear, but every iteration brings you closer to meaningful impact.
Marathon, Not a Sprint: Solving systemic problems requires patience and perseverance. Change takes time, but consistent effort and a long-term vision can lead to extraordinary results.

Solving complex societal problems may seem daunting, but staying the course is critical. If you’re addressing a significant issue, remember—your work matters more than you think, and its ripple effects can change countless lives.

In conversation with Utkarsh Saxena, Co-founder of Adalat AI