# Sunny Gandhi

Co-Executive Director, Encode. TIME100 AI 2026, Shapers. At 24, he spearheaded a successful effort to mandate human control over AI in nuclear weapons systems. ([time.com](https://time.com/collection/time100-ai/2026/sunny-gandhi/))

- Education: BS, Computer science (honors), Indiana University Bloomington ([encodeai.org](https://encodeai.org/person/sunny-gandhi/), [linkedin.com](https://www.linkedin.com/in/sunnysgandhi))
- Career: Encode (Co-Executive Director, 2023 to now); Deloitte ([linkedin.com](https://www.linkedin.com/in/sunnysgandhi), [encodeai.org](https://encodeai.org/person/sunny-gandhi/), [time.com](https://time.com/collection/time100-ai/2026/sunny-gandhi/), [gssr.georgetown.edu](https://gssr.georgetown.edu/precision-guided-podcast/episode-70-legislating-artificial-intelligence/))
- TIME profile: https://time.com/collection/time100-ai/2026/sunny-gandhi/
- Profile: https://www.autumn.ai/resources/most-influential-people-in-ai/sunny-gandhi

- Was 24 when TIME named him, after leading Encode's push for state AI-safety laws. ([time.com](https://time.com/collection/time100-ai/2026/sunny-gandhi/))
- Helped push California's SB 1047 through both chambers in 2024; he called Newsom's veto 'a real punch in the face.' ([time.com](https://time.com/collection/time100-ai/2026/sunny-gandhi/))
- Led the effort behind the first U.S. law requiring human control and safety rules for AI in nuclear weapons systems. ([time.com](https://time.com/collection/time100-ai/2026/sunny-gandhi/))
- Trained in computer science and worked in technical roles at NASA and Deloitte before going into AI policy. ([gssr.georgetown.edu](https://gssr.georgetown.edu/precision-guided-podcast/episode-70-legislating-artificial-intelligence/))
- Says he has the easier job than industry lobbyists because public opinion is on his side. ([time.com](https://time.com/collection/time100-ai/2026/sunny-gandhi/))