# How we named Asama: Sanskrit for "without an equal"

> Asama (असम) is Sanskrit for "that which does not have an equal". Why we chose it over Orca and Raven, and what it says about the product we build.

- URL: https://blog.asama.ai/blog/how-did-we-name-our-start-up---asamaai/
- Author: Manish Gautam
- Published: 2024-11-13
- Tags: Company

Asama (असम) is Sanskrit for "that which does not have an equal". We chose it over two spirit-animal names, Orca and Raven, two or three weeks into building the company.

We were swamped with customer interviews right from day 1, and spent what was left of each day discussing them and planning follow-up questions. By the time we got to naming ourselves, we knew the values we wanted customers to think of when they heard our name: intelligence, innovation and excellence. We wrote down anything that stood for them and shortlisted three names across two themes.

## Theme one: a spirit animal

Having spent some time in the auto industry, I had seen motorcycles designed around spirit animals: think of the Dominar 400 as a bull (dominating and powerful) and the Pulsar 200 as a cheetah (sleek and fast). Some brands put the animal straight into the name, like Red Bull, Puma, Jaguar, SurveyMonkey, Mailchimp and TaskRabbit. Others, like Lacoste and Swarovski, put it in the logo instead: a crocodile for tenacity, a swan for elegance. We tried the same idea on our own name, which gave us two options.

**Orca.** Orcas, or killer whales, belong to the dolphin family and are considered very intelligent. They are known for inventive hunting techniques and for the distinct vocal patterns each group uses to communicate. In short, killer whales are killer smart, and we were psyched at the prospect of calling ourselves Smartorca.

**Raven.** Ravens are among the most intelligent birds (no wonder Game of Thrones gave them such a part to play). Their problem-solving rivals that of great apes, they learn from one another, and they plan ahead. We thought of calling ourselves Sharpey, with a raven of the same name as our mascot and logo: a sharp raven.

## Theme two: a Sanskrit word

Staying true to our Indian roots, we wanted a name that stood for excellence and, if possible, came from Sanskrit. Several home-grown brands have done the same: Ola's AI company Krutrim takes its name from the Sanskrit word for "artificial".

That is how we landed on Asama (असम): *a* (not) plus *sama* (equal), Sanskrit for "that which does not have an equal" or "that which is beyond comparison".

## Why Asama stuck

The word set the bar for what we wanted to build for modern infrastructure problems. That is how we became Asama.

One theory traces the name of the Indian state of Assam to the same word.

Want to see what we built? Write to contactus@asama.ai, or book a live comparison against your own stack at [asama.ai](https://www.asama.ai).