Manipal Academy of Higher Education Collaborates with Salesforce to Advance its AI-Driven University Transformation

• Manipal Academy of Higher Education (MAHE) to modernise its Student Life Cycle Management platform by leveraging Agentforce and related solutions, deploying 50+ AI agents across academic and administrative systems over the next two years
• MAHE to establish a Salesforce Academia Center of Excellence to develop AI-ready digital talent and prepare students for the future workforce.

Manipal, Karnataka, India, March 26: Salesforce, the world’s #1 AI CRM*, announced a collaboration with Manipal Academy of Higher Education (MAHE), an Institution of Eminence Deemed to be University, to modernise its Student Life Cycle Management (SLCM) platform and accelerate its transition to an AI-driven university. This collaboration will enable the deployment of AI-powered agentic systems across academic and administrative ecosystems, enhancing how the institution engages with students, faculty, and operations at scale. MAHE will leverage Agentforce Education, Agentforce, Data 360, MuleSoft, and Tableau to accelerate its shift from traditional systems to AI-driven operations. This forms part of MAHE’s MAGIC (MAHE Agentic Intelligent Console) program—a strategic initiative conceptualised and led by MAHE to deploy AI agents across academic and administrative systems and drive institution-wide transformation.

MAHE operates a complex academic ecosystem, supporting over 40,000 students from 60+ nations across multiple campuses. Agentforce Education will unify the entire student lifecycle — from admissions and enrollment to academic progress and alumni engagement — providing a 360-degree view of the student journey. MuleSoft will connect MAHE’s existing student, learning, and document systems through real-time, API-led integration, while Tableau will deliver advanced analytics and dashboards for data-driven decision-making. Agentforce will introduce intelligent AI agents to support processes such as student queries and admissions, improving responsiveness and helping scale services across the institution.

Deloitte will serve as the implementation partner, supporting MAHE in deploying Salesforce’s unified platform and ensuring seamless integration across systems to modernize the university’s digital infrastructure.

Building the Next Generation of AI Talent

In addition to transforming MAHE’s digital infrastructure, the collaboration with Salesforce will also focus on empowering students with future-ready skills as they prepare to enter the workforce of tomorrow. Salesforce and MAHE will establish a Salesforce Academia Center of Excellence and launch the “Agentic AI for All” initiative, introducing specialized learning programs, micro-credentials, and hands-on technology labs across institutions including Manipal Institute of Technology (MIT), Manipal and TA Pai Management Institute (TAPMI). These initiatives will provide students and faculty with practical exposure to enterprise technologies, particularly the Salesforce platform and Agentforce, through experiential labs, innovation programs, and faculty development initiatives.

Comments on the news

Lt. Gen. (Dr.) M.D. Venkatesh VSM (Retd.), Vice Chancellor of MAHE,said “At Manipal Academy of Higher Education, our focus has always been on strengthening academic governance, student experience, and institutional effectiveness through thoughtful and responsible use of technology. The MAGIC initiative reflects MAHE’s long-term vision to embed artificial intelligence across academic and administrative systems in a manner that is student-centric, ethically grounded, and academically led. Our collaboration with Salesforce is aligned with this vision, enabling us to modernise core university processes while ensuring that technology remains firmly in service of education, research, and learner success.”

Arundhati Bhattacharya, President & CEO at Salesforce – South Asia, said “India stands at a defining moment in the AI era, where the strength of our future economy will depend on the talent we build today. Universities will play a central role in shaping that future by combining academic excellence with real-world technology exposure. Institutions like MAHE are demonstrating how AI, data, and digital platforms can reimagine both how universities operate and how students prepare for the jobs of tomorrow. Initiatives like this will be critical in building a workforce that can power India’s innovation and growth in an increasingly AI-driven world.”

Mankiran Chowhan, Managing Director, Salesforce India, said “Leading universities are increasingly looking at technology not just to digitize processes, but to create more intelligent and connected campus experiences. MAHE is taking a bold step in that direction by building an AI-powered university ecosystem that reimagines how institutions engage with students across their entire journey — from admissions to alumni. We are proud to partner with MAHE on this journey and demonstrate how agentic AI can enhance institutional agility while enabling more personalized and responsive experiences for students and faculty.”