Entrepreneur Anu Sood ’85, SM ’87 and his wife, Supriya Sood, a leadership development executive, both see in MIT the values that drew them to their careers.
For Anu, it’s the Institute’s mission to make the world a better place by increasing our understanding of it. For Supriya, it’s MIT’s investment in fostering future leaders and helping underserved students access opportunities. For both, it’s the shared commitment to innovation and excellence.
“We very much support MIT’s mission in everything it does in terms of education, in terms of research, in terms of applying the learned knowledge to new innovations and opportunities to improve people’s lives and existence,” says Anu, who received his MIT degrees in chemical engineering.
In their philanthropy, they chose to establish a charitable remainder unitrust (CRUT) supporting MIT’s David H. Koch School of Chemical Engineering (ChemE) Practice, aligning their giving with an institution that reflects their values while also making a savvy financial decision. The plan provides an annual income for the couple, with the remainder of the gift ultimately passing to MIT at the end of their lives and used in a way they designate.
“We found that the CRUT was really the best way to create a permanent endowment for the Practice School while providing us with a predictable income stream for the rest of our lives,” Anu says. “This vehicle enabled us to make the gift earlier rather than later and to have the maximum impact toward achieving these goals.”
Furthermore, he adds, the tax deductions from the CRUT allowed him and Supriya to maximize the impact of a large amount of stock she received when a company she worked for went public.
“When you’re granted stock, there’s no cost basis. Whatever the value of the stock is when you sell it, or when you liquidate it, is fully taxable. So, this was a way—rather than pay the government those taxes—I could give the whole amount to MIT without a tax liability,” he explains. After both Anu and Supriya pass, the full amount will transfer to the Practice School.
“All engineers should go through such a program”
Anu, the founder and CEO of LUV Systems, which produces equipment to improve indoor air quality, says that his time at the Practice School was invaluable and transformative.
“MIT really taught me how to be a problem-solver. It gave me the confidence and tools to show that really any question that you have in your life can be answered with diligence, clarity of thought, and efficient planning,” he says, adding that this mindset was accentuated by his chemical engineering education.
“I’ve always been fascinated by how ChemE focuses on understanding processes and all the interactions between mass, energy, and momentum—basically all the things that are out there that work in the universe. And it’s just really a great way to comprehend and apply those principles to the general cause-and-effect of things, including social dynamics and how people interact, and how life works,” he says.
More specifically, he credits his time at the Practice School, which for 110 years has placed teams of Course X students at industry hosts to solve business-critical problems, for grounding his engineering know-how in real-world conditions: “The Practice School is really such a unique, hands-on, practical experience in the industry. I really think that all engineers should go through such a program. It really gave me that perspective on how industry functions…what are the priorities and how to solve problems in that setting.”
Anu built his career in the air quality and environmental engineering industry in Southern California, spending nearly 40 years developing and implementing cost-effective solutions for corporate environmental stewardship. His current company, LUV Systems, produces the halō, a large indoor air purification system that mitigates the circulation of airborne pathogens.
Supriya is a silent partner in LUV Systems but has a career as a chief people officer working for organizations that serve the vulnerable. She held that position at Alignment Health, a company that administers Medicare plans, when it went public, and now works in that capacity at Inland Empire Health Plan, which provides health care for the Medicaid population.
“My interests have always been in things like customized training, development, career progression, and programs that use my expertise in guiding others to select and grow within their careers,” she says.
In addition, she comes from a family of engineers: Her grandfather was a civil engineer, her father a mechanical engineer—and she married an engineer. “For me, engineering is sort of what I know best other than what I do professionally,” she says.
Paying it forward
Both Anu and Supriya remain close to the MIT community; they attended 2025 Commencement and enjoyed a tour of campus. Perhaps their strongest ongoing tie to the Institute is a result of Anu’s role in the MIT Club of Southern California, where he previously served as president and is now vice president of programs.
The group organizes various activities to keep alumni connected to each other and to MIT, enjoying beach days, trips to Catalina Island, and other get-togethers. “It’s everything you like about MIT, but the weather is good,” Anu says with a laugh.
“I just feel very, very supported and part of the MIT community,” he says. “I’ve always felt that way. The CRUT is a great way to pay [it] forward for all that MIT has done for me and also an awesome means to remain connected to this venerable institution for the rest of my life. I really can’t think of a better way to make a positive impact than to support MIT’s long-standing mission of teaching, seeking, and applying knowledge to make a better world for all.”
Written by Kimberly Ashton and published on May 16, 2026.
