Gaurav Gupta obtained his BTech in Electrical Engineering from IIT Kanpur in 1987 and his MTech in power systems from IIT Delhi. He later earned a degree in Public Finance Management from Harvard University in 2005. He joined the Indian Civil Services in 1990. He has over 30 years of experience in the fields of Commerce & Industries, Infrastructure, Power, Urban Development & Transportation. An officer of the Indian Administrative Service of the 1990 batch, he currently works in the Karnataka Government as Additional Chief Secretary, Commerce & Industries, with concurrent charge of Administrator of the BBMP (Bruhut Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike).

In his present capacity, he promotes investments and industrial development in Karnataka. In his concurrent charge, he exercises the powers and bears the responsibilities of the BBMP, which is the City Government of Greater Bengaluru, on the expiry of the elected City Council.

Earlier, he worked with the Karnataka Government as Principal Secretary of Information Technology, Biotechnology and Science & Technology sectors. He worked to enhance the ecosystem for the Infotech and Biotech industry and promoted innovation, research, and startups. He has been influential in creating centres of excellence in new technologies such as IoT, AI, ML, and robotics with industry partners and in promoting cross-domain innovation and use of technology in all sectors - agriculture, health care, etc.

Before this, he served as Commissioner for Industrial Development, promoting industries and investments in Karnataka. He has been the key driver for the 'Invest Karnataka 2016', the flagship mega-investment summit.

In the past, Mr Gupta has worked to create critical infrastructure - transport, water, and electricity - for the state and the city of Bengaluru. He served as Chairman of Bangalore Water Board, Special Commissioner in BBMP, and Managing Director in Karnataka State Road Transport Corporation (KSRTC).

With 33,800 workers and 7,000 buses carrying 2.5 million passengers daily, KSRTC is one of India's most profitable state transport undertakings. Mr Gupta has modernised KSRTC, making it among the first organisations to have electronic ticketing machines and a cellphone-friendly and web-based reservation system. Another notable feature of KSRTC buses today is that nearly a thousand of them run on the green fuel, ethanol-blended diesel. Mr. Gupta has inducted high-end Mercedes and Volvo buses in KSRTC. Also, it is the first corporation to completely implement the economic stimulus package under the Jawaharlal Nehru National Urban Renewal Mission (JNNURM); the low-floor buses fabricated by KSRTC are being circulated among JNNURM cities as a model. Mr. Gupta started the Sustainable Urban Transport Project (SUTP) to reinvent KSRTC operations in Mysore city. He has encouraged using new technologies, such as the Global Positioning System (GPS) and the Geographical Information System (GIS) on KSRTC buses. Mr Gupta served as the vice president of the Association of State Road Transport Undertakings (ASRTU), a nationwide association of 53 STUs; he also served on a number of Central panels.

Mr Gupta was awarded the Distinguished Alumnus Award of IIT Kanpur 2011 for outstanding managerial skills in applying e-technologies to modernise urban and rural transport systems.