The contribution of the SME community to the Indian IT-BPO industry can never be overemphasized but most Emerging companies face a major challenge in getting their due recognition and at times even loose out to the larger players. Size definitely does matter, but should not be the only criteria for recognition. The Indian IT-BPO Industry […]
Sharad Sharma joins Canaan as EIR
We are very pleased to bring Sharad Sharma as EIR (Entrepreneur in Residence) at Canaan. We have had a long standing relationship with Sharad, and share common interest in cloud computing as a disruptive area of growth. Over the next few months, Sharad with work with the Canaan team to identify an opportunity that he […]
Alternative Startup Financing Schemes
I’ve seen a number of posts lately discussing the ‘changing face of venture capital’. Paul Graham talks about the change in dynamics caused by the low capital requirements of technology startups. Fred Wilson discusses the need for a market for privately held common stock. There seems to be a general consensus about the growing role […]
MS Office Labs – Vision 2019
Interesting vision of ten years ahead from Microsoft Office Labs. Video: Future Vision Montage There is also a longer version here, and the Labs Blog here.
Proto.in Pune – Check out the Bootcamp!
Proto.in has just announced its Pune event on 25th July. Its a one day event, with the first part featuring prominent speakers such as the likes of Bharat Goenka of Tally and Pravin Gandhi of SeedFund. The second part has promised to be an “Oscar like event” showcasing 20 “mindblowing” technology startups. What got me […]
Changing face of VC
Venturebeat has a great summary on whats happening in the venture capital world. While the specific conversation is focused around US, some of the aspects have relevance in other markets like India. From new deal structures, building profitability versus value (when there is a tradeoff), virtualization as a macro trend, kids as a market, evolution […]
Naval & Nivi – Simple tips for Angels
How to be an angel investor View more presentations from Venture hacks .
The Indian Education Market: Manipal K-12 (Company Profile)
The Indian educational market can prove interesting for private businesses, even in these times . India has a large population (more than 500 million) in the age group 0-24, the government spending on education is spent (nearly 97%) on meeting operational expenses and not for capital expenditure and for the average Indian, education for the […]
Internet startup on a shoestring
Time has an interesting article highlighting that in the US, startups are being built for under $10,000. As several people compare the differences between the previous dotcom bust and this one, I think this is a key element – its much cheaper to do internet startups (of a certain kind), and this could be a […]
Interview in ReadWriteWeb
Bernard did a very well-prepared interview with us recently, outlining some of our learnings in India, and how they have shaped our investment themes. His key takeaways are listed here. Guide to MP3: as per timeline of questions on the audio file 0:22 — How is early-stage financing doing during this downturn compared to the […]
CEDT@Indian Institute of Science (IISc) Bangalore launches business in...
My last post here on VentureWoods dwelt on the problems that early stage companies face in India and their requirements. One comment made on the post reminded me that all we are doing is analysis and seldom anything else (well, to be fair, HeadStart does quite a bit, it hosted 60 Startup Saturdays since last […]
Inviting Early Stage Ventures/ University Startups
A close friend and mentor, a member of the Management Board of one of Europe’s largest media companies and my Chairman designate, is on a private visit to India between the 8th and 14th of May. This will be his first visit to the country and we are actively exploring the possibility of investing in […]