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| Vinod Dham: Redefining Indian Entrepreneurship |
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Founder and Executive Managing Director
New Enterprise Associates-IndoUS Ventures, LLC
Speaker Profile |
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Vinod Dham first briefly highlighted some important milestones in his over three-decade stint in the technology sector in the US. He started his career at the National Cash Register and spent a very fruitful decade and a half at Intel where he led the development of the Pentium processor. He also co-invented Non-Volatile Memory that retains data even when power is switched off.
He then answered questions on a variety of topics.
On choosing to work with start-ups: The choice of working in start-up environments was driven by a desire to test his ability to develop innovative products outside of a large company environment. The creation of the K6 chip at AMD, which for a brief period was the world’s fastest Windows processor, gave him immense satisfaction. He had his share of luck too. The sale of Silicon Spice, the start-up developing VOIP technologies, to Broadcom, was completed just before the dotcom bust.
On his VC investments through NewPath: NewPath, an Indo-US VC Fund making cross-border investments, focuses on helping entrepreneurs develop products and services that leverage their Intellectual Property (IP) to exploit global market opportunities. inSilica builds multi-mode radio and imaging solutions for mobile phones, Nevis markets LAN security appliances and Telsima provides telecom solutions to carriers.
On starting NEA Indo-US Ventures: NEA Indo-US Ventures was started to build companies for the Indian market. He partnered Ms Vani Kola, a successful entrepreneur and founder of Certus Software and RightWorks, and NEA, an investor in Silicon Spice to set up the Fund. The Fund is committed to redefining Indian entrepreneurship and will invest in enterprises that will transform our future.
On the need to develop IP-led businesses in India: Mr Dham believes that Services model of the IT Sector where labour cost arbitrage determines competitive advantage, is not defensible. The model has several challenges including key ones such as managing scale and controlling costs in an environment where salaries are rising. Under these circumstances, it is important that India cultivates companies that compete based on IP. In his experience, companies building businesses leveraging IP have been able to attract talent by paying about twice the salary as the service sector.
On the approach of the Fund to finding opportunities in India: The Fund intends to go to places with a record of success in specific areas to scout for opportunities. For instance, Mumbai is the place to seek companies exploiting opportunities in the mobile space, Chennai for companies in Manufacturing, Hyderabad for Biotech, Delhi for BPOs, and Bangalore for IT. The objective of the Fund is to enter the Indian market at this early stage and build a brand for itself.
On the support NEA Indo-US will provide entrepreneurs: NEA Indo-US will mentor top management teams of entrepreneurial ventures it supports, guide it in establishing venture’s vision, help the venture build the right team and choose an appropriate exit strategy. |
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