The Neon Show podcast

Player FM - Internet Radio Done Right

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추가했습니다 six 년 전

Siddhartha Ahluwalia에서 제공하는 콘텐츠입니다. 에피소드, 그래픽, 팟캐스트 설명을 포함한 모든 팟캐스트 콘텐츠는 Siddhartha Ahluwalia 또는 해당 팟캐스트 플랫폼 파트너가 직접 업로드하고 제공합니다. 누군가가 귀하의 허락 없이 귀하의 저작물을 사용하고 있다고 생각되는 경우 여기에 설명된 절차를 따르실 수 있습니다 https://ko.player.fm/legal.

Accidental CEO Podcast

1
72: If You Want to Grow—Stop Fixing the Wrong Problem 16:32

20일 전16:32

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16:32

You’re busy—but are you actually growing? In this episode, Nata Salvatori exposes a trap that’s costing service providers time, money, and sanity: chasing busywork that feels productive but doesn’t move the needle. She walks through a clear, five-step growth path—from clarifying your offer, validating through real sales, delivering sustainably, building repeatable systems, to scaling confidently. You’ll learn: How to spot and ditch “fake work” Why clarity beats complexity every time How to use real feedback to validate your offers Delivery tips that prevent burnout System creation that enables scaling How to honor your current phase of growth 📌 Ready to stop spinning your wheels and make real moves? Map your phase, pick your next action, and don’t be afraid to ask for help: 👉 accidentalceo.co/coaching Support the show…

The Neon Show

시리즈 홈•Feed

Hi, I am your host Siddhartha! I have been an entrepreneur from 2012-2017 building two products AddoDoc and Babygogo. After selling my company to SHEROES, I and my partner Nansi decided to start up again. But we felt unequipped in our skillset in 2018 to build a large company. We had known 0-1 journey from our startups but lacked the experience of building 1-10 journeys.

Hence was born the Neon Show (Earlier 100x Entrepreneur) to learn from founders and investors, the mindset to scale yourself and your company. This quest still keeps us excited even after 5 years and doing 200+ episodes.

We welcome you to our journey to understand what goes behind building a super successful company. Every episode is done with a very selfish motive, that I and Nansi should come out as a better entrepreneur and professional after absorbing the learnings.

319 에피소드

#Entrepreneur Interviews #Business #Entrepreneur #Siddhartha Ahluwalia

The Neon Show

49 subscribers

updated 4일 전

시리즈 홈•Feed

319 에피소드

#Entrepreneur Interviews #Business #Entrepreneur #Siddhartha Ahluwalia

모든 에피소드

The Neon Show

1
Growth, Migration and FDI: The Real Kerala Story with Minister P. Rajeev 53:29

4일 전53:29

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53:29

This episode is not just about Kerala; it is about how a state with limited land, strict environmental regulations, and a long history of outmigration is approaching investment and growth. Kerala is a small, densely populated state with limited land to spare, not the typical site for industrial expansion. Yet it’s taking a distinct approach to building a knowledge based economy. P. Rajeev (Minister for Industries, Law and Coir, Govt of Kerala) joins us to break this down. We discuss how Kerala rose from the bottom to become the top-ranked state in Ease of Doing Business, what’s behind the ₹1.5 lakh crore in investment pledges, and why the state is prioritizing high-value industries over land and labour-intensive manufacturing. We also unpack how Kerala plans to convert MOUs into functioning factories and real jobs, and why startups that once moved away are now beginning to stay. Tune in if you’re curious about how Indian states are attracting investment and rethinking their development models. 0:00 – Trailer 1:18 – Is Kerala Still Fighting Old Perceptions? 5:59 – Kerala to Focus on Value-Added Manufacturing 7:45 – How to Start an IT Firm in Kerala & Where It Missed the Tech Bus 10:35 – What’s Blocking Startups from Scaling in the State? 11:15 – Can Kerala Retain Its Best Talent? 14:20 – Kerala’s Vision for a Free-Thinking Knowledge Economy 16:36 – Repositioning as an Investor-Friendly Destination 19:22 – What the “Nature, People, Industry” Motto Really Means 22:22 – Will Kerala Deliver on Its Investor Summit Promises? 23:42 – Why Vizhinjam Could Be a Game-Changer 26:00 – How Indian States Are Competing for Investments 28:47 – Is Stagnation in Productive Sectors Slowing Development? 32:38 – Is Kerala’s Geography a Barrier to Growth? 33:24 – Are Its Environmental Rules Too Rigid for Industry? 34:22 – Is Communism Holding Kerala Back? 37:48 – When the Communist Govt funded a Private Co. 41:17 – The Real Kerala Story 43:28 – The History Behind Kerala’s Education Revolution 45:14 – What the Kerala Model Must Fix 48:06 – Internet as a Basic Citizen Right 48:56 – Kerala’s Health Workers on the Global Frontlines 51:19 – Can Outsiders Easily Buy Land in Kerala? 53:01 – The State’s Only Unicorn Company 54:21 – Can Startups from Kerala Go Public? ------------- India’s talent has built the world’s tech—now it’s time to lead it. This mission goes beyond startups. It’s about shifting the center of gravity in global tech to include the brilliance rising from India. What is Neon Fund? We invest in seed and early-stage founders from India and the diaspora building world-class Enterprise AI companies. We bring capital, conviction, and a community that’s done it before. Subscribe for real founder stories, investor perspectives, economist breakdowns, and a behind-the-scenes look at how we’re doing it all at Neon. ------------- Check us out on: Website: https://neon.fund/ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/theneonshoww/ LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/beneon/ Twitter: https://x.com/TheNeonShoww Connect with Siddhartha on: LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/siddharthaahluwalia/ Twitter: https://x.com/siddharthaa7 ------------- This video is for informational purposes only. The views expressed are those of the individuals quoted and do not constitute professional advice. Send us a text…

The Neon Show

1
What Startups Can Learn from a $1.7B Co. Chief Information Officer | Karthik Chakkarapani, Zuora 1:04:49

11일 전1:04:49

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1:04:49

AI is changing how companies build and scale. But most pitch decks haven’t caught up. Karthik Chakkarapani, CIO of Zuora, has heard plenty of startup pitches but only a few stand out. He shares why most pitches fall flat, how to fix them, and how to present both the founder and the company in a way that drives real interest. We unpack what should go into your 30-second elevator pitch, why “Time to Value” needs its own slide, and how to bring up AI without sounding like everyone else. SaaS is changing fast and it’s no longer just about features, but about speed, clarity, and proof of value. We explore how the next wave of SaaS companies can truly differentiate themselves. Building a startup is different in a post-UI world, where users don’t click through screens but simply prompt systems to act. We discuss what it takes to build in a world of API-driven AI agents, along with real lessons on what most founders get wrong about working with large companies. If you're building SaaS in 2025, this conversation is for you. 0:00 – Trailer 1:05 – How the CIO Role Has Changed 3:21 – How Zuora Enables the Subscription Economy 5:45 – Is SaaS Becoming Headless? 7:55 – Are We Entering a Post-UI World? 10:37 – What’s the New Competitive Advantage? 12:31 – Will Entry-Level Jobs Be Replaced by Tools? 14:05 – What Metrics Will Matter in an Agentic AI World? 15:55 – How to Measure AI Adoption in Your Company 18:38 – What’s the Hype-to-Reality Ratio for AI? 20:19 – What Is the Biggest ROI AI Has Delivered? 23:53 – How Startups Can Get Deployed in Enterprises 27:10 – How Founders Should Use AI in Their Pitch 28:45 – Bolt-On AI vs. Built-In AI 32:26 – Most Common Myth About CIOs 35:03 – Why You Need a Prompt Library 36:04 – What to Avoid in Your Pitch Deck 37:21 – How Atomic Work Came Onboard 42:47 – The Underrated Soft Skills Founders Need 47:55 – 3 Examples of Killer 30-Second Elevator Pitches 51:59 – The “Time-to-Value” Slide Explained 53:46 – What Founders Get Wrong About Enterprises 54:58 – Top SaaS Misconceptions About Enterprise 57:00 – Where Enterprises Adopt AI the Fastest 59:45 – How the Next SaaS Companies Will Differentiate 1:00:33 – Bay Area vs. Bangalore vs. Chennai 1:03:33 – Rapid Fire Round ------------- India’s talent has built the world’s tech—now it’s time to lead it. This mission goes beyond startups. It’s about shifting the center of gravity in global tech to include the brilliance rising from India. What is Neon Fund? We invest in seed and early-stage founders from India and the diaspora building world-class Enterprise AI companies. We bring capital, conviction, and a community that’s done it before. Subscribe for real founder stories, investor perspectives, economist breakdowns, and a behind-the-scenes look at how we’re doing it all at Neon. ------------- Check us out on: Website: https://neon.fund/ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/theneonshoww/ LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/beneon/ Twitter: https://x.com/TheNeonShoww Connect with Siddhartha on: LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/siddharthaahluwalia/ Twitter: https://x.com/siddharthaa7 ------------- This video is for informational purposes only. The views expressed are those of the individuals quoted and do not constitute professional advice. Send us a text…

The Neon Show

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How To Build A Successful Startup In India ft Paras Chopra (Sold Wingify For $200 Million) 1:09:14

18일 전1:09:14

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1:09:14

Three failed startups. One of India’s biggest B2B exits. Then returning 75% of investor money in the next venture. An entrepreneur who’s lived that arc is bound to have insights for anyone building or thinking of building. Paras Chopra, founder of Wingify (sold for $200 million), Nintee, and now Lossfunk, joins us this week. We discuss the small decisions that quietly define your startup: what product to build, how to structure your team, and why setting the right communication culture early can help. Paras shares what most founders overlook early on : Pricing isn’t about effort you put but about the value you create, why having competitors might actually be better than having none, and how financial metrics often distract from what really matters to customers. Paras talks about what changed between each attempt of building his startups, and why some lessons only reveal themselves the hard way and what shifts after you’ve seen both failure and success. Whether you're launching your first company or planning your next, this conversation will give you the clarity needed to tilt the odds in your favor. Check out The Book of Clarity by Paras Chopra. 00:00 – Startups Should Be Like Cults 02:25 – Building a Founder’s Value System 03:25 – Bet on What Won’t Change in 10 Years 05:15 – What AI Can’t Do Well (Yet) 10:00 – Do Humans Even Want Accuracy? 10:57 – What Founders Should Not Build or Sell 13:35 – Are many competitors better than none? 19:47 – Why Repeating Success Is Hard 21:20 – Customer Value Metrics > Financial Metrics 23:35 – Why Paras’s Startup after Wingify Didn’t Work 27:00 – What Is Micro Communication? 30:41 – Writing Culture in a Startup 32:50 – Obsess Over Organisational Design 37:15 – Is Luck in Our Hands? 41:24 – Why Bias Is Risky for Entrepreneurs 42:35 – Great Startups Look Like Toys at First 44:00 – Why Deep Tech Startups Struggle to Succeed 46:09 – Paras’s New Venture Lossfunk 49:23 – Why Uncertainty Is a Startup Moat 55:56 – What Most Founders Get Wrong About Pricing 57:36 – Should Price be on Effort or Value? 59:23 – Wingify Innovated on Just One Metric 1:00:25 – What Is Failure for Paras? 1:04:08 – Diversify Your Self-Worth Like a Portfolio 1:05:21 – The Startup Game Is a Mental Game 1:06:43 – Did Wingify Create Wealth or Just Money? --- India’s talent has built the world’s tech—now it’s time to lead it. This mission goes beyond startups. It’s about shifting the center of gravity in global tech to include the brilliance rising from India. What is Neon Fund? We invest in seed and early-stage founders from India and the diaspora building world-class Enterprise AI companies. We bring capital, conviction, and a community that’s done it before. Subscribe for real founder stories, investor perspectives, economist breakdowns, and a behind-the-scenes look at how we’re doing it all at Neon. --- Check us out on: Website: https://neon.fund/ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/theneonshoww/ LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/beneon/ Twitter: https://x.com/TheNeonShoww Connect with Siddhartha on: LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/siddharthaahluwalia/ Twitter: https://x.com/siddharthaa7 --- This video is for informational purposes only. The views expressed are those of the individuals quoted and do not constitute professional advice. Send us a text…

The Neon Show

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How NVIDIA, Meta & Dropbox Taught Me to Build Great Products | Vasanth, Founder-Featurely 1:10:07

25일 전1:10:07

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1:10:07

50% of products and features built are never used. To build the right product, every founder must answer two questions: Are you solving a real problem? And are you solving it the right way? Technology has rarely been democratic, it’s often elitist. So at times, it ends up solving made-up problems that don’t really exist. Yet, some companies have built truly great products. What sets them apart? Do they share any similarities? Are there lessons for entrepreneurs? We have with us Krishna (Vasanth) Namasivayam who has previously worked on AI products at NVIDIA, Meta, and Dropbox. Vasanth is founder of Featurely.AI . Featurely is fixing how products get built. It does it by simulating users — not as bots, but as human-inspired digital twins. 0:00 – Trailer 02:10 – Why I chose NVIDIA in 2015? 03:55 – Working on integrity at META 04:23 – Rethinking AI for Dropbox 04:51 – NVIDIA builds for the future 05:45 – People loved working for Jensen 08:16 – What makes META so special? 10:57 – Decision-making at META was democratic 11:41 – Dropbox was once the most VIRAL product 12:55 – The power of founder-led companies 14:28 – Tech is Elitist, Build for a Few 16:43 – Silicon Valley trend of Solving Made-up problems 19:27 – A magic wand that Finds the right problem 22:17 – Synthetic users vs. perfect AI agents 25:00 – Why synthetic users can fail (and why that matters) 25:35 – What is the Future with AI agents & synthetic humans? 26:30 – Why openAI can’t/won’t choose User research 27:16 – The simplest explanation of LLMs 28:36 – Why ChatGPT succeeded like no other 31:04 – Bite-sized Info for 6-second attention span 31:37 – The Next Frontier in AI: Predicting Human Behavior 33:55 – Uses of Synthetic Humans from Product to Policy 35:55 – The biggest surprise of building a startup 37:00 – One Mistake Product folks make 38:24 – One emotional truth about startups 39:04 – What does Featurely do? 42:51 – How Featurely will measure success 46:36 – All future software will be hyper-personalized 50:24 – 3 AI companies to admire (one not built yet) 52:28 – How will Work be in 2025? 53:59 – How AI gets things (almost) right every time 57:02 – Why Featurely chose Neon Fund 01:02:51 – What the Bay Area does differently 01:04:54 – Learnings from Fundraising 01:06:49 – The vision to Build a Category defining Company ------------- India’s talent has built the world’s tech—now it’s time to lead it. This mission goes beyond startups. It’s about shifting the center of gravity in global tech to include the brilliance rising from India. What is Neon Fund? We invest in seed and early-stage founders from India and the diaspora building world-class Enterprise AI companies. We bring capital, conviction, and a community that’s done it before. Subscribe for real founder stories, investor perspectives, economist breakdowns, and a behind-the-scenes look at how we’re doing it all at Neon. ------------- Check us out on: Website: https://neon.fund/ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/theneonshoww/ LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/beneon/ Twitter: https://x.com/TheNeonShoww Connect with Siddhartha on: LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/siddharthaahluwalia/ Twitter: https://x.com/siddharthaa7 ------------- This video is for informational purposes only. The views expressed are those of the individuals quoted and do not constitute professional advice. Send us a text…

The Neon Show

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WHAT will Decide the Next Superpower? | Raja Manickam | iVP Semiconductor 1:26:29

5 weeks 전1:26:29

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1:26:29

Geopolitics is now measured in Nanometers. Anything with a battery or a plug has a semiconductor inside. But these chips aren’t just tech anymore, they’re shaping who becomes the next Superpower. In the 1980s, India was just two years behind the world in semiconductors. Today, we’re 12 generations behind. What went wrong? India’s top semiconductor expert, Raja Manickam, returns to The Neon Show to break it all down. We discuss how the U.S. lost the chip race it started, China’s strategic rise, and how one visionary turned Taiwan into the most valuable island in the world. Raja Manickam dives into what the $10B India Semiconductor Mission is getting right and where we may fall behind. He explains why <$5 chips might be India’s best shot, and how founders can enter semiconductors with just ₹1 Crore. This episode isn’t just about chips, it’s about who gets to shape the next decade of tech, trade, and power. From the role of the government to private capital and Mr. Raja’s own vision through his company iVP Semiconductor, this episode tells you how semiconductors are deciding India’s Future. 0:00 – Trailer 1:26 – Masters of Chips will rule the world 8:24 – Why US is falling behind despite its head start 11:22 – Does the US have the talent to win? 12:54 – How Taiwan became World’s most valuable island 18:51 – The US vs China dilemma for Taiwan 22:21 – China’s rise is strategic, not accidental 29:09 – Will India only be a chip-outsourcing hub? 32:41 – Does India want to build for itself or others? 34:07 – Why the US wants to kill the Chips Act 38:21 – US-China chip war for global power 40:16 – How can India win in <$5 chips? 43:31 – Should the Indian govt give grants or take equity? 45:05 – Semiconductor will not create jobs 47:50 – What went wrong for India post-80s? 50:11 – Why Mr. Raja returned to India 52:04 – Can India democratise chips too? 55:23 – How India’s govt is supporting chip startups 58:06 – India’s $10B Semiconductor Mission 1:03:19 – Why Raja is disappointed with Private sector 1:08:48 – iVP’s ambition to be a chip giant from India 1:10:47 – What’s India still missing? 1:16:39 – Is India not ready for 3nm Chips? 1:21:43 – How can new founders enter semiconductors? ------------- India’s talent has built the world’s tech—now it’s time to lead it. This mission goes beyond startups. It’s about shifting the center of gravity in global tech to include the brilliance rising from India. What is Neon Fund? We invest in seed and early-stage founders from India and the diaspora building world-class Enterprise AI companies. We bring capital, conviction, and a community that’s done it before. Subscribe for real founder stories, investor perspectives, economist breakdowns, and a behind-the-scenes look at how we’re doing it all at Neon. ------------- Check us out on: Website: https://neon.fund/ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/theneonshoww/ LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/beneon/ Twitter: https://x.com/TheNeonShoww Connect with Siddhartha on: LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/siddharthaahluwalia/ Twitter: https://x.com/siddharthaa7 ------------- This video is for informational purposes only. The views expressed are those of the individuals quoted and do not constitute professional advice. Send us a text…

The Neon Show

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15 Years Of Investing Lessons In 75 Minutes With Prime Ventures and Stellaris Partners | Neon Show 1:16:22

6 weeks 전1:16:22

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1:16:22

There are No Checklists or Frameworks on HOW TO BE A VC? So how do you even know if it’s the right path for you? Unlike most jobs, venture capital comes with an extremely long feedback loop. It can take years before you know whether the bets you made actually worked out. That’s why most seasoned VCs say: only choose this path if you're in it for the long haul. This conversation will help you think through that choice. Whether you’re considering VC as a career, love building businesses, or just want to understand who really calls the shots on a cap table. On The Neon Show, we have with us two operators turned investors: Gaurav Ranjan, Principal at Prime Venture Partners, has led deals including Dozee, Hitwikcet, Poshn and Gallabox. Naman Lahoty, Partner at Stellaris Venture Partners has been part of investments like Zouk, Nestasia, Dashtoon and Lumio. They share lessons from evaluating thousands of startups - what they’ve unlearned about pattern-matching in investing, why Excel projections mostly fail and why founder empathy might be the most underrated edge in venture capital. It’s truly a conversation between three VCs on what it really takes to be a VC today. 0:00 – Stellaris Partners X Prime Ventures 0:43 – How Founders Turn Into VCs 4:19 – Do VCs Need an MBA or Consulting Background? 6:32 – Why Startup Projections Rarely Come True 8:43 – Are VCs Naturally Good Founders? 11:19 – Startups we Evaluated & Founders we Met 14:51 – From First Pitch to Deal Close 19:02 – Why VC Feedback Loops Are Extremely Long 21:00 – No Checklists. No Frameworks. 25:27 – Why On-Demand Rebranded as Quick Commerce Won? 29:20 – The Stellaris Framework to Evaluate Founders 35:53 – Why Indian VCs Must Think Independently 38:28 – Rapid Fire: The Big One We Missed 39:16 – The One We Loved But Didn’t Back 42:23 – Startups We Wish We’d Invested In 43:55 – Investors We Admire the Most 47:20 – Do We Believe Peter Thiel’s Theory? 52:35 – Startup Stories: Slack, Flickr, Dozee, Rupicard 57:15 – The GTM Hack That Led to Product Discovery 58:15 – Babygogo & Atomic Work 59:55 – All-Nighter Code Sprint for the Demo 1:00:55 – Lessons Founders Taught Us 1:06:30 – What We Miss About Being a Founder 1:10:28 – When Do You Decide If You Are a Good VC? 1:13:28 – Building a Fund V/S Building a Startup ------------- India’s talent has built the world’s tech—now it’s time to lead it. This mission goes beyond startups. It’s about shifting the center of gravity in global tech to include the brilliance rising from India. What is Neon Fund? We invest in seed and early-stage founders from India and the diaspora building world-class Enterprise AI companies. We bring capital, conviction, and a community that’s done it before. Subscribe for real founder stories, investor perspectives, economist breakdowns, and a behind-the-scenes look at how we’re doing it all at Neon. ------------- Check us out on: Website: https://neon.fund/ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/theneonshoww/ LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/beneon/ Twitter: https://x.com/TheNeonShoww Connect with Siddhartha on: LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/siddharthaahluwalia/ Twitter: https://x.com/siddharthaa7 ------------- This video is for informational purposes only. The views expressed are those of the individuals quoted and do not constitute professional advice. Send us a text…

The Neon Show

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Why Traditional Playbooks Are Failing & What Really Works In SAAS? | WizCommerce, Pienomial & Merlin 1:24:21

7 weeks 전1:24:21

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1:24:21

Vertical SaaS customers don’t buy software for 10 months, they buy it for 10 years. That’s the opportunity and the challenge. Switching costs are high, which makes it hard to get in but once you’re in, you’re in. But regular SaaS playbooks don't work here. Forget PLG. Forget design partners. These industries have been burned too many times by bad software. Here, Trust defines GTM. Think warm introductions and on-site meetings, not cold emails and Zoom calls. But for founders building in vertical SaaS, there’s little to learn from. So in this episode of The Neon Show, we bring together three founders who are building in the trenches of Vertical SaaS. Omkar Patil, Co-founder of Pienomial, helping biopharma companies run faster clinical research and unlock insights from complex drug data. Kumar Siddhartha, Co-founder of Merlin, rebuilding ERP from the ground up for the US construction industry. Divyaanshu Makkar, Co-founder of WizCommerce, modernising sales and commerce tools for wholesale distributors. If you’re building SaaS for niche markets or wondering why traditional playbooks are failing, this episode is for you. 0:00- Pienomial X WizCommerce X Merlin 0:51 – What are we building in Vertical SaaS? 4:29 – Vertical SaaS buyers are sticky by nature 6:57 – How to build for industries used to Below-Par Tech? 10:46 – Fix what your customer hated about the last vendor 12:17 – Why these industries pay billions for implementation? 13:38 – How we got our First customers? 20:03 – Warm intros and word-of-mouth still win 23:56 – Why Design Partners don’t work in Vertical SaaS? 27:17 – Why you should never sell your first product for free? 30:29 – Can you Co-build products with early customers? 34:33 – Building Your Own Platform Vs Building on Top of one 39:33 – Building alongside Legacy players or innovating around them? 44:31 – SaaS isn’t going anywhere, AI will amplify it 46:49 – Can AI agents really be reliable? 48:42 – Which roles shouldn't be automated? 52:16 – How to approach GTM where users guide you? 54:43 – Why trust is everything here? 58:54 – How to sell softwares used for 10 years? 1:01:02 – How to win when the product demo comes last? 1:03:16 – Why NOW for traditional industries with unsolved problems 1:09:17 – Thoughts on agentic workflows 1:13:02 – Why be Bearish on the “AI Employee Concept”? 1:16:57 – Rapid Fire : Google or Perplexity? 1:17:37 – LLMs: Open-source or Closed? 1:18:19 – Favorite work software + We're hiring! 1:19:42 – One business buzzword that should disappear 1:20:55 – A Vertical SaaS company we admire (and why) ------------- India’s talent has built the world’s tech—now it’s time to lead it. This mission goes beyond startups. It’s about shifting the center of gravity in global tech to include the brilliance rising from India. What is Neon Fund? We invest in seed and early-stage founders from India and the diaspora building world-class Enterprise AI companies. We bring capital, conviction, and a community that’s done it before. Subscribe for real founder stories, investor perspectives, economist breakdowns, and a behind-the-scenes look at how we’re doing it all at Neon. ------------- Check us out on: Website: https://neon.fund/ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/theneonshoww/ LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/beneon/ Twitter: https://x.com/TheNeonShoww Connect with Siddhartha on: LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/siddharthaahluwalia/ Twitter: https://x.com/siddharthaa7 ------------- This video is for informational purposes only. The views expressed are thos Send us a text…

The Neon Show

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Why Stripe Paid $150M For a Young Indian Startup | Saurya Prakash Sinha | Recko 1:02:55

8 weeks 전1:02:55

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리스트

1:02:55

Recko's acquisition by Stripe is one of India's biggest B2B exits. It's a great headline. But headlines don't tell the full story. They capture one final outcome not the numerous obstacles faced. In this episode, Saurya Prakash Sinha, co-founder of Recko, tells us what really happened behind the scenes. From the early days when no one was buying, no VC was funding, and they had just $500 left in the bank to building a product Stripe couldn't ignore. Saurya also shares hard-won lessons about product-market fit, customer validation, and why usage matters more than ARR in early-stage B2B. Tune in if you want to learn about the full story behind the headlines. 0:00 - Trailer 1:01 - Why Stripe emailed 2 founders in Bengaluru 4:34 - How Recko discovered its core problem 9:34 - What IF customers and investors reject? 12:33 - How to Build with zero validation? 14:18 - Solving what the Big Four couldn’t at Myntra 17:37 - What to expect when building Products in Finance? 19:46 - Bought for the Product, Team or Scale? 21:53 - “Customer voice is the loudest in the room” 25:28 - Why VCs didn’t “get” Recko 28:27 - How to raise when investors follow success playbooks? 30:36 - Why build products to compete with the Best? 33:18 - The First cheque and first customer at Pingsafe 36:45 - How to manage Acquisitions before making them public? 41:02 - How Pricing is led during Buyouts? 42:36 - The culture of Writing at Stripe 44:08 - Why do companies Acquire? 49:16 - Why ARR at early stage is not the right metric? 52:26 - How to find what value your product really adds? 56:38 - Why $100M+ acquisitions are rare? ------------- India’s talent has built the world’s tech—now it’s time to lead it. This mission goes beyond startups. It’s about shifting the center of gravity in global tech to include the brilliance rising from India. What is Neon Fund? We invest in seed and early-stage founders from India and the diaspora building world-class Enterprise AI companies. We bring capital, conviction, and a community that’s done it before. Subscribe for real founder stories, investor perspectives, economist breakdowns, and a behind-the-scenes look at how we’re doing it all at Neon. ------------- Check us out on: Website: https://neon.fund/ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/theneonshoww/ LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/beneon/ Twitter: https://x.com/TheNeonShoww Connect with Siddhartha on: LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/siddharthaahluwalia/ Twitter: https://x.com/siddharthaa7 ------------- This video is for informational purposes only. The views expressed are those of the individuals quoted and do not constitute professional advice. Send us a text…

The Neon Show

1
Zomato: $500B Consumer Tech Bet, Tesla's $30T Future & Why India must lead Nuclear Energy|Deepak Garg 51:34

9 weeks 전51:34

나중에 재생

리스트

51:34

The dollar will lose its status as the world’s reserve currency & the greatest wealth transfer in history is already underway - warns the founder of one of India’s fastest-growing unicorns! In this episode, Deepak Garg, founder of Rivigo and AnywhereJobs shares why Rivigo's iconic Relay model succeeded, and what ultimately limited it. He predicts Zomato's dominance, questions funding choices of startups and shares why India may miss the AI revolution without a radical energy shift. From Bitcoin vs. gold and Trump’s potential Nobel Peace Prize to Tesla becoming a $30 trillion company, Deepak’s predictions are bold and grounded in years of pattern recognition. If you're a founder, investor, or macro nerd, this is an episode you won’t forget. 0:00- Rivigo & Anywhere Jobs 02:16 – When your business outgrows the market 04:18 – Capital raising is a Double-edged sword 05:02 – Which ideas truly need funding? 07:33 – Build teams with Accuracy, not Kindness 09:39 – How to know if you've chosen the right market? 10:41 – Why Zomato is India's best Consumer tech bet 16:00 – How the Power is shifting b/w nations today? 20:18 – Will Dollar cease to be a Reserve currency? 22:36 – Is Bitcoin better than Gold? 26:59 – Who will be the Next global Superpower? 31:56 – India in the Next 20 years 34:22 – When 2 players control 80% of India’s Private sector 35:52 – Why China is far ahead of India in Nuclear Energy? 40:17 – Will Trump win a Nobel Peace Prize in 2025? 42:01 – How Tesla could become a $30 trillion company? 47:15 – Wealth transfer from Wall Street to Main Street 50:30 – Where India should focus in AI ------------- India’s talent has built the world’s tech—now it’s time to lead it. This mission goes beyond startups. It’s about shifting the center of gravity in global tech to include the brilliance rising from India. What is Neon Fund? We invest in seed and early-stage founders from India and the diaspora building world-class Enterprise AI companies. We bring capital, conviction, and a community that’s done it before. Subscribe for real founder stories, investor perspectives, economist breakdowns, and a behind-the-scenes look at how we’re doing it all at Neon. ------------- Check us out on: Website: https://neon.fund/ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/theneonshoww/ LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/beneon/ Twitter: https://x.com/TheNeonShoww Connect with Siddhartha on: LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/siddharthaahluwalia/ Twitter: https://x.com/siddharthaa7 ------------- This video is for informational purposes only. The views expressed are those of the individuals quoted and do not constitute professional advice. Send us a text…

The Neon Show

1
What's Happening to VC in India w/ All In Capital, Peer Capital & Upekkha 55:15

10 weeks 전55:15

나중에 재생

리스트

55:15

Venture capital is much fancied today. Is this job which looks like cutting cheques for products and founders you like, for everyone? As for any work, there are traits you should have and some which won’t help you on the job. We have with us Kushal Bhagia (All In Capital), Karthik Prabhakar (Peer Capital), and Rajan (Upekkha). Three people who interestingly all began as engineers and took different career paths to today become Fund managers of leading VC firms. All In Capital’s $24M pre-seed fund backing early-stage founders, Peer Capital’s $75M early-stage fund investing in tech-first Indian startups from seed to Series A, Upekkha's $40M Capital’s accelerator-style fund supporting B2B SaaS startups. Tune in! 01:53 – Why builders shouldn’t become VCs? 03:12 – Why best VCs sell well & stay curious 05:12 – How the VC job is like Flying a plane 07:48 – How parental instincts enable VCs? 10:42 – Is fundraising harder than ever? 14:12 – What makes people write VC cheques? 18:03 – Where do India’s rich family offices invest? 20:30 – Why India still doesn’t have its own YC? 22:55 – The OG YC when startups weren’t cool 28:00 – Can YC’s numbers ever be replicated? 33:03 – David v/s Goliath of Small vs large funds 39:02 – Zepto’s first $50k cheque 40:22 – Sectors VCs won’t touch 41:35 – Story-driven v/s numbers-driven Fundraising 44:36 – How we missed Swiggy, Postman & Zepto? 46:18 – The best VCs 48:24 – What needs to change in Indian VC? 49:47 – Founders we’d invest In (But not work for) 51:25 – Unlearnings as an Investor ------------- India’s talent has built the world’s tech—now it’s time to lead it. This mission goes beyond startups. It’s about shifting the center of gravity in global tech to include the brilliance rising from India. What is Neon Fund? We invest in seed and early-stage founders from India and the diaspora building world-class Enterprise AI companies. We bring capital, conviction, and a community that’s done it before. Subscribe for real founder stories, investor perspectives, economist breakdowns, and a behind-the-scenes look at how we’re doing it all at Neon. ------------- Check us out on: Website: https://neon.fund/ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/theneonshoww/ LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/beneon/ Twitter: https://x.com/TheNeonShoww Connect with Siddhartha on: LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/siddharthaahluwalia/ Twitter: https://x.com/siddharthaa7 ------------- This video is for informational purposes only. The views expressed are those of the individuals quoted and do not constitute professional advice. Send us a text…

The Neon Show

1
3 Tech Founders on Whether AI Will Replace Your Job ft Rahul, Ananda and Vishwa 38:28

10 weeks 전38:28

나중에 재생

리스트

38:28

“Any sufficiently advanced technology is indistinguishable from magic.” In this episode of The Neon Show, Vishwa (Co-founder of ZenDuty) is joined by Rahul Sasi (Co-founder of CloudSEK) and Ananda Krishna (Co-founder of Astra Security). They share how AI feels magical now. And how as founders they are trying to sprinkle this magic everywhere from how building products to building teams and everything that matters. This episode is packed with valuable insights for anyone interested in startup culture, productivity, and AI magic. Tune in! Due to some technical issues, there are disturbances in the audio in a few parts. We apologize and hope to deliver the best production quality in all our future episodes. ------------- 00:00 Everything is being Reimagined! 00:41 Meet the New Hosts 01:08 Founders' Biggest Time Killer 05:10 Why entrepreneurs should fail fast? 11:19 Will your job inevitably change? 17:40 How AI has reimagined engineering jobs? 19:13 PMs & Designers have New workflows 20:35 Why everyone should learn to Prompt? 24:14 Is your team using AI Budgets efficiently? 26:59 Do people trust AI chatbots? 32:18 Does sales still need humans? 35:53 Do we expect empathy from AI? ------------- Check us out on: Website: https://neon.fund/ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/theneonshoww/ LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/beneon/ Twitter: https://x.com/TheNeonShoww Connect with Siddhartha on: LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/siddharthaahluwalia/ Twitter: https://x.com/siddharthaa7 ------------- This video is for informational purposes only. The views expressed are those of the individuals quoted and do not constitute professional advice. Send us a text…

The Neon Show

1
How to Hire, Train & Retain Talent to Build a Great Company | Vijay Rayapati | Khadim Batti 1:28:32

12 weeks 전1:28:32

나중에 재생

리스트

1:28:32

In this episode, we sit down with two exceptional founders. One who is going after the biggest category, and one who created a new category and became its leading player. Vijay Rayapati (Co-founder, Atomicwork) and Khadim Batti (Co-founder, Whatfix) share their hard-earned insights on what it truly takes to build a great company. From closing million-dollar deals remotely to building AI-native organisations and cultivating long-term leadership, this conversation goes deep into the real playbook behind enduring companies. Watch if you’re a founder, a team builder, or simply someone who wants to understand how great companies are actually built. 0:00 – Trailer 01:37 – The Viral Meme Story 03:28 – What the Founders Admire About Each Other 07:20 – Navigating US–India Work Timings 08:39 – Hiring & Retaining Talent 15:54 – Why Founders Need Mentors 24:53 – When Employees Think Short-Term 31:48 – Building Organic Leadership 35:58 – Hunger vs Humility 39:58 – Building Company Culture 44:55 – Why Abolish Designations 51:38 – What is Founder’s Mentality? 54:44 – Large vs New Categories 01:00:44 – When Things Go Wrong 01:02:41 – Handling Board Pressure 01:06:45 – Never Compromise on Customer Service 01:13:58 – What to build is becoming harder 01:18:57 – FOMO in AI 01:25:10 – AI Will Remove Bureaucracy, Not Jobs ------------- Hi, I am your host Siddhartha! I have been an entrepreneur from 2012-2017 building two products AddoDoc and Babygogo. After selling my company to SHEROES, I and my partner Nansi decided to start up again. But we felt unequipped in our skillset in 2018 to build a large company. We had known 0-1 journeys from our startups but lacked the experience of building 1-10 journeys. Hence was born The Neon Show (Earlier 100x Entrepreneur) to learn from founders and investors, the mindset to scale yourself and your company. This quest still keeps us excited even after 5 years and doing 200+ episodes. We welcome you to our journey to understand what goes behind building a super successful company. Every episode is done with a very selfish motive, that I and Nansi should come out as a better entrepreneur and professional after absorbing the learnings. ------------- Check us out on: Website: https://neon.fund/ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/theneonshoww/ LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/beneon/ Twitter: https://x.com/TheNeonShoww Connect with Siddhartha on: LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/siddharthaahluwalia/ Twitter: https://x.com/siddharthaa7 ------------- This video is for informational purposes only. The views expressed are those of the individuals quoted and do not constitute professional advice. Send us a text…

The Neon Show

1
$1Billion CRM from India competing with Salesforce | Nilesh Patel, LeadSquared 47:55

14 weeks 전47:55

나중에 재생

리스트

47:55

CRM is a category often equated with its market leader, Salesforce. Hence, companies and investors question the viability of building a business in this space. Nilesh Patel, founder of Leadsquared, who built a Unicorn in CRM, joins us today. We discuss the category, the business, and its competitors. With Byju’s as their first large deal, Edtech brought over 40% of their customers. Then the industry went through a downfall, but Leadsquared survived by a well timed expansion. From lack of capital restricting entry into the US market, to fast-forward today, where they have gone global. Nilesh shares his thoughts on the skills founders need and the decisions they have to make -on exits, acquisitions, and hiring. Tune in for more! 0:00-Trailer 1:35 – Building Leadsquared 3:19 – First large deal with Byjus 7:12 – Fundraising from Private Equity 9:58 – CRM as an Undesirable Investment 12:10 – Should Co’s enter the CRM Space? 13:35 – How to price SAAS in India? 15:23 – Diversifying beyond EdTech 16:49 – How to build market differentiation? 20:29 – Highest annual deal of <$10M 23:37 – India spends $500M-$1B on CRM 26:39 – Are Indian founders underpricing? 28:40 – GTM in the US Market 33:26 – What would Leadsquared do differently? 47:32 – When Should a Founder Exit? 49:03 – How AI Will Transform CRM 55:09 – Views on Byju Raveendran 56:55 – When founders think like VC’s ------------- Hi, I am your host Siddhartha! I have been an entrepreneur from 2012-2017 building two products AddoDoc and Babygogo. After selling my company to SHEROES, I and my partner Nansi decided to start up again. But we felt unequipped in our skillset in 2018 to build a large company. We had known 0-1 journeys from our startups but lacked the experience of building 1-10 journeys. Hence was born The Neon Show (Earlier 100x Entrepreneur) to learn from founders and investors, the mindset to scale yourself and your company. This quest still keeps us excited even after 5 years and doing 200+ episodes. We welcome you to our journey to understand what goes behind building a super successful company. Every episode is done with a very selfish motive, that I and Nansi should come out as a better entrepreneur and professional after absorbing the learnings. ------------- Check us out on: Website: https://neon.fund/ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/theneonshoww/ LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/beneon/ Twitter: https://x.com/TheNeonShoww Connect with Siddhartha on: LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/siddharthaahluwalia/ Twitter: https://x.com/siddharthaa7 ------------- This video is for informational purposes only. The views expressed are those of the individuals quoted and do not constitute professional advice. Send us a text…

The Neon Show

1
Can Neysa be India's AI Cloud alternative to AWS, Azure & Google Cloud? | Sharad Sanghi 51:54

15 weeks 전51:54

나중에 재생

리스트

51:54

Meet Sharad Sanghi who built India’s first data center, he spent 25 years building Netmagic, India’s largest data center company. He came to India in 1995, worked at VSNL as the country was discovering the internet, and built a company focused on internet for businesses. Now he is building Neysa, an AI cloud startup, which recently raised $50M to help businesses adopt AI, all from India. With Neysa businesses can use AI without writing a lot of code or use five different tools to run it. And do everything—train models, test them, deploy them, and monitor them—in one single dashboard. Sharad has a lot of perspective to share—as someone who was at the forefront while India adopted the internet, and now, the AI wave. If you're building in AI, part of an enterprise exploring AI, or simply thinking about where India is in the AI race—this episode is for you. 0:00 – Trailer 02:00 – How Neysa makes AI easy & cheap? 04:37 – From datacentre to AI 06:54 – 1200 GPUs & 15 Clients 07:24 – Selling internet to Businesses 12:03 – Why India Needs Local AI Clouds 13:20 – How Neysa Plans to Stand Out 15:14 – Is Scaling a Hyperscaler Easy? 19:26 – Can India Shift from IT to AI? 26:40 – AI in Large Enterprises vs Mid-Market 27:51 – AI Revolution vs Cloud in 2006 31:06 – What’s the Moat for AI Startups? 33:08 – Is Private Data the Real AI Goldmine? 35:59 – Why Product & GTM Matter Early On 38:06 – Why Scaling must come before Demand 42:12 – OpenAI’s edge on Deepseek? 44:52 – How should enterprises navigate AI? 46:32 – Did Only NVIDIA Predict the AI Boom? 48:17 – Founder 1.0 V/S 2.0 ------------- Hi, I am your host Siddhartha! I have been an entrepreneur from 2012-2017 building two products AddoDoc and Babygogo. After selling my company to SHEROES, I and my partner Nansi decided to start up again. But we felt unequipped in our skillset in 2018 to build a large company. We had known 0-1 journeys from our startups but lacked the experience of building 1-10 journeys. Hence was born The Neon Show (Earlier 100x Entrepreneur) to learn from founders and investors, the mindset to scale yourself and your company. This quest still keeps us excited even after 5 years and doing 200+ episodes. We welcome you to our journey to understand what goes behind building a super successful company. Every episode is done with a very selfish motive, that I and Nansi should come out as a better entrepreneur and professional after absorbing the learnings. ------------- Check us out on: Website: https://neon.fund/ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/theneonshoww/ LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/beneon/ Twitter: https://x.com/TheNeonShoww Connect with Siddhartha on: LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/siddharthaahluwalia/ Twitter: https://x.com/siddharthaa7 ------------- This video is for informational purposes only. The views expressed are those of the individuals quoted and do not constitute professional advice. Send us a text…

The Neon Show

1
How Accel Deploys $650M in India & Manages $5B in Growth + Late Stage | Prayank Swaroop 51:33

16 weeks 전51:33

나중에 재생

리스트

51:33

In this episode of The Neon Show, we bring you into the room with someone who’s spent over a decade backing India’s most ambitious companies. We're joined by Prayank Swaroop, Partner at Accel. With over 14 years in venture capital, Prayank walks us through his journey of discovering and building expertise in specific sectors—from cybersecurity and developer tools to SaaS and marketplaces—and how VCs identify the categories they truly understand. We dive into how Accel chooses best founders, and the balance between backing founder versus business across stages. Prayank shares his candid thoughts on why India has been slow and late to the AI race, and what a realistic way forward could look like for Indian startups. He also offers a glimpse into Accel’s evolving investment thesis around AI, sector by sector, and talks about how the enterprise landscape is changing—and what that means for Indian founders building in this space. Tune in! 0:00- Trailer 1:45 – Finding Great Founders 6:30 – What We'd Do Differently 10:16 – Sector Expertise Matters 13:15 – Where AI Money Should Go 18:00 – Accel’s GenAI Bets 21:18 – Sector-Wise Thesis in AI 23:24 – Growth means Product in AI 26:45 – Rise of Founder-Influencers 29:10 – $650million India Fund 31:35 – Beyond Roti, Kapda, Makaan 34:07 – Why Accel is Big on Content 36:03 – 15 Years in VC 38:16 – Highs & Lows of VC Ecosystem 43:36 – Knowledge Compounds in VC 49:45 – Conviction over Consensus 51:06 - Conclusion ------------- Hi, I am your host Siddhartha! I have been an entrepreneur from 2012-2017 building two products AddoDoc and Babygogo. After selling my company to SHEROES, I and my partner Nansi decided to start up again. But we felt unequipped in our skillset in 2018 to build a large company. We had known 0-1 journeys from our startups but lacked the experience of building 1-10 journeys. Hence was born The Neon Show (Earlier 100x Entrepreneur) to learn from founders and investors, the mindset to scale yourself and your company. This quest still keeps us excited even after 5 years and doing 200+ episodes. We welcome you to our journey to understand what goes behind building a super successful company. Every episode is done with a very selfish motive, that I and Nansi should come out as a better entrepreneur and professional after absorbing the learnings. ------------- Check us out on: Website: https://neon.fund/ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/theneonshoww/ LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/beneon/ Twitter: https://x.com/TheNeonShoww Connect with Siddhartha on: LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/siddharthaahluwalia/ Twitter: https://x.com/siddharthaa7 ------------- This video is for informational purposes only. The views expressed are those of the individuals quoted and do not constitute professional advice. Send us a text…