Amrit Kochar

🚀 30-Day Tech Update Challenge: Day 3 🚀 Hi everyone! I’m Vaibhav Bhardwaj, a second-year college student, back with Day 3 of my 30-day challenge where I share daily updates about the latest trends and news in the tech world. Let’s dive into today's update! Day 3: India Faces Talent Shortage in Core AI Development 🌟 AI Talent Gap in India: Despite extensive training initiatives by top tech companies, India faces a significant shortage of senior engineers skilled in developing core AI products. Key Points: 🔹 Training Initiatives: · Tata Consultancy Services (TCS): Trained 350,000 employees in AI skills. · Infosys: 80% of employees are AI-ready. · Accenture: Upskilling 250,000 employees in AI. · HCLTech: Trained 50,000 employees. · Microsoft India: Plans to skill 2 million people in AI by 2025. · IBM: Committed to train 2 million people globally in AI by 2026. 🔹 Talent Shortage: ·Despite these efforts, there are less than 2,000 senior AI engineers in India capable of building core AI products and services. ·Core AI products and services include AI-based applications, tools, and platforms. ·The total active, accessible Indian talent with the minimum required skills, experience, and exposure to core AI is a little under 21,000. 🔹 Industry Perspective: ·This shortage is starkly contrasted by Nasscom's claim that 650,000-700,000 people are trained in AI across top-tier tech companies. ·The gap highlights the difference between basic AI training and the advanced skills required for core AI development. Source: The data is sourced from specialist staffing firm Xpheno and reported by Moneycontrol. Read more about this update here. (https://lnkd.in/gPUwt3KF) Stay tuned for more exciting updates over the next 30 days! If you’re involved in AI development or upskilling initiatives, let’s connect and discuss. 💬 #30DayChallenge #TechUpdates #ArtificialIntelligence #AITalent #Upskilling #India #TCS #Infosys #Accenture #HCLTech #Microsoft #IBM #TechNews

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Given the changing paradigms in technology and media, we know that the next 10 years will look nothing like the last 10 years. Thanks to The Economic Times for capturing our interactive media thesis for the years ahead. As we crystal ball gaze into the future, there has been no better time to invest in India. In the last few years, we have seen the market mature across key vectors - propensity to pay, quality of talent, capital inflows, and exits. This represents meaningful upside for founders and investors in this space over the coming decade. With the incredible shifts in tech, media and gaming, there are some exciting times ahead! 🚀 https://lnkd.in/gTfYa3Kw

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“I do not enjoy 80% of my work” I truly enjoy only 20% of my work and lack the motivation to do the rest because they are boring tasks. But boring tasks are often unavoidable. This was true during my JEE preparation, undergrad at IITM, PhD at MIT, and while running startups now. I have realized that motivation does not work for me. I am demotivated to do a major chunk of my daily work. Yet I manage to get the uninteresting, unscalable, and boring stuff done. The only thing that works for me is discipline. I am happy when I am disciplined. So I fit boring and difficult things into my daily routine. If those things are not done, I deviate from my routine. This deviation makes me unhappy. Motivation from YouTube videos, quotes, and inspirational figures are all short-lived. I feel fired up for 5 minutes. That’s it. It simply does not work beyond that. I want to be good at getting boring stuff done fast and efficiently. For that, I have to make it part of my life. That is why I personally like being disciplined more than being motivated. Motivation is a feeling. And feelings are short-lived. Discipline is a habit. Habits can continue for a lifetime.

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Education is priority, even if we think AI is taking over… Knowledge is power… Keep learning, you’ll still be faster when you KNOW more!! Bringing a lot of data in one place, in one CRM, with a fast way of dealing with it > gives you great powers! #Cloudastick #Salesforce #CRM #Sales #Marketing #Service #UserExperience #Passion #Business #Success #Egypt #UAE #KSA #Bahrain #EMEA #UK #US

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At first blush, regarding multimodal #AI Assistants, we presume an awkwardness when speaking rather than typing. Not so fast, that's the very problem solved by #GPT4o by way of cadence, tone, and flow handling. I've attached an example snippet from a conversation I had with one of my assistants about our #VirtuosoRDBMS and its importance to a Chief Data Officer (#CDO). Important things to note: [1] I recorded the final response from a conversation that sought to make the response succinct and focused. [2] My assistant tapped into a loosely coupled #KnowledgeGraph comprising lots of information about our Virtuoso platform (a return on our investment in handcrafting all relevant knowledge about our products in RDF-Turtle). [3] I can also get the assistant to recall various segments of editions of prior conversations, etc. Folks, this is a game-changer! Conversing with a digital assistant delivers huge productivity benefits that will shake the very foundation of the software industry. We are in the midst of a bigger inflection than the one that ushered in the World Wide Web (#Web). This time around, @OpenAI is playing the role of #Netscape. #Software #Disruption #Industry #AI #GenAI #Multimodal #SmartAgent #GraphRAG #RAG #CDO #CAIO #CIO #CMO

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Another notable thing from the new Budget: Space sector gets 1000 cr ($120M) VC Fund allocation. This is a very important signal, even though the numbers are small in the context of capital requirement by the sector. I am a big believer of India owning the space sector worldwide over time in a manner similar to how we have owned the Technology services market. The talent pool and infrastructure (thanks to ISRO), emerging technologies around miniaturization, and evolving supply chain makes it one of the few spaces where India has a ‘right to win’. Strongly recommend more Entrepreneurs to participate in this area. Given the high capital requirements in the initial days (before monetization), it is a hard place for VCs to play but we will see innovation in capital structure over time (the Government allocation being one such evolution). And I am not only saying this, I actually brought a company to our Investment Committee (where I am also a member) making a case for Investment. We continue to look at the space and hope to cross the line sometime. https://lnkd.in/gzB9UUb8

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Do you also Bring Your Own AI (#BYOAI) to work? 🤖 It is safe to say that we are well past the initial days of generative AI where all it led to was confusion more than anything else at most large scale companies. The 2024 Work Trend Index Report from Microsoft & LinkedIn is out and it confirms a paradigm shift into the future, with AI here to stay. However, it dives into some very interesting insights and nuances as well, which I will break down over the new few days. Today, a whopping 75% of knowledge workers use AI at work, with 46% having just started less than six months ago. A large majority of users agree that AI helps them 🔸 Save time (90%) 🔸 Focus on important work (85%) 🔸 Be more creative (84%) 🔸 Enjoy Work From Home (83%) But where does BYOAI come into this and what does it mean? Now AI progressing this rapidly was something not many companies had planned ahead for, leading to very slow & confused undertaking of initiatives pertaining to AI. This is where a lot of employees (78% of AI users) started taking matters into their own hands, using AI tools to get their work done quicker- especially at small to medium size companies! Even more surprisingly, the penetration is across all age groups, not just GenZ as many might presume (see illustration below). With AI enabling rapid change and faster pace than ever before, it becomes imperative for leaders to understand how to best handle and synergize AI with tasks at work, all while still ensuring quality, privacy and security. Is there something you are doing to ensure your workplace gets the best of AI? How have you been making the most of AI and conversely, has it ever gotten you into trouble?! Image Credit: 2024 Work Trend Index Report by Microsoft & LinkedIn #artificialintelligence #ai #aiatwork #generativeai

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How to build a growth system? You see, growth is the output of every product. Retention - acquisition and monetisation are the inputs. You cannot build a growth system for a dumbass product, the product should create great value to the user so that the user organically comes on to the app with their natural frequency to experience the value. You then build a system that not only increases this natural frequency (increasing retention) but also building acquisition and monetisation loops while the user is experiencing the value of your product. These three things, retention - monetisation - acquisition, wont act like a funnel, rather they work as a system of compounding loops driving sustainable, repeatable and massive growth over time, but it all depends on creating product value first, if you're pre-product market fit, get to product value fit first, then a growth system. Now, how to build a growth system? We have a process and to keep it straightforward we call that the growth process. This process is specifically designed to make sure that we are removing human biases from the equation so that we can understand how to intentionally pull the levers within our growth system to produce more growth rather than trying things at random. for example, for driving retention - along with the product value - the growth process uses design and leverages the user psychology to create consistent positive experience in every screen, setting up the user for experiencing the value so the user genuinely feels delightful and aha, and build natural and manufactured loops (like notifications) to create a habit and experience the product value again and again for driving retention. In the same way, for acquisition - we have our growth models and for monetisation we have experimentations. Covering one by one, going forward.

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📉 The Fall of BYJU'S: A Cautionary Tale for Indian Parents As Byju's valuation plummets from a staggering $22 billion to virtually zero (ref in the comments section), it becomes imperative to examine the practices that have led to such a downfall. Unfortunately, these are not just corporate missteps but issues that deeply affect individual lives, particularly those of unsuspecting parents in Tier 2 and Tier 3 towns. One such case involves my relative, who has been entangled in an ordeal with Byju's that perfectly encapsulates the company's current troubles. Despite raising a cancellation request in April'24, Byju's has continued to charge them for both April and May (June they could not deduct because my relative did not put enough money in it). The BYJU'S support staff, which should be a beacon of assistance, has been unresponsive and unhelpful. This negligence has forced my relative to consider closing their primary bank account, a drastic step that disrupts their everyday transactions and financial stability. As per their support staff - they can not assure whether this deduction will stop or not even when the cancellation request has been raised, hence they are left with no choice but to close their primary bank account. Even after closing the bank account, my relative is still being relentlessly chased by Byju's recovery department to pay the subscription fees/emi. The tone and persistence of these recovery agents resemble that of extortionists, putting immense mental pressure on my relative. This aggressive and harassing behavior is unacceptable and further underscores the company's operational failures. Support Ticket # - 5910087 Such practices are not just administrative lapses but a betrayal of trust. Byju's was once seen as a revolutionary force in education, promising quality learning to children across India. However, the company's inability to handle basic customer service issues speaks volumes about its operational failures. Parents, particularly in Tier 2 and Tier 3 cities, invest in educational services like Byju's with the hope of securing a better future for their children. It is disheartening to see these very families being taken advantage of and left in distress. This erosion of trust is perhaps one of the fundamental reasons behind Byju's precipitous decline in valuation. 🛑 Parents, please exercise caution when dealing with Byju's. Always read the fine print and ensure you understand the terms and conditions before committing to any service. Your vigilance is the first line of defense against such malpractices. #Byjus #CustomerService #Education #EthicsInBusiness #Trust #IndianParents

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Meet this IIT-Madras graduate who is building a search engine to be Google’s competitor! Context: Perplexity was founded in 2022 by Andy Konwinski, Denis Yarats, Johnny Ho, and Aravind Srinivas (graduate from Indian Institute of Technology, Madras). It lets you ask questions & provides summarized information accompanied by citations. Perplexity recently raised $62.7 million at a $1.04 billion valuation. Renowned investors such as Daniel Gross (ex-head of AI at Y Combinator), Jeff Bezos, NVIDIA and Garry Tan participated in the round. This funding will be used for the expansion of the user base of consumers and knowledge workers in the enterprise market. ✅ Here are 5 interesting facts about Perplexity: 1. Perplexity AI delivers responses to user queries using large language models such as GPT-4, Claude 3, and Mistral Large, alongside custom models. 2. They've partnered with Deutsche Telekom and SoftBank to fuel the distribution of the search engine to 116 million users globally. 3. They recently launched Perplexity Enterprise Pro which helps enterprise customers and competes with Google’s Gemini and OpenAI’s GPT-4. (NVIDIA, Zoom, Databricks, and HP are its customers.) 4. Perplexity’s CEO, Aravind Srinivas, is a graduate of Indian Institute of Technology, Madras where he completed a degree in Electrical Engineering in 2017. He then completed a PhD In Computer Science from the University of California, Berkeley. 5. While pursuing his PhD, Aravind interned at top companies like OpenAI, Google DeepMind, and Google. Let's see how Perplexity AI changes the current landscape! … Please re-share this post so it helps more people! 🙏 Finally, if you’re an immigrant in America, join 15,000+ who get my weekly newsletter packed with breaking news & free resources like this: https://lnkd.in/gXzfuj74 :) #unshackled #immigration #USA #entrepreneurship #india

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Koo shutdown news got everyone talking about it. Huge respect for Koo Founders; they are my fellow Blumiers! 💜 I remember writing a post about Web 2.0 Social Networking Tools in 2006! Yes, in 2006! I thought to share here 👇 Social networking tools targeting a particular social segment might not work out in the future. For instance, a student having Facebook during graduation, LinkedIn for building business contacts, and Bebo for something else…will this be feasible in the long run? I have one Hi5 account, created a Bebo when a friend requested it, left Orkut and continued using LinkedIn. For GenZs, Hi5, Orkit, Bebo were social network of the past decades! :) I was one of Spoke's key designers and developers for Spoke (it is dead as of 2024), the first of the few social networking-based tools (though Spoke targets enterprise networking and solutions like SalesForce and others). Spoke - https://lnkd.in/g3u7kmPY I was involved in the Spoke first MVP launch in 2002. LinkedIn has targeted the professional community successfully. Friendster couldn’t sustain its success after Myspace arrived; however, Myspace had a good strategy of allowing various communities to coexist in the same social space. In a single Myspace, a convergence of various social groups happened. Taking this argument further, many social networking tools are definite bubble-burst types. Note: This is from my blog post from July 2006 👇 https://lnkd.in/gGqDqvdx

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Since returning from IIT Bombay, I've been struck by the enduring importance people in tier-2/3 cities place on relationships over wealth. Here, relationships trump the latest tech from OpenAI or Meta. Conversations during evening walks revolve around current events, politics etc., not the metaverse. It's a reminder of the vital role traditional businesses play in these communities, where local MSME owners excel in salesmanship, often outperforming MBA graduates. This resonates with Naval Ravikant's insights in 'The Almanack,' emphasizing the compounding benefits of nurturing relationships, not just in wealth accumulation, but in fostering long-term success." Perhaps these traditional business models, where MSME owners excel through relationship building, hold valuable lessons for us all? #business #relationships #compunding #India

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Google leases a ~650,000 sq ft office space in Bangalore for ~$500,000/mo to expand its presence in India! Context: Google has leased a new office space at Alembic City in Bangalore for a monthly rent of $0.74 per sq ft for 3 years as part of its expansion strategy. In 2022, Google renewed a rental pact for 600,000 sq ft office space in Hyderabad. In the same deal, they leased a 1.3 million sq ft office in Bangalore. This is the tech firm’s proactive strategy of leasing both traditional and flexible office spaces in major Indian cities to strengthen its presence. Today, Google has a presence of 9.3 million sq ft of real estate footprint in 5 cities across India! Since 2020, Google’s office space portfolio in India has increased by 3.5 million sq ft. Google is also investing big in India to manufacture Pixel smartphones as well as drones at facilities of Foxconn. Google will launch the Pixel 8 model in India soon. …. Please re-share this post so it helps more people! 🙏 Finally, if you’re an immigrant in America, join 15,000+ who get my weekly newsletter packed with breaking news & free resources like this: https://lnkd.in/gKtUGU-r :) #unshackled #immigration #USA #india #Google #jobs

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Raised $26,000,000 with just an idea Lyskraft India Pvt Ltd - the latest kid in the block! So, Mukesh Bansal is back with another startup this time with Mohit Gupta, the former CEO of Zomato's food delivery arm. In July of last year, there were reports about Bansal and Gupta raising funds for a new venture. As per TechCrunch, both of them pitched a range of ideas to potential backers like a female-focused counterpart to Manyavar and "Infosys 2.0" a presumed upgrade to a multinational IT services and consulting firm. Now finally... The news is out and we know what they are building, Lyskraft: initially a women's only marketplace for premium brands mostly focusing on Gen-Z shoppers. Recently we have seen giant e-commerce platforms launching dedicated portals to attract GenZ shoppers, like SPOYL launched by Flipkart within its app, FWD by Myntra, also we are seeing the growth of new-age startups working in this space like Virgio(Mukesh Bansal is an investor in it), Newme(recently raised $4,500,000), Absolute Brands, Snitch, Styched and many more As per Inc42's Report, India's fashion and apparel sector is projected to reach a mouth-watering $112 Billion by 2030, which will be over a quarter of the country's $400 Billion e-commerce market!! Let's be honest, anyone will want a piece of this market. As we are already aware of how crowded this space is, let's see how Lyskraft differentiates itself from others. Mohit Gupts and Mukesh Bansal, in this crowded space building a community around your product, building digital IPs, and creating experiences through videos are the ways to elevate your brand to the next level. I the founder of Elevate would love to connect and assist Lyskraft in building a community, digital IPs and help create experiences through videos, if that sounds like something that interests you would love to connect and discuss!! sources of information : TechCrunch article 2021 - https://bit.ly/49UwkLI Inc42 article - https://bit.ly/3w0SDlb #mukeshbansal #myntra #fashion #startups #venturecapital #fundingwinter #norevenue #cultfit #community #communitymarketing #socialmediamarketing #india

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SoftBank to Invest in US Search Startup Perplexity AI at a $3Bn Valuation ! "SoftBank was founded for what purpose? For what purpose was Masa Son born? It may sound strange, but I was born to realize ASI (Artificial Super Intelligence) . I am super serious about it," - said Masayoshi Son, CEO SoftBank. It sounds more like a plot straight out of a Hollywood thriller. One of Son's boldest moves was announced just four months ago: "SoftBank founder reportedly aims to raise $100B to build an AI chip company that would rival Nvidia." Really? Nvidia didn’t just appear out of thin air. Connecting the dots, it's clear: SoftBank’s founder wants to invest in Perplexity to challenge Google’s dominance in the search engine space. Specifically, AI to rival all conglomerates. Why only Perplexity? Perplexity has been the media darling for quite some time. SoftBank needed a renowned brand to boost its reputation in Japan, and Perplexity fits the bill perfectly. Will This Turn Out to Be Profitable for SoftBank? SoftBank’s Track Record under Son in 2023: Lost $100M in FTX Lost $2B in Katerra Lost $1.4B in WeWork Lost $1.6B in SenseTime Group Lost $800M in DoorDash The list goes on. But who knows? Perplexity might be their game-changer; 2024 could be the year they break even. My Take on Perplexity: I feel like they haven't done much beyond leveraging off-the-shelf models. Perplexity is a prime example of the power of effective marketing and sales. Wait, but how did Perplexity secure all these funds in that case? Simple, looking at the mirror and saying "Google-killer" firmly 3 times every day. PS: After using Perplexity for approx. 1 month, I feel they are going to kill google search engine soon. The hype is apt. #SoftBank #AI #Investments #PerplexityAI #TechNews #Innovation #BusinessStrategy

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#AIHiring AI in hiring was covered on the front page of Sunday The Economic Times yesterday. Great to see this making headlines. But as they say, if you are reading it in the newspaper, it's already too late :-) Human intervention does not even need to start at the screening interview stage anymore because our very own #AIAgent Tina does that, 24x7 💙 Just do the final interview, send the offer letter and get to talent at the speed of AI! #recruitment #ai Babblebots.ai

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Stats here speak the story. Birla Institute of Technology and Science, Pilani has truly provided a great launchpad for entrepreneurs. I can say this with pride because I have had my skin-in-game. BITSian entrepreneurs find support from brilliant peers and alumni - many of who interestingly end up choosing to work in sectors hardly related to their academic pursuits, and yet more often than not, stir their respective domains along the way to make for an unforgettable story! #ProudToBeBITSian

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Are you a product leader or founder in SF Bay Area or Bengaluru? If yes, you don't want to miss this post, period. 🚀 Bits-n-Atoms, our flagship mixer for founders, operators is live in Bengaluru this month and our 6th edition of GrabChai is back to the Bay Our previous editions have had folks from Meta, Google, OpenAI, Snap, Swiggy, Flipkart, Uber, Microsoft and others come in and share their journey 🗓️ May 23rd - Bay Area & May 25th - Bengaluru 📬 Invite Only What’s on the agenda? 🤝 Meet product leaders, startup founders, and fellow growth folks 💬 Get inspired and gain new insights. 🍴 It's all about great food and even better conversations. Follow The Product Folks so you don’t miss future ones! Check the comments section for RSVP links, see you there 👋

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Swiggy's Public Debut: A Recipe for Market Success? India's leading food delivery and quick commerce platform is poised to enter the public market with a proposed IPO aiming to raise INR 10,414.1 Cr ($1.2 Bn) in 2024. Despite facing significant hurdles such as achieving profitability and stiff competition in the quick commerce sector, Swiggy's strategic initiatives and market adjustments offer a comprehensive case study of adaptive business strategies in a highly competitive environment. This analysis delves into Swiggy's preparations for its IPO, focusing on financial health, market positioning, and strategic maneuvers amidst evolving market dynamics. Company Overview: Founded in 2014, Swiggy has expanded from a food delivery service to include a quick commerce business through its Instamart service. The company, valued at over $12 Bn in recent weeks, is backed by significant investors including Prosus, Accel, and SoftBank. Swiggy's business model has evolved to encompass not just food delivery but also quick commerce and a dining-out business, attempting to capture a larger share of consumer spending in India’s burgeoning online market. IPO Details: Swiggy’s IPO comprises a fresh issue of shares worth INR 3,750.1 Cr ($449 Mn) and an offer-for-sale component worth INR 6,664 Cr ($799 Mn). This move is part of a broader trend among Indian unicorns moving toward public listings in a rejuvenated market atmosphere in 2024. The IPO is seen as a critical step for Swiggy to secure additional capital for scaling operations, amidst ongoing challenges. Market Dynamics: Despite a robust growth trajectory, Swiggy faces intense competition in the quick commerce segment, notably from Blinkit and Zepto, which have gained significant market share. The rise of these competitors, coupled with strategic shifts by incumbents like Zomato and new entrants such as Tata-owned BigBasket and Flipkart, has created a highly competitive market environment. Financial Performance: In FY24, Swiggy reported revenues of over INR 10,000 Cr, a 20% increase year-over-year, primarily driven by a surge in Instamart orders and increased platform fees. However, the company has not yet achieved profitability, with a net loss reported to be around $207 Mn in the first nine months of FY24. Swiggy has implemented several strategic initiatives aimed at improving profitability, including: - Increasing platform fees and introducing collection fees from restaurants. - Restructuring operations to reduce cash burn and operational streamlining. - Diversifying revenue streams by integrating quick commerce offerings to increase average order values. Challenges and Opportunities: Swiggy's immediate challenges include transitioning from a growth-focused startup to a profitable public entity. Swiggy’s ability to manage its food delivery alongside burgeoning sectors like quick commerce and dining out will be critical in determining its success post-IPO. #swiggy #ipo #startups

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