We Founder Circle Intends to Invest in 10 Startups in Telangana in 2023, Commits to Investing in 50 Startups in the Next 5 Years at TiE Global Summit 2022

The Average Ticket Size of these Investments would be between USD 100k to USD 150k

We Founder Circle (WFC), an early-stage start-up investment platform led by a global community of successful founders and strategic angels, today announced its aggressive startup investment plans for the Andhra-Telangana regions. The platform unveiled its targets – to invest in over 50 startups in the region in the next 5 years and facilitate funding for at least 8 in 2023.

WFC has already more than 5 startups in its portfolio hailing from the region. Considering that Hyderabad is becoming a tech hub and a lot of innovative startups are rising from the land, WFC recently announced Invstt Trust Fund to cater to the ingenious startup business models.

“For a lot of startup verticals like auto service, Web3, SAAS, etc., Hyderabad has become the Launchpad. The best examples of the success we see for startups in the Hyderabad-Telangana regions are Hesa and CUSMAT. They are taking the country by storm. WFC invested in as well as facilitated their last two funding rounds. We uphold these startups as the topmost examples of what the potent combination of disruptive technology, funding, and mentorship can do for startups. We have a knack for understanding the pulse of what it takes for a startup to succeed. We are planning to explore deeper into verticals like – Agritech, SAAS, Web3, Deep Tech, EV, and AI. It is about further propelling the growth of emerging technologies and contributing to the rising tech hub in the country. We are foreseeing Hyderabad as the next “Bengaluru,” said Mr. Neeraj Tyagi, Co-Founder of We Founder Circle. 

“A lot of investors hail from Tier II and III cities in India – in fact, the majority of them. We will be coming up with aggressive plans to empower the investors from Tier II and III areas in Andhra – Telangana region. This will be followed by a series of investor meets and startup meets so that the bridge between the two sides is well established here as well. WFC has also partnered with local ecosystems such T-Hub, to boost the platform in democratizing early-stage start-up investments. We believe local ecosystems play a significant role in building the startup ecosystem of a region and we plan to create more of such partnerships. We have also been silently building our investor strength in this region and have met with resounding success,” said Mr. Gaurav VK Singhvi, Co-Founder, We Founder Circle. 

To begin the journey of their aggressive plans, We Founder Circle has partnered with TiE Global Summit 2022 which is being held in Hyderabad. This collaboration also enables the platform for WFC to embark on its endeavour #AmbitionHyderabad by facilitating investments at the event.

About We Founder Circle

Established in 2020 in Mumbai, We Founder Circle is a global community of successful founders & strategic angels that have come together to push the start-up industry and steer it towards aggressive growth. WFC invests USD 50K- USD 2M amount in early-stage start-ups that are fueled with ambition, sustainability, and a strategic approach. WFC provides seed funding, business development, and global networking opportunities to start-ups as it believes early-stage start-ups need a lot beyond just financial support to become scalable and stable. It has already enabled USD 12M worth of investments across 33 start-up deals in the year 2021 alone and invested in 70+ start-ups since incorporation.

TiE Hyderabad to Host the World’s Largest Entrepreneurship Meet ‘TiE Global Summit 2022’

B.J Arun, Murali Bhukkapatnam, Suresh Raju seen addressing the press conference of TiE Global Summit 2022

To focus broadly on Future Tech, New Age Entrepreneurship and Sustainability

TiE (The Indus Entrepreneurs) Hyderabad Chapter, the local chapter of TiE Global to host Tie Global Summit 2022(TGS-2022), the world’s largest entrepreneurship meet in Hyderabad.

TiE Hyderabad is fortunate and proud to be hosting the 6th edition of the TiE Global Summit

TiE Global Summit (TGS) 2022 scheduled on 12th - 14th December is to be held in person in Hyderabad.TGS-2022 will broadly focus on Future Tech, New Age Entrepreneurship and Sustainability added Mr B.J. Arun, Chairman - TIE Global Board of Trustees.
The participants can expect is -

• Future Tech: Metaverse, Web3.0, Composable Apps/networks, Digital Humans,
• Multi-experiences, NFT, Data Fabric, Implanted Sensors, Decentralized Finance/Identity, Pharma, Health-tech
• New Age Entrepreneurship: Startups on Steroids, Alternate Funding, Unicorns
• Sustainability: Focus SDGs majorly on Agriculture, Water & Energy

With this primary focus on FutureTech, TGS 2022 will witness a footfall of 2000+ global entrepreneurs bringing together the entrepreneurial ecosystem spanning 6 continents in Hyderabad, Mr B. J. Arun added. Mr BJ Arun heads TiE Global, the largest entrepreneurs' not-for-profit organization dedicated to fostering entrepreneurship.  

Mahavir, Praveen, B.J Arun, Murali Bhukkapatnam, Suresh Raju seen formally announcing TiE Global Summit 2022

This summit will be well attended by 500+ charter members from across the globe, delegates comprising 1500+ entrepreneurs, 200+industry experts, 150+ speakers, 100+ venture capitalists, 100+ angel investors, 250+global mentors, government officials and world leaders informed Mr Suresh Raju, President TiE Hyderabad who is also the Co-Chair for the Global SummitThe summit, Mr Murali. Bukkapatnam, Vice Chairman - TiE Global Board of Trustees and Co-Chair for the Global Summit said will host global competitions like

• TiE Young Entrepreneurs (High School) / Finalists from 20+ TiE Chapters to compete
• TiE Grad Plus (College/University) /  Finalists from 20+ TiE Chapters to compete
• TiE Women (Women Entrepreneurs) / Finalists from 20+ TiE Chapters to compete
• TiE Social Enterprises / Showcase of top 20 social enterprises from the global entrepreneurial ecosystem
• TiE Chapter Showcase / Best entrepreneurial programs of TiE Chapters

TiE Global Summit is the annual flagship conference of TiE Global where each year TiE Chapters collaborate to bring the best in a class of content - from speaker sessions to mentoring sessions, marquee keynotes, and fireside chats and thought-provoking discussions on entrepreneurship. TiE Global Summit remains to be a one-stop marquee destination for every entrepreneur globally to attend, meet and interact with the next generation of entrepreneurs or their counterparts. 

Over the past 5 editions, TGS has attracted 30,000+ delegates from corners of the globe along with 300+ exhibitors, 600+ speakers, 200+ sponsors and innumerable sessions speaking about the future of employment, sustainability, and Indian startups and its global footprint and breaking all barriers. 

Some of the past speakers include Bill Gates, Gautam Adani, Sadhguru, Ramcharan, NR Narayana Murthy, Nikki Haley, Kiran Mazumdar, KT Rama Rao, Vinod Khosla, Dr Krishna Ella and others.  

TiE Hyderabad is one of the most vibrant and recognised chapters in the network of TiE Global. TiE Hyderabad plays an important role in building the ecosystem across the state of Telangana through its activities conducted with about 20+ themes on fostering entrepreneurship. 

 It has over 150 successful Charter Members. It is vibrant and the most recognized chapter worldwide. Each year it impacts over 1100 startups and 6400+ students and conducts 131+ events & activities under 20+ themes. It is also a proud host of TiE Global Summit 2020 and TiE Sustainability Summit 2021, the world’s largest Sustainability Summit.

TiE Global was founded in 1992 by a group of successful entrepreneurs, corporate executives and established business leaders from the Indus region, through TiE Global Summit, TiE is a not for profit organization building its ecosystem of entrepreneurs through chapters across the globe. 

In the last 30 years since it is founded, it is spread across 14 countries, 58 cities duly called chapters with around 3000+ Charter Members and 15000+ members. A recent study led by KPMG in December reported that: over the past 30 years TiE has created a wealth of opportunities and went across the borders to help and nurture the future generation of entrepreneurs. 

Father of Indian IT Industry Late FC Kohli Awarded at TiE Global Summit, Best Accelerator Awarded to Y Combinator, Most Innovative Startup to Data Robot

Hyderabad, December 10, 2020..... TiE Lifetime Achievement Award conferred to Bill Gates and Lifetime Achievement Service posthumously to Indian IT Industry to late FC Kohli, Father of Indian IT Industry and Lifetime Achievement Family Business Transformation to Bill Marriott of Marriott International.

Bill Gates, Founder, Microsoft Corporation virtually received the award. Bill Gates is a living legend. Almost everyone's life on the planet Earth has been touched by his work as an entrepreneur and also through his philanthropic work. It is every entrepreneur's dream to be like him. To create and achieve what he had achieved. He was chosen for his outstanding contribution to the entrepreneurial ecosystem in the world.

While receiving the award, Mr. Bill Gates said, "It's an honour to receive this prestigious award from TiE. I'm sorry I can't be with you and my fellow recipients to be there to accept it but I want to share a few thoughts why your work is so important: Innovation is the key to solve the world's toughest challenges – whether it is stopping a pandemic, avoiding a climate disaster or just raising human productivity. But as Paul Allen and I experienced with Microsoft, innovators can't make it on their own. They need supporters and partners to make sure that their best ideas make it from the lab to the marketplace. For over 27 years, TiE has been doing just that. You support great entrepreneurs around the world and in some of the most important fields in technology today. Your work is essential in fostering innovation and creating the better world we all want. Thank you again. And I hope you have a successful summer".

As a First Generation Entrepreneur Mr. Bill Gates has created a remarkable impact not only on the global economy but also has become an inspiration to many many entrepreneurs through generations. And the fact that he continues to give back to society, and what he has achieved is commendable. My Heartiest Congratulations to Mr. Bill Gates on being awarded the Lifetime Achievement Award", said by Mr. Mahavir Sharma, TiE Global Chair.

Mr. Bill Gates is a Visionary Entrepreneur who has overcome various challenges and failures to create a new world, and he has leveraged success to tackle health and poverty issues worldwide which are overlooked by society. He democratized the entire IT and Computer Technology ecosystem. He is a living legend and a role model for every entrepreneur. My Personal and Hearty Congratulations to Mr. Bill Gates on being awarded the Lifetime Achievement Award." said Sridhar Pinnapureddy, TGS2020 Chair.

Mrs FC Kohli received the award Lifetime Achievement Service to Indian IT Industry Award on Mr. Kohli's behalf. Late FC Kohli was the founder and first CEO of Tata Consultancy Services, India's largest Software Services Co.. He is regarded as the father of Indian IT Industry. He died very recently. His wife thanked TiE for choosing him for the award.

Along with the Lifetime Achievement Award, TiE also presented ten awards under various categories. The awards recognized outstanding entrepreneurs who are shaping our world and also the key ecosystem players who are enabling the entrepreneurship to flourish. Six Outstanding Entrepreneurs and Seven Ecosystem players were recognised. On the whole 13 awards were presented.

 

They include Best Government Agency Supporting Startup Ecosystem. This award was bagged by Government of Singapore.

• Best Corporate Supporting Entrepreneurship went to Google/Alphabet for Startups.
• Stanford University was recognized as the Best University Promoting Entrepreneurship 
• Best Accelerator Award was conferred on Y Combinator 
• Best Performing Global VC Fund went to Sequoia Capital. 
• Most Active Angel Network in the world went to Tech Coast Angels
• Bootstrapped to Billions Award has gone to Ben Chestnut and Rapid Listing Award to VIR Biotechnology, Lightening Unicorn Award to Indigo Agriculture and Most Innovative Startup Data Robot.  

 

"When we decided a few months ago to launch the TiE Global Entrepreneurship Awards, one thing was very clear in our minds – with TiE being a truly global organization, the program had to be truly world class. In spite of the limited time available, and the fact that this was our first time, we undertook the initiative in the true entrepreneurial spirit. Our task was to identify which awards to be given, keeping in kind their relevance for the global entrepreneurial committee. We wanted to honour the outstanding individuals who with their sheer hard work and entrepreneurship, have completely transformed the industries and became role models for millions of people across the world." said, Kali Prasad Gadiraju chairman and TiE Global Board of Trustees.

Mr Manohar Reddy, TiE Global Co-Chair said, "The World's Largest Entrepreneurship Summit is richer by Mr Bill Gates presence".

A distinguished jury comprising of distinguished personalities from around the world, chaired by N. R. Narayana Murthy, Founder Infosys Technologies judged the awards. The other jury members include Prof. Jagdish Sheth, Charles H. Kellstadt Professor of Business, Emory University, Gururaj "Desh" Deshpande, President and Chairman, Sparta Group LLC, Ms. Ping Fu, Co-founder Geomagic, Board Director, Entrepreneur, Author. 

TiE is a not-for-profit organization dedicated to fostering entrepreneurship. 61 Chapters in 14 countries with more than 15000 members worldwide and covers all the HNI's into Tech, Angel investors and VC's. The award was presented virtually.

List of Awards to Winners TiE Global Awards

Bill Gates to Attend TiE Global Summit

Bill Gates To receive TiE Life Time Achievement Award

Hyderabad, December 10.....Bill Gates, Founder, Microsoft Corporation will be attending TiE Global Summit to receive Life Time Achievement Award today at 8pm Virtually at the TiE Global Summit—2020 awards function to be held tonight at 8pm IST. 

He will be addressing a gathering of over 20,000 entrepreneurs.

Sharing these details in a press noted issued to the media in Hyderabad today Mr Sridhar Pinnapureddy, TiE Global Summit-2020 Chair said, the World's Largest Entrepreneurship Summit is richer by Mr Bill Gates presence.

Bill Gates, who cofounded Microsoft Corporation, the world's largest personal-computer software company, is globally very well known. He is a world leader in Information Technology. Microsoft is a household name across the globe. His name is synonymous to world of computing and a role model for every entrepreneur.

A distinguished jury comprising of distinguished personalities from around the world, chaired by N. R. Narayana Murthy, Founder Infosys Technologies. The other jury members include Prof. Jagdish Sheth, Charles H. Kellstadt Professor of Business, Emory University, Gururaj "Desh" Deshpande, President and Chairman, Sparta Group LLC, Ms. Ping Fu, Co-founder Geomagic, Board Director, Entrepreneur, Author chose Bill Gates for this award for his distinguished service of high order in the field of technology and entrepreneurship.

He also cofounded the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation to fund global health and development programs. Some of his major contributions to information technology domain include home computer, introduction of DoS. Microsoft Windows and other user-friendly software's and applications including Microsoft Azure.

Bill Gates built the world's largest software business entity, Microsoft through technological innovation, keen business strategy, and aggressive competitive tactics. Bill and Melinda Gates received one of India's highest civilian awards Padma Bhushan by the Government of India for their work to promote global health and development in the year 2015.

As a successful entrepreneur, he later gave back his good fortune improve humanity and nature and through his charitable organisation he has been working on key international causes.

Bill Gates is a living legend. Almost everyone's life on the planet Earth has been touched by his work as an entrepreneur and also through his philanthropic work. It is every entrepreneur's dream to be like him. To create and achieve what he had achieved.

As part of the ongoing marathon online TiE Global Summit 2020, the organisers have announced that they are going to honour Bill Gates with a Lifetime Achievement Award. TiE is a not-for-profit organization dedicated to fostering entrepreneurship. 61 Chapters in 14 countries with more than 15000 members worldwide and covers all the HNI's into Tech, Angel investors and VC's. The award will be presented virtually today i.e. 10th December 2020 at 8 PM IST.

"Bill Gates contributions are ginormous and invaluable, to list them out will be impossible. But the greatest, we at TiE feel is, that his work in computing has empowered anyone who uses a PC or any devices. His dream of the era of home computing when they were just used by big corporates, governments led to this day. Today, we have a mini-computer in the form of Smartphones in our pockets. His work has impacted the way the world works." said Mahavir Sharma, TiE Global Chair.

"Bill Gates has won many awards before but at TiE and the entrepreneurs around the world, it is our privilege and honour and to show our love and respect through this award to a man who has fuelled millions of dreams for entrepreneurs across the world", said Sridhar Pinnapureddy, TGS 2020 Chair.

"We are delighted that the Jury made a choice in Bill Gates, as he is a role model for every entrepreneur and is a true living legend. This award is an express of gratitude to his contribution to planet earth and entrepreneurship both", said Manohar Reddy, TGS 2020 Vice Chair.

Along with the Lifetime Achievement Award, TiE is going to present various awards today evening as part of the TiE Global Summit 2020. The awards Gala will also recognize outstanding entrepreneurs who are shaping our world and also the key ecosystem players who are enabling the entrepreneurship to flourish. Six Outstanding Entrepreneurs and Six Ecosystem players will be recognised.

India Witnessed US$38 Billion Inflow of FDI: NITI Aayog CEO Amitabh Kant

While the world reeled under the Covid pandemic, India witnessed 38 billion U.S. dollars inflow of FDI: NITI Aayog CEO Amitabh Kant 

The Pandemic will end soon: Gurudev Sri Sri Ravi Shankar

Self-awareness is a very important trait for entrepreneurship: Yashish Dahiya

To administer vaccines to 1.3 bn people, we need 2.6 bn syringes and needles. We are worried about how much pollution they produce: Dr. Krishna Ella

 

Hyderabad, December 09, 2020….Post the opening of TiE Global Summit, much concurrent session held. In a session titled 'Transformation of India with a focus on entrepreneur ecosystem' in conversation with CNBC TV18's Nisha Poddar, NITI Aayog CEO Amitabh Kant said that India has grown as a technology country. India has world's second-largest start-up ecosystem, he said. While the world reeled under the Covid pandemic, India witnessed 38 billion U.S. dollars inflow of FDI.

He spoke about various fronts on which the Government is working to leverage technology for the benefit of India's 1.3 billion populations. The solutions will not only benefit 1.3 billion but the next 4-5 billion people who will move over from poverty to middle class, he said.

He said that Niti Aayog has taken up various measures to attract FDI and has pushed limits in innovation. India is becoming an innovation-driven economy by removing regulatory barriers. He propounded various measures such as Aadhaar, DBT, UPI, Aayushman Bharat, etc. He said that India can build a number of tech products as it has skilled manpower and unique problems. The Post Covid-19 era will be a world of technology, he said. India can be a tech garage for the world, he added. India has worked on a range of products solving problems, he said.

Speaking on data culture, data economy and A.I. competence, Mr. Amitabh Kant said that it is an evolving and fast-changing digital landscape. Though data privacy has been in the limelight, India needs data protection and data empowerment too, he said.

Using data history is very critical to us. A framework to share data easily and reliably with control is needed. We can use data for machine learning, artificial learning, data empowerment and responsible artificial intelligence. Personal Data Protection Bill is under scrutiny by the Parliament, he informed.

India is data-rich but it has to be data-intelligent, find solutions to problems, Mr. Amitabh Kant said. Artificial Intelligence can help add up to $957 billion to the Indian economy by 2035. The opportunity for AI in India is massive, he said. The focus should be on finding A.I. solutions and adopt them at scale. We should use A.I. for social good, he opined. Development and deployment of A.I. are mode critical, he added.

Answering a question on women entrepreneurship, Amitabh Kant said that the next big disruption in India will be led by women entrepreneurs. To transform India, we need to give a huge fillip to women entrepreneurship, he said. Speaking on the Startup ecosystem on India, Amitabh Kant called upon Indian companies and Indian family businesses to invest in the ecosystem. India should learn to support startups, he said.

WEALTH CREATOR DNA

Wealth Creator DNA session hosted by Sridhar Pinnapureddy, President, TiE Hyderabad with entrepreneurs Ritesh Agarwal (CEO, OYO), Sumant Sinha (Chairman and Managing Director of ReNew Power) and Yashish Dahiya (Group CEO, PolicyBazaar) threw up interesting stories of their journey and growth on becoming an entrepreneur.

The premise of the session in a Q&A format was on what makes these entrepreneurs special and where they born to create wealth? The session revealed the thought process behind their success and what it takes to become what they are.

Sharing his thoughts, Sumant Sinha said that question oneself and introspection play a vital role. He said that he saw himself as a builder/creator who wants to create something that has a lasting value. Ritesh Agarwal too opined that ability to reflect is critical. The most important thing was that he aspired to create value out of nothing. Yashish Dahiya said that self-awareness is a very important trait for entrepreneurship.

They shared the start of their journey to entrepreneurship and their biggest moments.

Sumant Singh disclosing his experiences said that he comes from a family were doing the job in the private sector a very daring thing to do. He opined that comfortable life, job, etc. are straight-jackets. It becomes difficult to start something. I first thought of becoming an entrepreneur sometime in my mid-30s, he said.

Answering a question on who their favorite wealth creators (with whom they are fascinated) were Sumant Sinha said that he admired Elon Musk and said that he was ahead of humanity and was a visionary and a problem solver. Ritesh Agarwal said that Bill Gates and Azim Premji were his role models as they not only created wealth but also gave back to society. Yashish Dahiya said that he is fascinated by Sanjeev Bikhchandani, his first investor for his guts. It takes a lot of guts to invest into an idea, he said.

Delivering the Vaccine: The Big Opportunity

Dr Krishna Ella, Chairman & MD, Bharat Biotech was in conversation with Kiran Mazumdar Shaw Chairperson, Biocon, on delivering the vaccine: the big opportunity. Speaking to Kiran, Dr. Krishna Ella said India is one of the best Vaccine Industries in the world. One in every three children is vaccinated by Indian Vaccine Industry. In the past, R & D was not so much as it is in the Vaccine industry. Thanks to Pandemic, the industry got good recognition. India has the experience of polio immunization. But the number there is small just 125 million. Now in case of the Corona, it is 7bn adults, which is a huge challenge.

Replying about their plans, he said intranasal COVID-19 vaccine to enter phase 1 trials next month. We are setting up two more facilities for vaccine manufacturing including Covaxin, a vaccine for the coronavirus, that is when we will know our installed capacity well.

It is going to be a single-dose vaccine. The clinical trial process is also going to be faster," he said to Kiran Mazumdar-Shaw, Chairperson of Bengaluru-based Biocon Limited with whom he was in conversation.

We have tied up with Washington University School of Medicine in St.Louis for a novel "chimp-adenovirus" (Chimpanzee adenovirus), single-dose intranasal vaccine for COVID-19.

On the pricing he said Indian vaccines will be much cheaper when compared to other countries.

So many manufacturers are working on at a faster pace with limited data and safety, efficacy, no information on long term efficacy, how does he address these concerns? We as manufacturers safety is our priority. Safety is the most important in the pandemic. Among different platforms based on which vaccines are manufactured, we are working on inactivated vaccines, informed Krishna Ella.

Speaking on the deployment Mr. Krishna Ella shared with Kiran Mazumdar Shaw, Chairperson Biocon Ltd, that we need to vaccinate 1.3 billion people and they need to be vaccinated twice. So we need 2.6 bn syringes and needles. And we are worried about the pollution these devices generate.

The double doses of vaccine with a gap of one month in between may add more complexity to the distribution, he observed. Besides that, he says, it is the largest ever vaccination program in the history of entire mankind.

Another huge challenge will be the availability of medical devices such as auto disposable syringes, needles required for the delivery of the vaccine. While demand is more, the supply is not in commensuration with the demand as companies have been working with far fewer resources.

The Art of Living as Entrepreneurs

In another session, Sridhar Reddy, Chairman, Ctrls&Cloud4c was in conversation with Gurudev Sri Sri Ravi Shankar. Attendees from all over the world from Korea, Singapore, the USA and others asked questions on a wide range of subjects relevant entrepreneurship.

Replying to those questions, Gurudev Sri Sri Ravi Shankar said, the pandemic is going to end very soon says Gurudev Sri Ravi Shankar while interacting at the TiE Global Summit on the of its inauguration.

Replying to a question from a business owner from Singapore on how business owners have to manage the tough times the whole world is going through currently, he said it is a passing phase and it will end very soon. This too will pass. Take for example how some countries who lost everything in the past two world wars and were reduced to rubbles and woke up from ashes, rebuilt everything. This is also something similar to that. Take this as an opportunity.

To construct a tall building you go so deep and down only to put up a massive structure. There is enough humanity, human values to support each other. Hold on the ground. This pandemic is going to end very soon, Gurudev Sri Sri Ravishankar said.

Speaking about entrepreneurship he said, the name entrepreneur indicates that you are here to bring something new to the world. And if you fail to do so, you are no good he said.

Talking on failures in the entrepreneurial journey he said, take failures as challenges. To do that you need a lot of inner strength. If you are stressed out, you can't handle small problems or challenges. Train your mind to accept challenges, failures. Stand up for criticism. And always be ready to accept criticism. Don't shun it, Gurudev Sri Sri Ravishankar said. 

Entrepreneurship is not only about profits, but it is also about making people’s lives better: Mr. Venkaiah Naidu, Vice President of India

Venkaiah Naidu inaugurates TiE's Virtual Global Summit, the world's largest entrepreneurship summit.

Entrepreneurship is not only about profits, but it is also about making people's lives better: Mr. Venkaiah Naidu, Vice President of India

Vice President Venkaiah Naidu asked the youth to become entrepreneurs

The virtual summit gave real-life experience to the attendees

Hyderabad, December 08, 2020....The largest entrepreneurship summit, ever held on the planet, both in-person and virtual, TiE Global Summit 2020 kicked off on Tuesday evening.

The summit aimed at fostering entrepreneurship has touched a record of about 50,000 registrations, which is a unique milestone in the history of TiE.

The Vice President of India, Shri M. Venkaiah Naidu formally inaugurated it.

The grand opening ceremony was graced by Sri. Nitin Gadkari Union Minister.

Speaking further, the Vice President, Shri M. Venkaiah Naidu emphasised that fostering student-entrepreneurship through innovation programmes is extremely critical and universities need to establish close linkage with industries to mentor and handhold students with novel business ideas.

Addressing the TiE Global Summit-2020 through video conferencing from Visakhapatnam today, the Vice President asked the universities to set up incubation centres to tap and nurture entrepreneurial talent among youngsters. He also appealed to the corporate sector to come forward to fund and promote an entrepreneurial ecosystem on university campuses. 

The TiE is a Silicon Valley-based non-profit organisation supporting start-ups through networking and its Summit-2020 will be showcasing opportunities to get mega investments into India.

Mentioning that the youth comprise about 65 per cent of India's population, Shri Naidu stressed that the vast energies of the talented youth should be tapped fully and their mindset should be changed from being job-seekers to job creators. The Vice President also wanted a special drive to be launched for promoting entrepreneurship among women. There is a huge potential for promoting women entrepreneurs in the country, he said and expressed happiness over the fact that TiE has impacted 50,000 aspiring women entrepreneurs through mentoring. 

Describing India as home to world's third-largest start-up ecosystem, Shri Naidu quoted a recent NASSCOM that about 50 per cent of the Tech start-ups are confident of reaching revenues of the pre-COVID-19 level. "This certainly is optimistic news and I am sure, things would look up for all Indian start-ups in the near future", he added.

Referring to various studies, he said that most entrepreneurial countries in the world are also the most prosperous and entrepreneurship makes people happier and more fulfilled.

Highlighting that entrepreneurship is not only about profits, Shri Naidu said that it is also about making people's lives better through education, health care and basic human rights. "It is about valuing both competition and compassion", he added.

Talking about the challenges thrown up by the COVID-19 pandemic, the Vice President said that this is the time to turn adversities into opportunities. Calling upon the youngsters to come out with innovative ideas to meet the emerging challenges, he wanted the creation of an ecosystem that can enable many innovative ideas to be translated into promising start-ups.

Stating that entrepreneurship plays a crucial role in economic growth and employment generation, VP appreciated the Government for creating an enabling environment through Start-up India. Fostering entrepreneurship is not just about crafting the right economic policy, or developing the best educational curricula, it is about creating an entire climate in which innovation and ideas flourish, VP said and added, "When entrepreneurs succeed, they create economic opportunity not only for Indians but for people all over the world."

Stating that with more and more young people joining the labour market, the world will need about a half a billion new jobs by 2030, the Vice President called upon the established entrepreneurs and chambers of commerce, associations like TiE to mentor the next generation. They need to share the wisdom they gained, while the universities must work through research and internships to nurture and develop the entrepreneurial skills of students before they graduate, VP added.

The Vice President was of opinion that good entrepreneurial ideas backed by talent will beckon investors, who will be willing to invest in early-stage entrepreneurs -- not only in Silicon Valley -- but in Hyderabad, Visakhapatnam or any other place where there is talent. For the entrepreneurship ecosystem to be effective, he stressed the need for the private sector to work hand-in-hand with NGOs, universities, and governments.

Observing that starting a business is a daunting task, Shri Naidu said that we must connect entrepreneurs with mentors who can guide them. He expressed happiness that in this TiE Global event more than 300 mentors are available to show the ropes to young entrepreneurs across the globe.

The Vice President noted that such summits not only provide an important platform to exchange ideas and knowledge but also help in creating networks and complimented TiE for this initiative.

Speaking on the occasion Mr Nitin Gadkari said MSME is the backbone for Indian Economy. It contributes to 30% to our GDP, which we would like to increase to 40%, similarly the exports, 48% we will take up to 60%. MSME sector generates 11crore employment. We will try and create 5crore more jobs. Village industries contribute Rs 80,000crore. This we must make it to Rs 5 lakh crore in the next two years.

Rural India has a huge potential. But there is a crisis in terms of social, economic and educational. We need to develop more industries to generate more employment, he said.

Convert knowledge into the economy. India is rich in our ancient wisdom. We must use it. Organic farming is the future, the Union Minister said. The Minister highlighted the various initiatives of his Ministry. The global tenders below Rs 200crore are disallowed, he said.

Reduce import and increase export, he said. Automobile industry now is Rs 4,50,000 crores and is poised for good growth and might become top in the world. The sector has increased its exports during the pandemic. Minister informed that the Ministry is working on the research of Hydrogen Fuel. He informed that India is the most appropriate destination for the investment. He concluded his talk on a positive note that the country needs more positivity and self-confidence, so that we not only win the war against the Covid but also any economic battles

KT Rama Rao who addressed expressed his happiness to know that TiE is going to set up its global headquarters at Hyderabad. The Minister enlisted some of the initiatives of the state in fostering the entrepreneurship. Entrepreneurship cannot be inculcated artificially. The government is the enabler and creator of the conducive environment he said. The new normal requires more entrepreneurship than ever as it needs to address its challenges. He explained how some of the state innovators rose to the occasion to create products such as low cost high accurate covid testing systems, low cost and import substitute ventilator and tracking and tracing mobile app. Telangana has done well in terms of COVID Management when compared to any other states. We have been inculcating innovation culture in the state and took up many measures, he informed.

Ranil Jayawardena MP, Minister for International Trade, United Kingdom; His Excellency President of Costa Rica - Carlos Alvarado Quesada also graced the inaugural.

Mr Sridhar Pinnapureddy, President, TiE Hyderabad; Mahavir Sharma, Chairman, TiE Global Board of Trustees, Mr. Manohar Reddy, Vice President Hyderabad also graced

Welcoming the gathering Sridhar Pinnapureddy said, TiE Global Summit is the 8th in the series. It will help 500 start-ups access capital and connect to the mentor network. It is the conference of the next generation of thinkers and dreamers. TiE will help them in harnessing new technology. The summit will help its participants to get ten times more benefits than a pre-covid summit would have done.

Mahavir Pratap Sharma, Chairman TiE Global Board of Trustees while proposing a vote of thanks said TiE has been helping entrepreneurs solving the problems the society it is confronting with. It has been working with all the sectors in the industry and all stakeholders such as women, students. Now it is even reaching out to the underprivileged. We work with the bottom of the pyramid, he said.

The World's Largest Entrepreneurship Summit is based on the theme 'Entrepreneurship 360' and it will focus on issues faced and challenged by entrepreneurs, provide a platform for funding, insights into strategies to grow and scale business

Though virtual, the summit was near to physical. It gave attendees something they don't expect—a refreshing taste of real life. It added real-life feeling real virtual conference. The attendees got physical at the virtual event

Initiatives like the TiE Global Summit Add Strength to the Youthful Nation’s Entrepreneurial Energy, says PM Modi

Initiatives like the TiE Global Summit Add Strength to the Youthful Nation’s Entrepreneurial Energy, says PM Modi

Initiatives like the TiE Global Summit add strength to the youthful nation's entrepreneurial energy, says Prime Minister Modi in a message sent to Mr. Mahavir Sharma, TiE Global Chair on the occasion of inauguration of TiE Global Summit today evening by Shri M. Venkaiah Naidu, Vice President of India.

Mr. Narendra Modi congratulated and sent his best wishes to the organizers and participants of Heartiest of the three-day Summit. He wished them for the all-round success of the TiE Global Summit 2020, which is the world's largest entrepreneurship summit.

I am pleased to learn about the TiE Global Summit 2020 being held from 8-10 December 2020, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said in the message. To organise the Summit through a virtual platform in the midst of the challenges posed by the corona pandemic exhibits the indomitable spirit of entrepreneurship, the message stated.

The intellect and intent of youth powers India's transformation trajectory that has witnessed unprecedented pace and scale in the last few years. Comprehensive measures with integrated approach have enabled a robust ecosystem for enterprise and innovation and have given wings to the ambitions and aspirations of the nation, Prime Minister Modi mentioned in the message dated November 7, 2020.

Over the last six and a half years, we have injected a new spirit through wide-ranging reforms in policies and governance. As a force multiplier, technology has been making a positive impact in the lives of crores of people. The nation is marching ahead with its resolute resolve to build a strong and self-reliant India that encapsulates the vision of world welfare and full integration, it added

Overcoming the challenges in the post-COVID world and keeping up with the emerging trends and opportunities, Prime Minister said is crucial for the businesses and enterprises to stay relevant. In such a scenario, India finds itself in an advantageous position with its huge pool of skilled workforce and demographic potential.

In a rapidly changing market situation, Prime Minister Modi said, our constant emphasis is on skilling, reskilling and up-skilling, private and public sectors and foreign partners, all will derive strength from India's vibrant business environment.

Mr. Modi hoped that the gathering of industry leaders, investors, policy-makers and various other stakeholders will surely come up with a future-ready roadmap fostering innovation, cooperation and entrepreneurship.

TiE announces the World’s largest TiE Global Summit in India

Will attract 20,000 entrepreneurs from 25+ countries, world leaders, influencers and policy makers, potential funding for 250 start-ups by 200 global investors attending the summit

TiE, Hyderabad will be hosting TiE’s largest ever and first Virtual Global Summit between December 8-10, 2020. A total of 20,000 entrepreneurs, 200+ investors, 10+ world Leaders, 50+ star speakers, successful celebrities, sports persons and spiritual and wellness gurus will be attending the summit. A total of 25 TiE chapters from Americas, Europe, Africa, India, APAC will be represented at the summit.

TiE, the world’s largest network of successful entrepreneurs and professionals will be hosting the ‘TiE Global Summit 2020’ through an online platform due to COVID-19 pandemic as there are travel, social distancing restrictions world over.

The summit based on the theme ‘Entrepreneurship 360’ will focus on issues faced and challenged by entrepreneurs, provide a platform for funding, insights into strategies to grow and scale business with focus on new start-up ideas, investments in start-ups, pitching tactics to help start-ups attract b2b and b2c businesses and scaling strategies to grow their business by 10x. Keynote sessions

Global leaders such as Satya Nadella, Ratan Tata, Elon Musk, Sundar Pitchai,  Anand Mahindra, Vijay Sekhar Sharma, Ritesh Agarwal, Kiran Majumdar Shaw, Sheryl Sandberg, Indra Nooyi among others are likely to attend. Distinguished world political leaders such as Indian Prime Minister, Mr. Narendra Modi, Candian Prime Minister, Justin Trudeau, Lee Hsien Loong, UK Prime Minister, Boris Johnson, German Chancellor, Angela Merkel, Crown Prince of the Emirate of Abu Dhabi, Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan and Prime Minister of New Zealand,  Jacinda Ardern, nobel laureates including Abhijit Banerjee, Mohammad Yunus, Amartya Sen, Dalai Lama, Malala Yousafzai, Kailash Satyarthi and spiritual leaders Sri Sri Ravishankar, Sadhguru, Sridharan are likely to address the summit.

TiE Global Summit 2020 is likely to be inaugurated by Prime Minister Shri. Narendra Modi.

The summit will provide an opportunity for entrepreneurs to network, share ideas and interact with investors, business leaders, policy makers across the globe, besides allowing investors access to the world’s brightest minds to fulfil their investment objectives and are likely to invest a few hundred crores after reviewing 200 start-up pitches. Women awards have been planned to acknowledge and motivate women entrepreneurs. A total of 100+ highly successful global entrepreneurs will be showcasing their products and services. Keynote sessions, technology lounge, investor lounge, pitch competitions, boot camps are planned to add value to the 20,000 start-ups and entrepreneurs attending the summit.

Jayesh Ranjan, Principal Secretary, IT, Government of Telangana, addressing the media said, “Given the times we are in, it would have been easy for TiE to have cancelled the summit, however ‘am glad they are transitioning to a virtual event. The present times mean a lot to innovators, entrepreneurs, young start-ups. While it is true that businesses may have been disrupted, we are also seeing umpteen number of opportunities coming our way, and if one is agile, smart and mentored well, I am sure they can once again rise in their business.” He went on to add, “The TiE Global Summit 2020 is bound to have such experience to all the participants. And I am very glad that the summit is taking place in December 2020. My best wishes to all the participants and congratulations to the organizers.”

Speaking on the announcement, Mahavir Sharma - Chairman TiE Global, said, “The TiE Global Summit 2020 is a very special initiative, perhaps the largest and most diverse gathering of entrepreneurs and investors on a virtual platform (due to covid-19). It aims at bringing together students, start-ups, entrepreneurs, global leaders including heads of countries, successful business leaders, investors with a strong intent to invest in start-ups and Nobel laureates aimed at exchanging ideas. It will foster collaboration and networking, between entrepreneurs attending the summit from across 25 plus countries. This will enhance opportunities for startups across India to get investments worth billions of dollars”

Sridhar Pinnapureddy, President, TiE, Hyderabad said, “The Covid-19 situation has offered us an opportunity to engage 20,000 start-ups and entrepreneurs on a virtual platform due to social distancing norms and scare of contracting the dreaded virus. The TiE Global Summit 2020 is based on the theme ‘Entrepreneurship 360’ and aims at fostering ideas, provide a platform for investors to identify and funding curated start-ups and entrepreneurs, provide marketing inputs on pitching to grow their business in the b2b and b2c space, and gain deep insights into scale business by 10x. We plan to make the summit very enriching from a networking, learning, and funding perspective. We expect at least 200 entrepreneurs to be funded by investors during the three day summit.

Srini Raju, Founder President TIE Hyderabad, Kali Prasad - Board of Trustee, TiE Global, Manohar Reddy - Vice-President TiE Hyderabad and JA Chowdary, Founder Dir. STPI, CM, TiE, Hyderabad, attended and addressed the media today during the virtual conference.

The Indus Entrepreneurs (TiE), was founded in 1992 in Silicon Valley by a group of successful entrepreneurs, corporate executives, and senior professionals with roots in the Indus region. TiE Global, is a not for profit organization dedicated to fostering entrepreneurship around the World and currently has 15,000 members in 61 chapters across 14 countries. TiE’s mission is to foster entrepreneurship globally through mentoring, networking, and education. Dedicated to the virtuous cycle of wealth creation and giving back to the community, it’s focus is on generating and nurturing our next generation of entrepreneurs.

Govt to Open 10,000 Tinkering Labs at School Level across India to Promote Innovation - NITI Aayog CEO

• Themed “Indian Startups, Global Footprint”, the 4th edition of the Summit aimed to empower Indian innovators to create value at global scale


• Unicorn founders such as Jaspreet Singh (Druva) and Harsh Jain (Dream11), spoke about their entrepreneurial journeys


• 14 startups supported by TiE Global Angels; USD 4 million raised, announced Nitin Rai


• 15 SaaS companies to become unicorns in the coming years, predicted Rajan Anandan


• 28 billion IoT devices will be connected to the network by 2022, CISCO Systems India predicted


• Dr Santhosh Babu, Principal Secretary to Government – IT Department, Government of Tamil Nadu shed light on major tech-centric policies announced by the state government to boost e-governance

Hosted by TiE Delhi-NCR, the 4th edition of TiE Global Summit witnessed power-packed fireside conversations by eminent ecosystem stakeholders. Over the next two days, the Summit will host 200+ speakers across more than 60 sessions. The inaugural day registered a footfall of 2,000 delegates.

Geetika Dayal, Executive Director – TiE Delhi-NCR, welcomed the guests and opened the fore for TiE leadership. Kick-starting the event, Nitin Rai, Chair – TiE Global Board of Trustees, talked about the theme “Indian Startups, Global Footprint”. He shared insights about the impact of various TiE Global programs focused on youth, angel investing, and women entrepreneurs. Talking about the TiE Global Angels (TGA), he said, “In the past three years, TGA, with the help of 273 Charter Members across 33 chapters, has invested USD 4 million in 14 companies.” 

Welcoming the attendees, Rajan Anandan President – TiE Delhi-NCR, said, “This year, the Indian startup ecosystem welcomed 7 new unicorns from different sectors. This is suggestive of how and how much entrepreneurship in the country has grown in the past few years. In line with the theme of this year’s edition of TiE Global Summit, we aimed to celebrate startups that have successfully penetrated international markets while providing budding innovators with the opportunity to network, learn, and grow.”

The first fireside keynote address was by Jaspreet Singh, founder of Druva, a data security and management solutions company. He talked about his journey towards becoming a unicorn startup. Asha Jadeja Motwani, a Silicon Valley-based angel investor and enabler was the Grand Keynote for the inaugural day.

Speaking about ‘Re-defining e-governance’, Dr Santhosh Babu, Principal Secretary to Government, IT Department, Government of Tamil Nadu, made three landmark announcements by the Tamil Nadu government to boost startups. These include setting up centres of excellence for startups, adoption of API route for accelerating regulatory processes, and an investment of USD 5.5 million for enabling blockchain as a service. Later, highlighting the ever-growing relevance of technology, Krishna Sundaresan, VP Engineering – CISCO Systems India, quoted IDC estimates saying that 93% of organizations will use multiple clouds by 2022.

The event also witnessed the presence of distinguished personalities such as noted Author Shiv Khera; and Dia Mirza, Actor, Producer, UN Environment Goodwill Ambassador. She was the Guest of Honour for the session focused on environment: ‘Making Habitats Livable’. She spoke about the urgent need for recognizing and acting upon the problems posed by air pollution in India. “What we need today is to be responsive, not reactive. The adverse effect of the poor quality of air is evidenced in our lives – in the health of our children and those around us. Sustainable development goals are about acknowledging that we have a problem and then acting upon it. In our personal capacity, we can begin, by bolstering the waste management infrastructure by properly segregating waste. We can, and indeed must, commit ourselves to do more,” she concluded.

Later in the day, Amitabh Kant, CEO – NITI Aayog, Government of India, delivered a keynote. He said, “It is good to see the tremendous amount of energy, vibrancy, and dynamism shown by startups in India. There are many startups that are driving disruptions across sectors. From the government’s side, we are doing and will continue to do all we can to support the growth of Indian entrepreneurship. I would like to congratulate TiE for four glorious editions of the TiE Global Summit and wish them all the best as they continue to foster the global startup ecosystem.”

The event also facilitated several knowledge-sharing sessions including ‘Fostering Entrepreneurship & Innovation’ powered by STPI and featuring industry leaders such as Subroto Bagchi, Chairman of Odisha Skill Development & Co-founder – Mindtree and Dr Omkar Rai, Director General, Software Technology Parks of India, among others. The panel discussed the future of entrepreneurship in the country across Indian states.

Another session during the day was ‘Innovations in the interplay of Digital & Physical Worlds’, powered by Microsoft and led by Dr Rohini Srivathsa, National Technology Officer & Strategy Lead – Microsoft India. She shared invaluable insights regarding the need for digital integration in streamlining various business as well as regulatory processes. Further, the session titled ‘Enabling Startup Ecosystem’ powered by Google, featured an expert panel comprising Shalini Girish, Director – Google Customer Solutions India, Abhinav Kishore, India Head SMB – Google Cloud, and Shalini Poddar, Head of Business Development – Google Play India. The point of discussion was the role of Google India in driving innovations to bolster the start-up ecosystem.

TiE’s 4th Global Summit was backed by several domain-leading institutions including Google, Motwani Jadeja Foundation, Startup India, Indian Angel Network Fund, Flipkart, Deloitte, BIRAC, CISCO Systems India, Microsoft, and MG Motor, among others.