The Neon Show

Matt Clifford, founder of Entrepreneur First, discusses the concept of talent investing and its role in shaping startups. He highlights the immense potential of Indian talent and the unique opportunities presented by AI in India. The conversation touches on how location impacts entrepreneurship, with insights on why Silicon Valley remains a prime hub. Clifford also compares the tech regulatory environments between Europe and the UK, and shares success stories of startups nurtured through talent-first investments.

In this engaging discussion, Vinay Bagri, co-founder of Niyo and a key player in India's neo banking movement, shares his insights into the evolution of travel tech in India. He explores why young Indians prioritize travel, highlighting that 40% of personal loans are now for this purpose. Vinay also details the dramatic shift from traditional banking to digital solutions and the profound impact of regulations on fintech. He critiques India's tourism strategies, discussing the challenges that prevent it from becoming a top travel destination despite its rich offerings.

Nishit had a front-row seat to the growth of the Indian Startup ecosystem. And often times he was in the driver's seat as well.Nishit Garg, a partner at RTP Global, shares his experiences from his early days at Flipkart, discussing the pivotal 0-1 journey and key projects that shaped his career. He provides a behind-the-scenes look at how Tiger Global revolutionized the Indian startup ecosystem and his reasons for joining RTP Global.We also cover the scaling challenges for Indian startups, staying relevant in a rapidly evolving market, the ability to sell and the surprising nature of Indian markets.Timestamps:00:00 - Introduction01:07 - Nishit’s Entry in The Startup World07:55 - Many 0-1 Journeys at Flipkart09:34 - Why Nishit Joined a VC Fund(again)13:06 - How Tiger Global Changed Indian Startup World14:59 - The Journey of RTP Global: Successes & Exits20:30 - Why India Surprises Everyone?24:06 - How India is Different From Silicon Valley26:18 - What Made Flipkart An Exception28:57 - How Indian Startups Can Become Unstoppable31:10 - Exits, Liquidity and IPO Markets33:44 - Power Law and How Venture Capital Works35:33 - What RTP Looks For In Founders36:35 - The Right to Win For VCs39:12 - How Should Founders Select The Best Investors42:01 -  Nobody Is Too Big To Fail44:42 - How Can VCs Be Helpful to Founders47:41 - Risks, Checklists & Gut Call As a VC49:33 - How RTP Invests in a Company51:03 - The Best Startups Expand TAM54:33 - First Time Founders Vs Second Time Founders55:51 - Why Indian Startups Struggle After $10M ARR58:16 - Sales Is Not A Bad Word59:39 - What Nishit Has Learned From Portfolio Companies1:03:06 - Advantages Indian B2B SaaS Startups Have___________________________________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. __________________________________Visit our Website: https://neon.fund/Follow us on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/theneonshoww/Follow us on Twitter: https://twitter.com/TheNeonShowwFollow us on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/beneon/__________________________________*Sponsor Shout Out*Looking to build a differentiated tech startup with a 10X better solution? Prime is the high conviction, high support investor you need. With its fourth fund of $120M, Prime actively works with star teams to accelerate building great companies.To know more, visit https://primevp.in/Send us a text

Manav Garg is the founder of Eka and Together Fund.Manav started Eka before SaaS was even a word. We start with Manav's journey from a small town in Punjab to founding Eka, one of India's first vertical SaaS companies. He shares all the ups and down in Eka & his life in the last 20 years. From building and selling from India to global businesses. From pivoting, which few companies survive, to coming out not just alive but highly profitable again. We also discuss his work with SaaS Bhoomi, future of Indian B2B SaaS, Together fund and Manav’s next mission.___________________________________Timestamps:00:00 - Introduction 02:00 - From Small Town Punjab to International Trading10:27 - Lateral Thinking Makes Invisible Visible12:45 - In The Middle Of The Dot Com Boom16:14 - Raising Funding of $1M in the 90s19:41 - The Birth of Eka Software22:36 - First Enterprise SaaS Company From India24:28 - Eka’s Journey From $2M ARR to $20M ARR32:32 - A Hard Pivot & A Profitable Company34:19 - SaaSBoomi & SaaS Playbooks From India38:43 - When Did Manav Decide to Exit Eka42:25 - How To Design Your Exit Strategy50:44 - Increasing Liquidity Events in Indian Startups55:11 - How Global Buyers Look At India SaaS57:57 - The Road to Many Billion+ ARR Companies From India1:05:01 - Are We Early In AI Wave? 1:09:36 - Where Is India In The AI Race?1:12:33 - What is India SaaS Advantage?1:16:40 - Can Indian Startups Grow As Fast As US Startups?1:21:21 - The Power of Relationships & Cold Calling1:24:31 - How to Manufacture Co-Founders?1:26:49 - Pause & Reflect___________________________________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. ___________________________________Visit our Website: https://neon.fund/Follow us on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/theneonshoww/Follow us on Twitter: https://twitter.com/TheNeonShowwFollow us on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/beneon/___________________________________*Sponsor Shout Out*Looking to build a differentiated tech startup with a 10X better solution? Prime is the high conviction, high support investor you need. With its fourth fund of $120M, Prime actively works with star teams to accelerate building great companies.To know more, visit https://primevp.in/___________________________________Send us a text

VCs Invest in Startups But Who Invests In VCs?In this episode we host Raja Doddala, an experienced investor and a key figure at Churchill AM a leading Fund of Fund. Raja shares how he judges the strategy of a VC fund, metrics to evaluate a fund manager, which sectors have yielded the best returns and the differences between the best VC funds and the rest.We also discuss how funds compete for the best VCs, why old days of fundraising are over, whether Indian public markets are better than the US for IPOs, why he and Churchill are excited about India and much more...If you are interested in startups, venture capital, fund management, and investment strategies then this is the episode for you.___________________________________Timestamps:00:00 - Introduction01:11 - From Software Engineer to Investing in VC funds03:53 - The People Who Invest in VC Funds05:33 - State of Fund of Fund Ecosystem in the US06:51 - What Makes Fund of Fund Different from University Endowments?07:42 - What Makes Someone an Emerging Manager08:59 - Churchill’s Strategy for Venture Capital Investments12:56 - How to Choose The Right Fund of Fund Manager15:10 - How Fund of Fund Compete For The Best VCs18:10 - Churchill’s Evaluation Criteria for VC Funds22:34 - At What Stage of Fund Does Churchill Invest24:17 - Churchill’s Geographical Focus From US to Israel26:29 - Manager Is More Important Than The Strategy30:01 - Metrics to Evaluate a Fund Manager: IRR, DPI & TVPI33:39 - Which Sectors Have Given The Best Return36:40 - How Raja Judges The Strategy of a VC Fund38:09 - How The Best Differ From The Rest39:59 - Old Days of Fundraising Are Over42:20 - Decide Your Minimum Viable Fund Size44:03 - The Mortality Rate of Funds45:02 - Mistakes Funds Make When Building Data Rooms47:45 - Why Raja & Churchill Are Excited About India49:57 - Churchill’s Investment Strategy for India50:59 - Churchill’s Investment Strategy for Israel53:05 - Are Indian Public Markets Better Than US for IPOs___________________________________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. ___________________________________Visit our Website: https://neon.fund/Follow us on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/theneonshoww/Follow us on Twitter: https://twitter.com/TheNeonShowwFollow us on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/beneon/___________________________________*Sponsor Shout Out*Looking to build a differentiated tech startup with a 10X better solution? Prime is the high conviction, high support investor you need. With its fourth fund of $120M, Prime actively works with star teams to accelerate building great companies.To know more, visit https://primevp.in/___________________________________Send us a text

In this episode of The Neon Show, we dive deep into the serious world of casual gaming in India with Dilsher Malhi, the founder of Zupee.We discuss the uniquness of Indian gaming market, why entertainment is a feature and not a bug, India’s trillion dollar digital economy dream and how will regulation affect the gaming industry.If you are serious(or casual) about gaming and startups then this episode will offer a range of insights to you.________________________________Timestamps:00:00 - Introduction 01:12 - Gaming Market in India: Who, What & How Much03:39 - Did You Win By Skill Or Chance?06:05 - The Serious World of Casual Gaming09:47  - Is Real Money Gaming Bad for Society?12:33 - Entertainment is a feature, not a bug14:39 - Real Money Gaming & Stock Markets19:33  - Innovation Vs Regulation: What’s The Right Balance24:32 - From Infosys mafia to Flipkart mafia25:13 - Why Indian Gaming Market is Unique?29:29 - Why is RMG Successful in India and NOT Everywhere?30:35 - The Tencent Story: Power of Brand & Distribution31:44 - Does India Have a Gaming Ecosystem?32:43 - Gen AI Will Make Everyone Creative34:25 - What Makes Zupee Successful?35:27 - Break Barriers and Build Amazing Things36: 23 - Lessons From an Unstructured Learner39:07 - The Joys of Crazy Inherent Curiosity________________________________Visit our Website: https://neon.fund/Follow us on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/theneonshoww/Follow us on Twitter: https://twitter.com/TheNeonShowwFollow us on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/beneon/________________________________*Sponsor Shout Out*Looking to build a differentiated tech startup with a 10X better solution? Prime is the high conviction, high support investor you need. With its fourth fund of $120M, Prime actively works with star teams to accelerate building great companies.To know more, visit https://primevp.in/Send us a text

Join us on this exciting episode of The Neon Show as Siddhartha Ahluwalia hosts an insightful conversation with Sanjay Swamy, Shripati Acharya, and Amit Somani, Managing Partners at Prime Venture Partners.We discuss the past, present and future of Venture Capital in India. In this unfiltered conversation we cover the struggles, successes, opportunites and failures as well.From MakeMyTrip IPO to the evolution of the Indian market. From why talent left India to why it is coming back now. From building a career in venture capital to the nuances people miss. And so much moreDon't miss this episode if you want to gain a deeper understanding of venture capital in India from seasoned experts.___________________________________*Sponsor Shout Out*Looking to build a differentiated tech startup with a 10X better solution? Prime is the high conviction, high support investor you need. With its fourth fund of $120M, Prime actively works with star teams to accelerate building great companies.To know more, visit https://primevp.in/___________________________________Visit our Website: https://neon.fund/Follow us on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/theneonshoww/Follow us on Twitter: https://twitter.com/TheNeonShowwFollow us on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/beneon/___________________________________Timestamps:00:00 - Introduction 01:12 - The Origin Story of Prime Venture Partners04:00 - India’s Place In The Global Macro04:56 - MakeMyTrip IPO and The Evolution of the Indian Market07:41 - Why Is Talent Returning to India13:07 - What’s Unique About The Indian Tech Ecosystem18:57 - Why More Global VC Funds' Are Not Coming To India22:11 - Prime Venture Partners' Strategy and the India Opportunity27:37 - The Magic Four-Letter Word (Exit) In Venture Capital35:24 - Building A Career in Venture Capital43:26 - The Nuances of Venture Capital People Miss50:06 - The Venture Capital Opportunity In India53:45 - Lessons Learned From Companies That Didn't Succeed1:01:07 - Secrets of Top VCsSend us a text

In this episode, Siddhartha Ahluwalia, Managing Partner at Neon Fund, sits down with Sri Batchu, Chief Marketing Officer at The RealReal. Sri has had an impressive career, having held key positions at highly successful companies like Opendoor, Instacart, and Ramp.Sri shares his thoughts on career pivots, the debate between founder-operators and career VCs, the relevance of operator experience over time, and transitioning from big companies to startups.Sri also shares valuable insights on identifying the right tech companies, constructing the perfect investment round, and the current AI cycle.Don’t miss this episode if you are an operator, founder, or an aspiring investor.___________________________________*Sponsor Shout Out*Looking to build a differentiated tech startup with a 10X better solution? Prime is the high conviction, high support investor you need. With its fourth fund of $120M, Prime actively works with star teams to accelerate building great companies.To know more, visit https://primevp.in/___________________________________Visit our Website: https://neon.fund/Follow us on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/theneonshoww/Follow us on Twitter: https://twitter.com/TheNeonShowwFollow us on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/beneon/___________________________________Timestamps:01:03 - Sri Batchu's Career Journey From Opendoor, Instacart, And Now The RealReal05:04 - Career Pivots & Choosing The Right Tech Company To Join15:33 - Founder-Operator Or Career VC?25:32 - The Half life Of An Operator 29:30 - What Do People Get Wrong About The Venture Capital Profession30:55 - The Best Investor Sri Batch Has Worked With33:00 - What Is The Ideal Career Stage For Transitioning To VC35:55 - Starting Up Vs Starting a VC Fund38:02 - Sri Batchu's Angel Investing Framework45:40 - Angel Investing Vs Venture Investing51:42 - New Funds Vs Top-Tier VCs58:46 - How Founders Can Build A Perfect Round1:06:13 - How Al Will Impact Consumer And B2B MarketsSend us a text

Meena Ganesh is the founder of Portea, India's largest platform for delivering healthcare services at home.On the episode Meena's shares her vision and passion for improving healthcare accessibility and quality. Meena shares her journey of founding Portea, the challenges faced by healthcare startups, and the opportunities available for entrepreneurs. Learn about the evolution of healthcare infrastructure in India, the rise of home healthcare, and the role of digital transformation in the sector.Finally, Meena provides insights into the pharmaceutical industry, medical devices, and the future of healthcare in India.Timestamps:00:00 - Introduction01:15 - Meena Ganesh's Journey Building Portea06:53 - How is Healthcare Technology Adoption in India11:16 - Opportunities for Entrepreneurs in Healthcare21:07 - Building Sustainable & Profitable Healthcare Companies37:44 - Digitisation of Healthcare In India by Government43:26 - The Evolution of Indian Pharma Industry 51:04 - Challenges and Opportunities in Health Insurance55:22 - Growth of Medical Tourism in India1:00:02 - Innovations in Medical Devices and Equipment in India___________________________________*Sponsor Shout Out*Looking to build a differentiated tech startup with a 10X better solution? Prime is the high conviction, high support investor you need. With its fourth fund of $120M, Prime actively works with star teams to accelerate building great companies.To know more, visit https://primevp.in/___________________________________Visit our Website: https://neon.fund/Follow us on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/theneonshoww/Follow us on Twitter: https://twitter.com/TheNeonShowwFollow us on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/beneon/___________________________________Send us a text

On this episode of The Neon Show we have Laura Raggl, a distinguished partner at ROI Ventures. Based in Europe, ROI Ventures is renowned for its strategic investments in B2B SaaS companies globally.In this episode, Laura shares her extensive experience and insights into early stage investing. With a portfolio of 18 diverse investments, Laura discusses ROI Ventures' approach to angel investing, their investment criteria, and how they nurture long-term growth without initial revenue or traction requirements.We also explore the intricacies of the European startup ecosystem as Laura highlights the unique challenges and opportunities it presents, especially in contrast to other major markets.Whether you're an investor, a startup enthusiast, or someone curious about the venture capital world, this episode offers valuable lessons and insights into venture capital and angel investing.Timestamps:00:00 - Introduction01:02 - The Journey  of ROI Ventures07:23 - What's Happening In The European Startup Ecosystem12:30 - Understanding B2B SaaS Dynamics in Europe25:12 - How Investing In Europe Differs From The World31:18 - The Growth of Indian Startup Ecosystem & Public Markets42:06 - Why Focus on B2B SaaS Investing46:58 - B2B Investing Vs B2C Investing51:55 - Family Office Dynamics & Venture Investing----------------------------------Sponsor Shout OutLooking to build a differentiated tech startup with a 10X better solution? Prime is the high conviction, high support investor you need. With its fourth fund of $120M, Prime actively works with star teams to accelerate building great companies.To know more, visit https://primevp.in/Send us a text