Just published in India Currents!
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| Rakeysh Omprakash Mehra |
“For
over 20 years, TiEcon has showcased some of the most successful companies
around the world and brought together the entire ecosystem of entrepreneurship
including venture capitalists, thought leaders, successful entrepreneurs as
well as aspiring entrepreneurs,” says Venktesh Shukla, President of TiE Silicon
Valley. TiE started at a 1992 lunch meeting in Silicon Valley, and now hosts 60
chapters in 17 different countries. Its annual flagship conference, TiEcon,
attracted 3600 participants from over 50 countries last year. “TiEcon 2014 is centered around phenomenal
speakers and a strong technical agenda… it’s also a chance to speak
face-to-face with successful entrepreneurs,” says BV Jagadeesh, TiEcon
Co-Convener and Managing Partner of KAAJ Ventures.
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| Manoj Saxena |
“I
believe 2014 is going to be a defining year… cloud architectures [will] go from
experimentation to deployment and when big data goes from promise to
production. The entrepreneurs at TiEcon will likely have a large impact on how
these innovations develop,” says Jim Whitehurst, President and CEO of Red Hat. The
first day of the conference highlights three breaking topics: the internet of
things, big data, and cloud infrastructure. “Each of these topics represents
billions of dollars in new potential value creation for entrepreneurs,” says
Pradip Madan, TiEcon Co-Convener and venture builder in healthcare and the internet
of things. In the internet of things, participants will explore the potential
to provide meaningful and useful applications through device connection. “After
the internet in the mid-90’s, I don’t think anything has had the potential to
be as big as the internet of things” opines Jagadeesh. Big data, the analysis
of large data sets to inform business decisions, promises to create incredible
responsivity to the customer. Cloud infrastructure, or companies’ ability to use
and share infrastructure when needed, “creates tremendous flexibility in
scaling” says Jagadeesh.
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| Shahid Khan |
The
biggest draw of TiEcon is its speakers. “IBM announced plans to invest $1B in a
new business dedicated to building out the Watson ecosystem… Manoj Saxena, now
Managing Director at The Entrepreneur’s Fund and most recently IBM’s Watson
Division Head, will engage Mike Rhodin, IBM’s Senior Vice President for Watson,
in a discussion on opportunities in cognitive computing” explains Madan. Dr.
Romesh Wadhwani, Founder, Chariman, and CEO of the Symphony Technology Group “reflects
a force of vision and persistence that will set a strong example for TiEcon attendees”
says Madan. Shahid Khan, President and Owner of Flex-N-Gate as well as owner of
the Jacksonville Jaguars, will discuss how entrepreneurship extends beyond the
high-tech ecosystem. Rakeysh Omprakash Mehra, Bollywood Producer, will talk
about inspiration in producing Bhaag
Milkha Bhaag. “Competing as an athletic champion requires the same
determination as succeeding as an entrepreneur” concludes Madan.
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| Romesh Wadhwani |
The
second day of TiEcon focuses on personal growth. “Each of the keynote speakers
brought sustained vision, courage, charisma, and determination to their work. Understanding
their views is what complements a tech entrepreneur’s training,” explains
Madan. Second day conference topics include healthcare, youth,
entrepreneurship, technology services, energy, and impact investing while participants
hear about the successes and challenges of experienced entrepreneurs. “Time is
of the essence; participants can learn from ‘old mistakes’ to move forward
rapidly,” says Jagadeesh. Young startups will bring their innovations to the
TiE50 competition and companies will showcase their products and services in
Expo booths. “Entrepreneurs looking for co-founders will find them in
FounderConnect. Entrepreneurs looking for funding will meet VCs and angel
investors in VCConnect. Those looking for mentorship in a specific topic will
be able to do so in MentorConnect,” explains Madan.
TiEcon
is volunteer-run. “All our volunteers are here for various reasons: networking,
brainstorming, meeting founders, and providing mentorship. We’re very excited
to give back to the entrepreneurial community” says Jagadeesh. “I hope to bring
new perspectives to my work from TiEcon. I am also looking to build new teams
and find new partners, and expect to do both” says Madan. TiEcon 2014 is a
high-contact opportunity for all entrepreneurs to connect and learn. “I believe
in a flat world of opportunity for every entrepreneur, man, or woman, from any
region of the world. I believe that each of us should have the opportunity to
maximize our intellectual and social productivity through entrepreneurship. The
demographics, scale, and impact of TiEcon flatten the world ever more each
year,” concludes Madan.
TiEcon 2014
Santa Clara Convention
Center
5001 Great America Parkway
Santa Clara, CA 95054
May 16th and 17th
Tickets begin at $225.00
http://tiecon.org/
