Registration of participants

Welcome to participants and introduction to the India Global Innovation Connect

Curtain raiser session

A transformed startup ecosystem: Meet the players leading the charge

The dislocations brought by the pandemic have spurred a burst of innovation, with many startups coming up with new...

The dislocations brought by the pandemic have spurred a burst of innovation, with many startups coming up with new technology responses to the constraints and changing needs of individual customers as well as of corporations. New products and services have emerged from the country’s startup ecosystem which have already found their market and have the potential for international expansion in areas such as fintech, nanotechnology, digital healthcare, industrial IoT, etc. Who are the entrepreneurs at the forefront of this trend and what makes them successful?
 

• What are the new consumers trends in B2B and B2C that are changing the product-market fit problematic? What is required to leverage these changes?
• Who are the startup founders at the forefront of this trend and what is behind their success?
• What is needed to expand and leverage more optimally the new burst of innovation?

Speakers:
BJ Arun, Chairman, The Indus Entrepreneurs (TiE) Global Board, USA
Umang Bedi, Co-founder, VerSe Innovation, India
Vaibhav Gupta, Co-Founder & Chief Executive Office Udaan, India
Derick Jose, Co-Founder & Chief Data Scientist, Flutura Decision Sciences and Analytics, India/USA
Hari Menon, Co-Founder & Chief Executive Officer, Bigbasket, India
Mohandas Pai, Co-Founder & Partner Aarin Capital, India

Moderated by:
Ralph C. Voltmer, Partner, Head of India Practice, Covington & Burling USA

Inaugural session

Keynote speech by:
Shri Basavaraj Bommai, Hon Chief Minister of Karnataka

Moderated by:
Claude Smadja, President Smadja & Smadja Strategic Advisory, Switzerland

Networking break

Breakout session

India as the new Deep Tech hub? The startups seizing the new opportunities

India is now close to an inflection point where it will be emerging as the next global DeepTech hub. A NASSCOM...

India is now close to an inflection point where it will be emerging as the next global DeepTech hub. A NASSCOM report evaluates that close to 20% of all the country's start-ups are now involved in deep tech developments. Indian and foreign VCs developing their portfolio of deep-tech startups are betting on positive factors for the expansion of the sector such as accelerating digital adoption, the broadening of the national skills and talent pool, the more pressing need of corporations for advanced solutions to remain competitive, and a strong policy support, exemplified by the “Atmanirbhar” - self-reliance - policy of the government aiming at the development of an ecosystem propitious to research and innovation.
 

• Given the long gestation period for Deep-Tech products and services to technology commercialization, what is required to create partnerships between corporations, Deep-Tech VC funds, academia and government to develop innovation and promote mentorship for deep-tech development?
• What assets/comparative advantages can Indian startups leverage more to expand their footprint in deep-tech?
• Listen to the success stories of Deep-Tech entrepreneurs.
• What potential for the emergence of Indian deep-tech unicorns? What challenges to overcome?

Speakers:
Arun Chandru, Co-founder & Director, Pandorum Technologies, India
Satoshi Nagata, Director, Sagri India, Japan/India
Aruna Schwarz, Co-Founder & Chief Executive Officer, Stelae Technologies, UK/India
Manish Singhal, Founding Partner, PI Ventures, India
Pradeep Vajram, Executive Chairman & Chief Executive Officer, AlphaICs, India/USA/Japan

Moderated by:
Saket Agarwal, Founder & Managing Partner, Onnivation, India

From innovative ideas to successful companies: Perspectives from Israel

Keynote presentation by:
Karin Mayer Rubinstein, Chief Executive Officer & President, Israel Advance Technologies Industries, Israel

Last mile connectivity: Converting research faster into business success stories

It is great to come up with an innovation in technology, sciences or in the technical domain but it is quite different...

It is great to come up with an innovation in technology, sciences or in the technical domain but it is quite different to understand how this innovation can be deployed, what market to target and then to be able to mobilize the necessary resources, set up the right organization and management team to secure perfect execution. Sometimes the problem boils down to the failure to recognize an opportunity. Too many academic institutions in India as well as new startups have to confront many obstacles in trying to commercialize the IP they have produced, quite often due to a lack of effective linkages and synergies between industry and research organizations, insufficient financial resources, or even, deficient protection of IP rights domestically and abroad.
 

• How to develop the programs and policies that will promote the collaboration between businesses and research organizations
• How to foster a more commercially oriented mindset among scientists and researchers?
• Are there lessons to be drawn from some countries successful at translating innovative ideas into commercializable products or services?

Speakers:
Anand Anandkumar, Co-Founder & Chief Executive Officer, Bugworks, India
Jagadeesh Gopalan, Senior Professor Dept. of. Aerospace Engineering, Chairman, Center of Excellence in Hypersonics, Indian Institute of Science, Bangalore, Co-Founder Ykrita Life Sciences, India
Manoj Gopalkrishnan, Founder & Chief Executive Officer, Algorithmic Biologics, India
Anandi Iyer, Director, Fraunhofer Office India, Germany/India
Shrikumar Suryanarayan, Co-Founder, Chairman & Chief Executive Officer, Sea6Energy, India

Moderated by:
Woosuk Kenneth Choi, Editor, Future Planning Desk, The Chosun Ilbo Group, Director General, The Asian Leadership Conference, Republic of Korea

Plenary luncheon

Lessons from three decades of startup investing:
What makes a startup worth betting on?

A conversation with:
Jonathan Medved, Founder & Chief Executive Officer, OurCrowd, Israel

Moderated by:
Malini Goyal, Business journalist, India

The transformers: Showcasing startup founders shaking up their sector

Startup founders take turns to present their company, highlighting the innovative, transformational impact of what they...

Startup founders take turns to present their company, highlighting the innovative, transformational impact of what they are creating. They also share how they address the challenges of skills and the product-market fit.

Presenters:
Ankit Anand, Vice President - Software and India Business, Sleepiz, Switzerland
Peter Choe, Chief Executive Officer, Contents Holdings, Republic of Korea
Neils Delore, APAC Head, Flyability, Switzerland
Ramkumar Govindarajan, Founder & Chief Executive Officer, Wizfreight, India
Nakul Kukar, Co-founder & Chief Executive Officer, Cell Propulsion, India
Saurabh Tembhurne, Founder & Chief Executive Officer, SoHHytec, Switzerland

Moderated by:
Shaili Chopra, Founder Gytree & SheThePeople, India

Breakout session

Maximizing the potential of Public Innovation Platforms for new technology and new businesses

A number of success stories, such as UPI and Aadhar in India illustrate the power and potential of Digital Public Goods...

A number of success stories, such as UPI and Aadhar in India illustrate the power and potential of Digital Public Goods for generating innovations that are not only opportunities for creating new, profitable businesses but also for improving lives, expanding inclusion and removing frictions in an economy. Although there are issues to be addressed with respect to Digital Public Goods, this model reduces barriers for the next 5 billion people to participate in the digital economy and scales up impact.
 

• How can innovators make best use of existing digital public goods?
• Are we on the cusp of a more broadly used new innovation model – especially with the emergence of Web 3.0?
• What challenges need addressing for expanding what could be a new innovation model?
• How could the leveraging of a new public platform innovation model help accelerate new technological advances and business creation in domains such as healthcare, e-invoicing, digitalization etc.?
• How can Public Innovation Platforms contribute to making India a 10 trillion dollars economy by 2030?

Speakers:
Rakshit Daga, Chief Technology Officer, BigBasket, India
Alex “Sandy” Pentland, Media Lab Entrepreneurship Program Director, MIT Media Lab, USA (online)
Nirankar Saxena, Deputy Director General, FICCI, Leader S&T activities, Chair of the 6 innovation clusters Govt of India, India
Sharad Sharma, Co-Founder, Indian Software Product Industry RoundTable (Isprit), India

Moderated by:
Claude Smadja, President Smadja & Smadja Strategic Advisory, Switzerland

Breakout session

Designing India’s WEB 3.0 innovation roadmap

With the Web 3.0 data can be interconnected in a decentralized way, with human users and machines able to...

With the Web 3.0 data can be interconnected in a decentralized way, with human users and machines able to interact with data. As Web 3.0 networks will operate through decentralized protocols a convergence has already emerged with the blockchain and cryptocurrency technologies with an interoperability and seamless integration allowing them to be used in a wide range of applications with the potential of changing the way companies conduct their business and individuals manage their daily lives. What is required for Indian entrepreneurs and the Indian economy to leverage the potential created by this new technology and even achieve a leadership role in this domain?
 

• How are Indian startups already beginning to leverage the potential of the Web 3.0 and towards what kind of products and services, from gaming to NFTs and payments?
• What skills are needed to power the growth of Web 3.0 innovation in India?
• According to a Nasscom Report, 800’000 new jobs could be created in India by new Web 3.0 companies? What government policies are required to help achieve this potential and avoid that Web 3.0 entrepreneurs move to countries offering a more hospitable regulatory environment?

Speakers:
Anirudh Pandita, Founder, Pocket Aces & Loco, India
Nitin Sharma, Co-Founder & General Partner, Antler India, Singapore/India
Emin Sirer, Co-founder & Chief Executive Officer, Ava Labs, USA (online)

Moderated by:
Naganand Doraswamy, Managing Partner & Founder, Ideaspring Capital, India

Breakout meetings:

Connecting startup founders with investors

Entrepreneurs and investors initiate contact and engage in on-demand, bilateral, “behind closed doors” discussions to explore potential collaboration.

Breakout session

From the world's back-office hub to technology innovation made in India

While China has achieved the role of “the world’s factory”, India has been seen until recently almost exclusively as...

While China has taken over the role of “the world's factory”, India has been seen until recently, almost exclusively, as the “world's back-office hub”. Back-office activities have contributed tremendously in the last twenty years to India's economic growth and to its deeper integration into the global economy. However, the country is now at the cusp of developing a new role as a technology innovation provider to domestic corporations as well as to MNCs leveraging innovation coming out of India-based R&D centers and the surge of an entrepreneurial and innovation culture expressed by increasingly creative startups. India ranks now 46 in the Global Innovation Index up from 66^th ranking in 2016. However, the next crucial stage to reach is for India to become a significant player in globally scalable product and service technology innovation.
 

• What assets can India leverage for its transition towards becoming a global technology innovation player?
• How are Indian startup founders redefining the way India looks at technology innovation and risk?
• How do MNCs look at the role India and its startups can play as a prospective major provider of technology innovation?
• What are the domains where India could aspire to be a leader in the next five to seven years? What is the potential now and how can it be expanded?
• How can corporate India contribute to move from brain drain to brain gain?
• What policy push to expand the role of technology innovation in making India a 10 trillion dollars economy by 2030?

Speakers:
Amit Kalra, Managing Director, Swiss Re Global Business Services, India
Shikha Pillai, Head Strategy, Siemens Healthineers Development Center, Germany/India
GNV Subba Rao, Global Head of Quality & Operation Centers, Process Automation Director, ABB Innovation Center, Switzerland/India
Hemanth Sheelvant, Innovation Director- Corporate Venture Building, Bosch GMBH, Germany/India
Masayuki Toriumi, Managing Director, Sony India Software Center (SISC), India/Japan

Moderated by:
Sanjeev Gupta, Managing Director & Chief Executive Officer, Lahari (A GoI Initiative), Chief Executive Officer, Karnataka Digital Economy Mission (KDEM), India

Breakout session

Green / Climate tech startups: The moment is now

Fighting climate change is not only a tremendous global challenge; it is also stimulating innovation and creating...

Fighting climate change is not only a tremendous global challenge; it is also stimulating innovation and creating immediate business opportunities worldwide. Startup founders and VCs in different countries got the message fast with a new wave of climate tech startups emerging in countries such as India, Germany, USA, UK etc.
 

• How to sort out the “genuine” climate tech startups - with their credible technology and business plan - from the ones just jumping on the bandwagon given that it is a very broad category crossing into every business sector?
• How to fight inertia and reluctance to change, even when climate tech startups have successfully gone through their fundraising and are beginning to scale up? Are public sector incentives and partnerships also needed?
• Can investing in climate tech avoid repeating the mistakes made with clean tech a few years ago which led to costly boom and bust?

Speakers:
Tammy Ben-Haim, Consul General, Consulate General of Israel, Israel
Achim Burkart, Consul General of Germany, Germany
Neeraj Kumar Dasila, Co-Founder & Chief Technology Officer, SmartHelio, Switzerland
Oded Distel, Chief Executive Officer, Tal-Ya Agriculture Solutions, Israel
Anandhi Gokhale, Investment Manager, Emerald Technology Ventures, Singapore

Moderated by:
Amrita Gandikota, German Indian Startup Exchange Program – GINSEP India Representative & AsiaBerlin Ambassador, Germany

Peer-to-Peer Link-up: Indian founders connecting with their peers from different countries

Small, dedicated, roundtable discussions between specific group of startup founders to share experiences and explore potential synergies

Chasing Fire: The innovator’s edge

A conversation with:
Paul Saffo, Technology Forecaster, Professor in the School of Engineering, Stanford University on the future of engineering and the impact of technological change on the future, USA

Moderated by:
Yaël Smadja, Chief Executive Officer, Smadja & Associates, USA

Networking reception

Plenary dinner

Driving Technological innovation: The role of the investor

VC Funds play an important role in providing the resources for translating innovative ideas and the results of tech...

VC Funds play an important role in providing the resources for translating innovative ideas and the results of technology research into marketable products and services. They play a crucial role as the most important source of funding and advice in the creation and development of high-technology companies. However, this crucial role is not always fully recognized. There is also the risk that VC executives would rather invest in so-called trendy technologies which may offer a safer return rather than putting their money in startups looking at developing more radical innovations.
 

• How to assess the importance of VC financed-technology innovation?
• In what ways is the role of VCs in supporting technology innovation complementary to the one of governments and of corporate-based innovation?
• The role of VCs, of a risk culture, has been crucial in making Silicon Valley what it is today. To what extent would you say that the technology potential of a country is in direct relation with the strength and dynamism of this country's VC ecosystem?
• Would you recommend any action or policy that would help expand India's VC sector?
• Is the aspiration - the dream of - breakthrough innovation a permanent consideration on the mind of a VC executive?

A conversation with:
Gururaj “Desh” Deshpande, Co-Founder Sycamore Networks, Founder the Deshpande Center for Technological Innovation at MIT, Founder Deshpande Foundation, USA
Prashanth Prakash, Partner, Accel Partners, India

Moderated by:
Claude Smadja, President, Smadja & Smadja Strategic Advisory, Switzerland