Author: BEC

A quick background on AEVA Aeva was founded by former Apple Inc. engineers Soroush Dardashti and Mina Rezk. In 2018, the company raised $45 million in a series A funding round co-led by Lux Capital Management and Canaan Partners. Rezk, who previously designed optical hardware for Nikon and worked alongside Salehian at Apple’s Special Projects… Continue reading AEVA (NASDAQ $IPV, $AEVA) Spac Merger – Lidar Company Recommendation

One of the things I hear consistently from many organizations who run a “dead”, “dull” or “did not work” community is “Yes we did that – We have 3 wikis, 4 blogs, a discussion board, but we see no traction. Unlike other companies our customers are different, communities wont work”. There are 3 primary reasons… Continue reading Build It and They Will Know

Dragons: A dragon is a company that returns an entire fund — a “fund maker.” VCs can have dragons in their portfolios just as LPs can have dragons in their portfolios. Unicorns: Many entrepreneurs, and the venture investors who back them, seek to build billion-dollar companies. Decacorns: Billion-dollar companies join a club of “unicorns,” a… Continue reading Founders Make Good Money When a VC Funded Company Exits Very Rarely

I had a chance to be in San Jose and be a part of the Prime Minister’s event in San Jose. Friends from India, at NASSCOM including Sangeeta Gupta, R Chandrashekar and Ravi Gururaj, who I worked with for the product conclave for many years, gave me an opportunity to be the Master of Ceremonies… Continue reading Some Observations on the PM Narendra Modi’s Visit to Silicon Valley

I am not good at bargaining. I was taught by my mom years ago to bargain well when she sent me grocery and produce shopping but after being in America for ages, those skills just wore off. I think I try to do the win-win negotiation, but quite honestly that does not work in India.… Continue reading Negotiating, Bargaining and Haggling in Bangalore

Being a hobbyist is an awesome way to keep learning and test “theories” you have. Most cases, when I have a theory I’d like to prove or disprove, I’ve found the best way is to just try it out. That applies to a new product idea, new marketing technique or a new sales strategy that… Continue reading The Art of Disciplined Experimentation

I am in the beautiful city of Udaipur for the weekend to participate in the IIM Udaipur Prarambh hackathon. The IIM itself is only 3 years old and is located within the campus of MLS university in the city. There were about 70-80 participants from various cities and towns near Rajasthan and a few from outside the state as… Continue reading Interesting Ideas from the #Prarambh #Iimudaipur Hackathon

There are 3 numbers that determine if your mobile app has reached product market fit. The “Time to Wow”, “Time to Refer (TTR) and Viral Coefficient. Once you have achieved product market fit, your TTW should be short (preferably in minutes or hours), your TTR should be hours or days and your viral coefficient should be greater… Continue reading Going from Product Market Fit to Traction – What Works in Mobile Apps?

Yesterday, Accel partners had an event in Seattle as a follow up to their events in San Francisco and the Bay area. This was a part education and part recruitment event for Indian technology professionals who want to move back to India to work at a startup. As the Indian startup ecosystem matures, there is… Continue reading 3 Critical Questions Technology Professionals