TechSangam

Less Jugaad, More Real Innovation

Vishy KurugantiJune 10, 20135 mins

[Editor’s Note: The World Bank’s Development Marketplace (DM) is a competitive grants program that surfaces and funds innovative projects with high potential for development impact that are scalable…

World Bank India Development Marketplace: Finalist Review Part 2

Vishy KurugantiMay 30, 20133 mins

[Editor’s Note: The World Bank’s Development Marketplace (DM) is a competitive grants program that surfaces and funds innovative projects with high potential for development impact that are scalable…

World Bank India Development Marketplace: Finalist Review Part 1

Vishy KurugantiMay 29, 20133 mins

[Editor’s Note: The World Bank’s Development Marketplace (DM) is a competitive grants program that surfaces and funds innovative projects with high potential for development impact that are scalable…

Artha Platform, closed social enterprise version of Angel List, announces Challenge

Vishy KurugantiMay 28, 20133 mins

Pic courtesy arthaventurechallenge.com This post was supposed to be about Artha Venture Challenge (AVC) – a call for applications from social ventures across India operating in the sectors of…

Paul Polak, SunPower and good news for poor farmers

Vishy KurugantiMay 24, 20134 mins

Pic courtesy unreasonableinstitute.org Paul Polak is an accomplished man and a very busy man. After spending a few decades researching and trying out various innovations to lift poor farmers out of…

A farmer's son deliberates on the cooperative decision

Vishy KurugantiMay 10, 20133 mins

[Editor’s Note: Last year, I *attended the Anantpur Cooperative Federation Annual General Meeting (AGM) *in Gutturu village of Anantpur district (Andhra Pradesh).** Conversations with a few farmers…

Why you should attend Sankalp Forum 2013

Vishy KurugantiApril 15, 20134 mins

By now they should have changed the venue of Sankalp Forum from Mumbai to Bangalore. I attended the third edition of Sankalp in 2011. The only reason I missed it last year (and will sadly be missing…

Simpa Networks Closes $2 million Series B round

Vishy KurugantiApril 05, 20132 mins

[Update (Apr 8, 2013): Simpa’s CEO Paul Needham wrote back with a few details. ADB joins other investors such as Schneider Electric, DOEN Foundation, Invested Development, Hilti Foundation, Village…

Poor leap-frogging the rich?

Vishy KurugantiApril 04, 20132 mins

The 1600 INR Pollinate lamp (Pic courtesy theatlanticcities.com) Just read an intriguing Mother Jones article on the adoption of solar power in India’s slums. The two solar startups profiled in the…

Will Poole, on the 10 commandments of pitching BOP startups

Vishy KurugantiApril 02, 20133 mins

Pic courtesy usf.vc [Editor’s Note: A few weeks ago, I had an engaging coffee chat with Unitus Seed Fund‘s (USF) Srikrishna Ramamoorthy and Eleanor Horowitz. The bulk of our discussion was on early…