Proto.in

We are almost done with the finalists. This edition has been slightly trickier to shortlist, cause of two reasons. For one, I am experimenting with a new way of shortlisting these candidates. And two, we got quite a bit of good companies this time, and going from 19 to 15 is where the problem is right now.

I really wish there was an unlimited supply of time, energy, mentors and space to showcase these companies at times.

By now, most of the companies that did nominate would have heard back from us by now. If you haven’t gotten any response from us, do get in touch with us immediately. We did find one case of a nomination filing that had hidden itself away in the SPAM folder, so I am ensuring that it hasn’t happened twice.

So the information is the same. You will be seeing 15 companies this time being showcased for this edition, and I am quite excited to say that some of them have some fabulous patents and years of industry depth and understanding in what they are doing. This event, will be one, not to miss.

How does the Selection Process Work?
Coming back to the brief hint that I made about the selection process, folks within the team would tell you that I’ve always been against the idea of a single committee of people evaluating companies. When we meet companies that are as diverse as internet, mobile, telecom, software, enterprise, animation and food processing (yep, we have one company on that space), the fixed panel model really doesn’t work. The selection has always been a case where a pool of people are accessed for their expertise on the sector. Given that Proto.in has connections in most verticals from semiconductor fabrication, to people who’ve built businesses in the internet space, to people who do keep an eye on the next wave or trend, its essentially utilizing them in the right mix where the magic comes in.

This process has been working so far, and thanks to the bigger pool of companies who have been at Proto.in before, there is a portfolio being created which is becoming even more resourceful when it comes to validating some of the market hypothesis for these emerging companies – which is the most crucial help a startup could get.

Let me explain it in more simpler terms. The selection process is quite simple. For every company, once we understand the vertical, a set of folks who are closely associated with that sector, and companies who can be potential clients for them are put in touch with the company and asked to converse. We sit and listen to the conversation. What we expect is not a perfect company, but for a team and product that listens, and evolves quickly on its feet and makes use of the opportunity to cash-in on some of these introductions and potential partnerships. I am seeing a slew of very happy “non-accepted” companies this time, cause even if they weren’t ready to go on stage (which is the only reason we hold back a company) the validation of customers, and mentors gives a jolt of advice, and direction that compares to none other.

Truth be told, I’m very pleased with the outcome that we’ve been trying out with. I’m very glad that the role that Proto.in had determined to play for these companies – in giving them a spark of life – comes in much earlier into the game itself, which is beneficial for everyone.

I’ve been getting questions on the nomination and selection process for quite sometime now. I hope this gives some clarity on the situation.

Well, Some of you would be surprised that after three months, we finally got the papers signed by IIT Delhi to host the event in their campus. I guess the timing has been eerie that the institution is on their break and though they in principle agreed to host it, we had to wait for it get it done officially.

And hence, It can be announced now that the venue for Proto.in July ‘08 would be The Indian Institute of Technology – Delhi.

Special thanks goes to Dr. Anil Wali of FITT who has been our valourous supporter and our voice within the administration to make this happen. The team in Delhi which is on the ground has been phenomenal so far. There is due credit for them in this as well.

The most often asked question is as to what the brief agenda of the event is going to be. Here it goes:

DAY ONE:
Fastrack Sessions.
Theme: Today Most Startups are well versed with the art of how to pitch to a VC, or measure the pulse of the market to understand what the valuation of their company would possibly be to play the game. But perhaps we’ve forgotten something along the way. Building products people want. Pricing them according to measures of need, demand and affordability. And most of how do sell your product to be it customers or enterprises and make money. Call it art, or call it science. We’d like to unveil that myth for good.

Proto.in Alumni Dinner. All the Proto.in Alumni from the first ever Proto.in, to the current one, will be getting together for an invite only dinner. We are really looking forward to this one.

DAY TWO:
Startup Showcase: The highlight of the Proto.in gathering. Shortlisted from a total nominated list of about 100, 15 startups that do have the potential to turn the tides of the game, will be taking the stage for their six minutes of fame, demonstrating to the audience what their vision is, and how it looks, works and solves problems in the real world.

Quiz: Post lunch, the event will take on a more informal unconference tone where we are looking to get the 500+ expected audience to interact with each other, via Quizes, Contests etc.

BoF Discussions: We want to hear from the audience of entrepreneurs what are some of the current problems they face, some of the insights that they have in running a company, and lets learn from each other. We are firm believers that the future is already here, it just exists in bits and pieces – except that we are talking about knowledge and experience being shattered. The point of these discussions is to hopefully bring them together to create a collective conscience. If thats too much, we’ll make it simple. Learn from someone who has been through what you are going through right now.

Dinner: We’d love to accommodate the entire audience, but I am not sure if that is going to be possible. Hence the companies that took the stage, our partners, the investors and prominent guests of the meet will get together for dinner in the evening. For those who represent VC firms, it is highly recommended to stay for it and take the last flight out, or fly out the next day morning. We will also be having a panel where folks from NASSCOM, IAMAI, NEN and some of our partners would debate and discuss what they are working on, and focused on. We strongly believe that its crucial to build an inclusive environment and as part of that absolutely necessary for everyone to understand the visions of these organizations. Apart from all those talks, I know that the team here at Proto.in is looking forward to unwinding with these entrepreneurs, and wind up the day.

So that’s pretty much the gist. We have some fabulous things in mind for the winners of the quiz competition. There will also be a liveblogging contest which will a “desirable” prize attached to it. So if you do have a laptop collecting dust in the corner, you might want to get it up to running and get it healthy. The team is working very hard to ensure that the Wifi stays up and are also making some backup, incase the network congestion goes quite high. In all cases, we should be able to manage.

Even as the shortlist of companies will be made before this weekend is over (If you have Nominated, you will get a mail before tomorrow evening), the sponsors getting finalized, the amazing number of investor firms, corporates and prominent speakers getting lined up, we cant help noticing that this is going to be one helluva meet. Look forward to seeing you all there.

If you haven’t registered yet, I believe we are in the last tens of tickets available online. Register now, at www.proto.in/register We wont be accommodate past the limit by any chance.

Hope to see you all there.

Regards,
Vijay Anand, And the Fabulous Team ever.
Proto.in

Contact Person: Ms. Kushboo

PaGaLGuY.com
Inzane Labs
53/55, Modi Street
Dhanraj Niwas, 3rd Floor
Fort, Mumbai 400 001
INDIA

Tel: +91-22-22644141, 22644747
Fax: +91-22-22654491

There have been quite a few more firms that have been writing to us to confirm their participation at Proto.in July. The list goes as:

Helion Ventures
Mercatus Capital
Bluerun Ventures
TVS Capital Fund
Upstream Ventures
Intel Capital
SeedFund

There was someone who was kind enough to ask if this was an invite only list. Actually it isnt. If you are keen on attending, all you have to do is drop a note. We’d be happy to accomodate you.

Afterall its Our Event.

Hello Everyone,

So I’m sure you are waiting with your breathe held tight about the Investors who are going to be there at Proto.in this time. Here’s the first set of confirmed list – with more to come, it seems.

BAF Spectrum, Singapore
Ventureast
ClearStone Ventures
IDG Ventures
Canaan Partners
Band of Angels
Mumbai Angels
Inventus Capital
Sequoia Capital
FootPrint Ventures
Erasmic Ventures
Nexus Capital
LightSpeed Ventures
Ojas Ventures
NEA Indo US Ventures
Charles River Ventures
Nexus India Capital
Qualcomm Ventures
Matrix Partners

This is almost turning out to be an event, you simply can’t miss. If you are one from the investor community and do want to be a part, do let me know.