Notes on tech

Reading the latest entry on VentureBlog about The Startup Ecosystem got me thinking about how could a similar ecosystem be created in India.

Places like the Bay Area tend to have a disproportionate number of individuals who are willing to bet on risky ventures. And they have a disproportionate number of lawyers, bankers, investors, accountants who have an expertise in business creation. In combination, all these things are self reenforcing and create an even stronger startup culture, which in turn creates a stronger drive towards business creation, which in turn fuels an economy of startup-focused service providers, which in turn lubricates the funding process, which in turn promotes startup growth, which in turn creates an even stronger startup culture, and so on.

Most of the big Indian companies in the tech sector are primarily engaged in the outsourcing business. Infosys, Wipro, TCS etc are all known for taking work from various parts of the globe and doing it in India. What we dont have are product companies. Companies that build either web based services or stand-alone products. Its not that techies in India dont like to take risks or lack vision. The ecosystem simply doesnt exist. Maybe the bootstraping of the ecosystem is happening now-a-days. But, it will take a while to challenge some of the global ecosystems (Eg. Silicon Valley).

We have to get out of the cheap labor mentality and start focusing on creating value. The issue is not about throwing more monkeys at a problem. Its about coming up with creative solutions, about creating startups, building an ecosystem.