Ritu Jha–
Indiaspora, a nonprofit founded in 2012 to “inspire and position the global Indian diaspora as a force for good”, was conferred with an outstanding contribution award at ATEA‘s CATEALYZE 23 on September 23. Indiaspora founder and Silicon Valley investor M.R. Rangaswami received the award from the American Tamil Entrepreneurs’ Association (ATEA) at its annual conference CATEALYZE 2023 to promote startups.
The event saw the participation of venture capitalists, entrepreneurs, and startups at the Computer History Museum in Mountain View, California.
“I’m grateful that Indiaspora got the award because we have been working for over 10 years to promote the diaspora’s role in society, to really talk about giving back and about service that are the ethos of the Indian community,” Rangaswami told indica. “It is good to see that the work put in by our organization is being recognized by ATEA. This is so special that the entire community has embraced the Indiaspora concepts.”
He said, “During these 11 years, a lot has happened. CEOs of large tech companies are Indian, and the sheer amount of money being sent to India, there are so many facets of our community that we’ve grown and shaped.”.
“Indiaspora’s activities with the diaspora have touched every aspect of the community — cultural, political, trade. We have doctors, lawyers, academics, venture capitalists, and CEOs, it’s an inclusive community. It represents every facet of the society here. But the underlying values, our ethos is seva. The values that we learned while growing up and the culture and the history of India are embodied in our society and in our group as well,” he added.
He said Indiaspora’s next target is to expand the chapters now in the UK, Canada, Singapore, UAE, and Australia, and unite the global diaspora and harness the power of the 30 million Indians who live outside of India.”
On the US economy, he said Silicon Valley holds out some hope for startups. He is not convinced that the US market is experiencing a recession. “I think companies with an Indian American founder dealing in artificial intelligence are getting funded to the tune of tens of millions of dollars.”
On the possible economic fallout of the India-Canada diplomatic standoff, he said: “I don’t want to make any statements before we see actual evidence, facts that would clarify what the case is all about. I do not see anything to substantiate the case yet. It’s mere speculation at this point, we’ll wait. The US-Canada relationship is good and since we’re here in the US, I don’t see any change between the two nations.”
He was all praises for the changes he saw in India when he visited New Delhi to attend the G20 Summit held on September 9-10, 2023. “I reached there early on the first day for the event held at the Bharat Mandapam in New Delhi’s Pragati Maidan. The Pragati Maidan also has
been changing that whole time. Inside it was like being in a well-equipped venue in Dubai, or Singapore – I couldn’t know the difference. The quality, style, and elegance of the venue are fabulous inside and out. I think in India the aspirations have gone global. The execution is getting global.”
