June 2011 – Idle Tech Thoughts

Continuing on with the startups, here is yet another venture, known as the Startup Garage which provides guidance in a more informal way. While they do not help you get a sponsorship like the 500 Startups, what they do offer is an open forum for a rendezvous with likeminded people who have ideas that can potentially turn into a Google or a Facebook someday.

Started by a group of Indians, the first of such meets happened in Mumbai on 18th and 19th of June 2011. If calling it a success is a bit too soon, I will say I am really impressed to read about the myriad of ideas that came out of it – from social sedia to corporate tools and even education and entrance tests. I liked the way the mentors wrote about ideas being a business and not just a product. It really gives you a different perspective. You can read more about the Garage at Mumbai at their website. As the sequels continue in two more cities – Bangalore, India (on 25th and 26th June 2011) and Pune, India (on 2nd and 3rd July), I’m sure there will be a bucket full of ideas and a truck load of entrepreneurs born, of which atleast some of them can aim for the sky and still fall on cloud number 9.

For a mere $60 for a weekend long event, you couldn’t have wished for an easier way to refuel your ambitions.

Ever thought about starting a company on your own. There is no day in my life that goes by without thinking about it. Although I’ve had several ideas, most of which have been shelved or written down in one of those shabby old notepads that lay in the deepest corners of my room, I must admit, I haven’t yet done much justice to it.

And then on one of those fine sunny Sunday mornings, I chanced upon 500 Startups . Started off as a “micro venture capitalist” firm, it has grown into a startup “nurturing” firm, providing assistance with “Design, Data and Distribution” for starters who have a potential idea but who don’t entirely know where to take off from there. Mentors, with expertise in a multitude of areas including Infrastructure, Social, Travel, Engineering and eCommerce, have helped build several fledglings already including AppBistro , Payvment and SendGrid . And if you really want more, they have start up events all around the globe that can help network the local “starters”

I must say this has definitely triggered my interest to dust those old notepads and start thinking a bit more seriously about them.