They live a dream at Silicon Valley

Kochi: The five young founders of student startups could not still shake off their disbelief, which was more than the jet lag. Just back from a two-week ‘dream-come-true’ Silicon Valley trip, arranged by the state government, the young honchos from the Startup Village here, however, ventured to predict that it would not be long before “we caught  up with them.”

While sharing their experiences in the Valley with Deccan Chronicle, they said the eco system for startups in the Valley was amazing, especially the ease with which one could network there.

“No one differentiates between a big idea and a small one. Even a Stanford professor will lend you his ears with patience if you have an idea, even if it’s small,” said Akash Mathew of CIED Pvt Ltd, who was part of the team.

According to Nithin George of Qplay Tech, the role played by Stanford was crucial for Silicon Valley’s growth. “We in India lack a similar university culture which is conducive for free thinking.” 
Adding to this was the willingness of people there to invest in startups. “If you have an idea, raising money is not a problem at all in the Valley,” said Jibin Jose of Dot Retail.

Vijith Padmanabhan of Dolojo Labs, who got into a partnership with Valley-based firm Evernote, said he was struck by the openness with which companies there received them. Some of the entrepreneurs there were curious as they were told that the five were sent by a state government in India.

“Not many governments supported such initiatives except Germany and Canada, we were told,” said Arvind Sanjeev of RHL Vision. The Kerala government had provided Rs 15 lakh to support their trip to the Valley as part of its initiative to promote the startup culture in the state. The five, accompanied by Startup Village CEO Sijo Kuruvila George, were hosted in the US by Asha Jadega, wife of the late Rajeev Motwani, a former professor at Stanford University.