Amol Deshpande’s Post

Was back in the bay area this week. I experienced self driving cars and had a board meeting with some great early stage investors who I have been working with on a true manhattan project for early childhood healthcare and artificial intelligence. SF has some great investors/capital, innovation and weather. This city is a hub of innovation. And it seems to be getting out of the depth of its doldrums. But for me, we are located in Denver. We are having no trouble attracting world class talent. When it comes to AI and machine learning, our India team is incredible caliber. I have a team I would put up against any SF team out there. So as beautiful as it was in SF, the competitive advantage will go away if they don't invest in supporting business versus driving people away. #entrepreneur #startup #bayarea #sanfrancisco

You can't replace a relentless founder and a grand entrepreneurial vision. Its impossible. It never works. Entrepreneurs who know an industry can get ahead of themselves, but are almost always right in the long term. I recall when Travis Kalanick moved Uber heavily into autonomy something like 9-10 years ago. I wondered but you could see someday it would get there. I suspect he could see others jumping ahead and realizing the app itself may not be enough. This week I was in SF. I couldn't believe what I saw. Autonomy everywhere. And it was working just fine. I even downloaded the Waymo app and now will use it when here. See the pic-no driver whatsoever. I followed the car and it is as good or better than most human drivers. The board replaced Kalanick and to the credit of the new management, they did get to an IPO and profitability. But I suspect competition is coming. And the once held lead in autonomy has faded away. The waymo app is probably not as good as Uber yet but I am sure they will invest to make it great. Bottom line, going long with a great entrepreneur is how you change the game and create wealth. Over thinking, supposed or real patriarchy of traditional boards of directors and red tape is not. Go long and stay long on the big vision! #enterpreneur #vision #selfdriving #autonomy https://lnkd.in/g-_y_-kZ

will be in the bay area starting later tonight through tuesday morning. If anyone is around monday, lmk as I will be taking meetings around SF.

Agriculture…. The innovations that are coming are incredible and technology evolving at a rapid pace. I recently made an agtech investment focused on fintech… In 90 days the company built more with better and faster user experience for farmers than I have seen built in many years with many dozens of engineers. Already getting ag retail partners and distributors signed up and more coming… tens of millions already committed through and more to come. The world of technology is changing so rapidly. The key to winning is staying nimble always on the cutting edge. Small teams. This will completely level the playing field for the small and medium sized guy and make it easier for farmers to access financing. True disruption is coming and soon. Stay tuned #entreprener #startup #agtech

As a child of immigrants I love America. As an entrepreneur I owe a lot to this country and the opportunity it affords. It is the very reason I can have the profession I want. Go to other places in the world and aspiration, failure, big thinking and even capitalism is frowned upon. You take risk and fail you are bad. You are supposed to shrivel away. Here, You can fail, get screwed over, pushed down and come back with a vengeance to even greater heights. Its all opportunity. Today, I am working on and investing with so many others on so many worthwhile things. Healthcare, agriculture, education... if I can spend the next 40 years of my life investing in and giving back I would do so by creating something for others. I am not going to sit on my hands. I feel obligated because I owe it to the United States and the opportunity it has afforded me. As have all the people in America- coworkers, coinvestors, employees everyone....... #america #unitedstates #entrepreneur

The Divergent Investments newsletter is here. I am back running a growth company. 100 employees and growing. I feel I am always learning but I am so much more sober about things than I ever was as a younger entrepreneur. Portfolio wise, Good financings happening, but reasonable- I supported many. Passed on a few when everything has changed and original investment is dead or dying. A few new investments, mostly in agtech. Some tips on handling business momentum. Teaching Patience and concentration in your kids Don't get ahead of yourself. Its important to be tough and resilient when things are bad, but it is very important to not be a maniac when things are good. Do not let others feed your mania or influence your marathon mindset due to their short term needs. Plenty of stories I can tell you about this. Give me a call if and when you have momentum and I will sober you up... :) #entrepreneur #parenting #venturecapital #startup

Lots of entrepreneurs asking me about boards. Its an important topic - more so as you grow to scale and ipo stage. Board member tips of the day (more to come in newsletter): - Don’t over emphasize age or “central casting”. Pick for talent. Lots of traditional (especially international) firms literally discriminate - if you have been a big company executiv, and over 65 years of age, you can be incompetent, but somehow your qualified to be on a board. - No career board members. Ever. Full stop. A career board member is someone who sits on 4-5 boards most commonly a washed up executive who is 65+. I feel these people should be banned from boards as they make careers out of it- almost like a politician. This is risky to the governance of a business and the shareholders. Not that experience is bad- but being a career board member is. They care more about their image than about your company or you. They only want to protect themselves. Focus on quality. Maybe take someone younger and give them a shot. You will be happy you did and I promise you will regret the former, more traditional approach... #entrepreneur #board

As I reflected on the past week- all the insane momentum in startups- all the people and relationships. Careers and futures I am responsible for- it’s hundreds again and I believe soon to be thousands. It’s a lot of weight but it’s just such richness. I enjoy seeing people be successful. And it’s bothers me when they aren’t… Those who know me realize I value others success as much as my own. I love the richness of people and experiences as much as stock options or equity or income. All that weighty stuff said the simple truth is there is nothing like ice cream on a Friday night in summer. Had little man yesterday and we already knew what we were doing! #entrepreneur #careers #people

Here is how you know if you have ever created something disruptive.. Random people you don’t even know dislike you or insult you or gossip about you. Or people you don’t know are kind and express admiration for what you do or did.. So life and career advice- always be the one with your head down working to disrupt or change markets for the better or the one with interest in admiration for others. Surprise people with how much you have done Don’t be the one gossiping or wasting time talking about others. #entrepreneur #careeradvice

Overflowing offices… a sure sign of a company with momentum. Even “Lou” the Bernese mountain dog can’t get in… As mentioned if your a company focused on autism, speech, ot , diagnosis or any other early childhood services please reach out as we will demo for you! #entrepreneur #autism #ai