UpStreamVoice
UpStreamVoice offers an editorial approach to content creation and it focuses on capturing the intellectual foundations of an organization. While social media and marketing content are important, our approach prioritizes storytelling that resonates with stakeholders.UpStreamVoice creates narratives that capture the essence of their organization. By emphasizing conversations that truly matter for your leadership we believe in creating a communications system that help your organization achieve lasting success.
IIT Madras Director Kamakoti on Deep Tech, Quantum and Startup Customers
What does it take to turn research into a company that customers trust?
In this press Q&A, Prof. V. Kamakoti, Director of IIT Madras, joins Bhaskar Majumdar, Co-Founder and Managing Partner of Unicorn India Ventures, and Natarajan (Nat) Malupillai, Group CEO of IIT Madras Research Park, to discuss the growth of India's deep-tech startups.
The panel discusses patient capital, opportunities in quantum technologies, student-led innovation, patents and the path from an idea to a working product. They also examine customer adoption: how large companies can work with startups, and what founders need to do...
Why a ₹100 Crore Chip Startup Was Worth ₹680 Crore 9 Months Later: a quick chat with Unicorn India Ventures
A semiconductor startup went from a ₹100 crore valuation to ₹650–680 crore in nine months, and its auditors couldn't understand how. Bhaskar Majumdar, Managing Partner at Unicorn India Ventures, which has just launched a deep tech fund with IIT Madras, explains how deep tech actually gets valued, and why it needs different rules.
On 26 September 2026, IIT Madras and Unicorn India Ventures announced the ₹450 crore first close of IITM Unicorn Frontier Fund I, a deep tech fund with a ₹1,000 crore target. The same day, UpStreamVoice sat down with Bhaskar Majumdar.
He explains why deep tech is "not a gut-feel b...
The story behind each company - the learning of Prequate from advising 700 businesses
In this episode we bring you a company that has been growing with all the startups and SMBs in India.
00:00 - Introduction
06:30 - Working Startups and SMEs
11:40 - Finding a solution for business.
15:51 - Finding the continuity for legacy business transformation.
22:47 - Building a consulting business.
35:31 - The evolution of technology and business: AI transformation.
48:17 - All things AI don't work for the moment.
01:03:00 - Going beyond services.
01:12:00 - Ensuring legacy business transforms.
Support the show
Thanks for Listening! Follow Us on Facebook, In...
Business management simplified: Tally's path towards enabling SMEs in the AI era
In this episode I talk with Tejas Goenka, the Managing Director of Tally Solutions. TheUpStreamLife delves deeper into the soul of the company that has built India's accounting software story. Find out what the path of Tejas Goenka would be in making this company go deeper into the Indian and global SME industry. Already running into the millions of users, its one of the most valuable software companies built in India and its truly Indian in every essence.
00:00 - Introduction
00:50 - Tally as an operating system.
02:38 - Built for the Indian SME.
06:18 - SMEs b...
Rise of social impact startups in IIM-CIP & the North-East: in-conversation with chairman Ajay Jain
In this episode we talk with Chairman of the IIMCIP, Ajay Jain, who has been through forty years of entrepreneurship and is now paying it forward as a professor and startup mentor. He talks about how the North-East part of India is going to attract several startups in the years to come and why IIMCIP is playing a vital role in its growth. @iimcalcutta
00:00 - Introduction to the podcast
01:21 - Learning from the Corporate world
05:20 - Career in Kuwait and the stepping stone to business.
08:44 - Why Institutions will create social impact going forward.
Why schools still need edtech, STEM interventions & test prep that matters: the SpeEdLabs story
In this episode I talk with Vivek Varshney, the founder of SpeEdLabs, a test prep company that has survived the test of being a startup and is now growing to become a preferred partner for schools in smaller towns. How did Vivek and team do this, lets find out.
00:00 - Introduction.
01:22 - Being an IIT/IIM grad and going on to set up a startup.
05:25 - Education is the only currency to come out of poverty.
10:30 - Building a startup is all about product market fit, the first customer.
15:30 - Outcomes decide the...
The journey of Prequate, how Pradyumna went from Yeshas Academy to setting up an advisory firm
In this episode we talk about the growth of an idea, how Pradyumna went from being a back bencher to setting up an advisory/investment banking firm that works with the brightest startups and large corporations.
This interview covers his student days and also covers how investment banking works.
00:00 - Introduction
00:34 - The objective of the Disha Series with Mentorsforkids.in - an introduction by Pavan Sharma, partner at BCL India
04:00 - The reason why MentorsForKids wants employability.
06:00 - The journey of Pradyumna
16:20 - Building a network for I-Banking
24:15...
Lab to business: AI native platform LatentForce fixes enterprise code migration with scale & context
In this episode Ideaspring Capital's Naganand Doraswamy talks with deep tech startup LatentForce, which has a special combination of a research professor and his students who are building the business as founders. This fascinating story showcases how Indian science is scaling globally.
00:00 - Introduction
00:34 - Genesis of LatentForce
05:40 - From lab to business
06:59 - Keeping in touch with disruptions in AI
15:00 - From professor to thinking business
17:53 - LatentForce is solving code migration with context
22:00 - Taking the business to customers
25:25 - Getting great talent.
35:39 - Revenue pipeline of...
India's Sovereign Path: the Rupee, the Future, the need to "Change" the geo-political game
In this short video I analyze where India is heading and how it has to reflect about its relationship between powerful nations.
Here is a brief text of the essay:
It is time for India to reflect on its position in the world order as the rupee slides further thanks to the USA’s adventures around the world.
The USA’s war in Iran and its forceful tariff diplomacy has not bode well for the world.
The current tensions have led to foreign capital’s flight from India’s stock markets. Combine t...
Retail's still in search of technologies relevant for consumer experience: A view from Pavan of RDEP
In this episode of theUpStreamLife I talk to Pavan Panchamukhi, the founder of RDEP.io which focuses on improving customer experiences with intelligent checkouts. Is this relevant? Let us find out more.
00:00 - Introduction
02:08 - Why serve retail?
04:46 - Focus is on experience and engagement.
08:40 - Physical Retail is evolving always.
13:30 - Personalising for customers dynamically.
19:08 - New age recommendation engines.
23:51 - Value perception of new tech in India and why South Asia.
29:00 - Passing through Corporate audits.
32:00 - The race to be relevant and markets that are relevant.<...
Understanding US Healthcare & why its on the cusp of change: a view from CitiusTech's Sudhir Kesavan
In this interview with Sudhir Kesavan, the COO and Executive Director of CitiusTech, theUpStreamLife delves deep into the healthcare ecosystem of the U.S.A to understand why healthcare unlike other industries has so much data, and yet is slow to embrace new technologies. At the heart of it is regulation and insurance, lets find out more about what is changing.
00:00 - Introduction
01:09 - What is Citiustech
02:53 - Pharma and Care, how can they work together to ensure better service
03:55 - The complexity of the healthcare stack
10:00 - Decision making in the payer...
Understanding US Healthcare & why its on the cusp of change: a view from Citiustech's Sudhir Kesavan
In this interview with Sudhir Kesavan, the COO and Executive Director of Citiustech, theUpStreamLife delves deep into the healthcare ecosystem of the U.S.A to understand why healthcare unlike other industries has so much data, and yet is slow to embrace new technologies. At the heart of it is regulation and insurance, lets find out more about what is changing.
00:00 - Introduction
01:09 - What is Citiustech
02:53 - Pharma and Care, how can they work together to ensure better service
03:55 - The complexity of the healthcare stack
10:00 - Decision making in the payer...
Discover the right fund for your company with Mohur: Priyanka's journey of building an ecosystem
In this episode we talk with Priyanka Shah, the founder of Mohur.com, a platform that gives you a structure to source the right funds that are tailored for your company. Priyanka understands startup ecosystems along with the successes and the woes of running a company like no other. This is why Mohur was born, startups run out of funds although there are funds are available. Think about it - its a combination of debt funds, grants, VCs, PEs, and angels - find the right match with Mohur.
00:15 - What is Mohur?
03:50 - Why Mohur represents...
The GCC edge - why India is still the preferred technology centre? A view from Xpheno
In this episode we talk to Xpheno's founder Kamal Karanth, who talks about Global Capability Centres and how the world of technology is gearing up for Artificial Intelligence. He talks about India and why it is poised for growth.
00:00 - Introduction to Kamal.
01:35 - What is Xpheno?
03:12 - Engineers, AI and India.
09:28 - How does Xpheno help GCCs?
18:32 - Advantage of India's leadership.
22:32 - The fear of AI, what is the reset.
28:53 - India will export talent.
33:35 - Making vocational courses available.
39:00 - Opportunities in managing talent.
44:35...
Diamonds are forever, even more so when a millennia old tradition is revived by Meenu Subbiah
In this episode, which is a long form, we talk with Meenu Subbiah and her daughter Adithi about the business diamonds, authenticity and continuity. If you want to understand how it takes to build a business that lasts for thirty years then find out how things work.
00:00 - A quick introduction to Meenu Subbiah Diamonds.
00:43 - Getting inspired by her mother.
03:00 - The love for history with jewellery.
08:26 - Starting off very young in the U.S.A
13:00 - Understanding jewellery - close setting jewellery.
20:56 - The exclusive line of jewellery of...
Author, CSO of Ascendion, and futurist Paul Roehrig talks about organizations transitioning with #AI
In this episode we talk to Author Paul Roehrig about how the world is going to be embracing AI at scale.
00:00 - Introduction
02:08 - The role of Ascendion's engineers.
06:44 - Evaluating AI at work.
07:51 - What are CEOs preparing for in this era?
12:56 - Platform engineering and data monetization.
16:29 - Markets that are leading with AI.
20:00 - Creating trusted outcomes.
28:10 - Knowing the emotional resonance of using AI.
31:48 - Energy and AI, why is it an important conversation to have.
35:00 - Ability to innovate and partner with each...
Consumption! Brands, e-Commerce, Mom&Pop stores in India - a view from Devangshu Dutta
In this episode of theUpStreamlife we bring India's foremost retail experts Mr Devangshu Dutta, the founder of Third Eyesight, who gives you insights into brand building and consumption in India. This is made for founders who want to be building for the long run in India.
00:00 - Introduction to context setting.
01:55 - What is Third Eyesight
03:30 - Organized retailing or modern trade - what is it?
07:15 - Brands and quick commerce, have they broken mom and pop stores.
15:30 - Young brands going offline is all about scale.
18:08 - Large FMCG companies will n...
Making life a journey of continuous learning: ZeCa Capital's Shreya Ravi's take on career in finance
In this episode of theUpStreamLife we bring to you stories from people who love a finance career and how they shaped it to learn about businesses. Shreya Ravi is a CA who is part of a sustainability fund called ZeCa Capital.
00:00 - Introduction
01:52 - Being inspired at home.
05:45 - Finding the right college.
13:36 - Teachers do influence you.
15:00 - Preparing to become a CA.
16:23 - Working with the Big-4 and what you learn while there.
21:25 - Storyboarding a project.
25:35 - Understand what you are doing first before presenting it to...
The Deep Science Ecosystem in India, a conversation with Ankur Capital
In this episode of theUpStreamLife we bring to you Ankur Capital's Deep Science Report which outlines how the deep science startup ecosystem is progressing with increased industry participation. @ankur_capital
In this episode Alysha Maria Lobo talks with Vishal Katariya and Suraj Nair of Ankur Capital.
00:00 - Introduction to why deep science is mainstream.
01:36 - Scientists and PhDs are coming back to India.
05:40 - Fragility of the deep science ecosystem.
08:52 - Benchmarking deep science startups.
13:03 - Patents are a great measure.
19:40 - Scaling deep science with CVCs.
23:14 - Is ma...
A history of innovation in the deep science ecosystem in India, a case for startups
In this episode of theUpStreamlife covering the @ankur_capital Deep Science Forum we bring to you Professor B Gurumoorthy and Professor C V Natraj, from the IISc, who talk about the history of Indian innovation in tech and the startup world.
00:00 - Introduction to the discussion.
01:48 - Building while being capital strapped in 1947.
03:10 - Why there was a supply and demand gap in India.
04:24 - Innovations at a lage corporate.
08:01 - Long term benefits of investing in innovation.
10:23 - Industry and Science need to be on common ground to scale.
13:15 - G...
IP protection for Indian deep tech startups, how to build value for a company
In this episode Ritu Varma, the founder of @ankur_capital talks with Dr Vikram Rao about the importance of intellectual property to tell a story and create value.
00-00 - Ritu sets the context of building value in deep tech with IP
02:53 - Two buckets of intellectual property - patents and know-how.
08:25 - Do agreements hold when business of deep tech is across countries.
09:23 - Giving away patents for free.
15:29 - Protecting Scientific Discovery or Formulations.
17:00 - IP Strategy with platform technology.
23:18 - Convincing customers about IP.
30:48 - Raising money t...
Scaling deep tech ventures in manufacturing, a view from innovators & founders of Sea6 Energy, VFlow
In this episode of @ankur_capital Ankur Capital's Deep Science Forum, Rishi Srivastava of OffGrid Energy Labs talks to Avishek Kumar, Co-founder, VFlowtech, Sri Sailaja Nori, Co-founder and CSO, Sea6 Energy, and Kedar Medhi, Innovation Advisor, ex-Director Philips Ventures about the value of deep tech in manufacturing and how to navigate regulation along with business.
00:00 - Rishi sets the context to the panel
07:30 - Kedar talks about knowing the value of the manufactured device and its use case in order to cross all regulation compliances.
12:20 - Avishek talks about how to manage scale with policy l...
Gaganyaan mission's Prashant Nair talks about his inspirations at Ankur Capital's #DeepScienceForum
In this episode we bring you Prashant Nair, one of the four astronaut's trained at ISRO #isro for the #Gaganyaan Mission. Prashant talks about why India's space mission is built on inclusivity and furthering human collaboration. Ankur Capital's Deep Science Forum captured India's moment in making scientific ideas become mainstream businesses.
@ankur_capital @IN-SPACe
00:00 - Prasant Nair sets the context to the Deep Science Forum.
03:00 - The Mathematics, Algorithms, Romance and Poetry of space travel.
06:36 - Deep tech is for everyone, it is for humanity and all living things.
09:00 - Why an Indi...
Scale up Journey for Deep Science Ventures: A View From BioPrimeAgri & Morphing Machines Founders
In this episode we capture why Deep Science ventures need to scale and how they are going to scale. Deep science startups are responsible to several stakeholders, but they also need several stakeholders to support them inorder to scale. In this panel discussion with Dr Renuka Diwan, the founder of BioPrime, and Deepak Shapeti from Morphing Machines we learn how deep science can prosper and progress in India as the ecosystem of funds, scientists, market and government are coming together as one. @ankur_capital
00:00 - Vishal Krishna of theUpStreamLife sets the context to the journey.
02:00 - Bio...
The "Anscer" to made-in-India #robotics: a primer about IP driven deep tech #startups with Raghu
In this episode we talk about the business of robotics and how it can be made-in-India. Raghu is the co-founder of Anscer Robotics and wants to make
00:00 - Introduction
01:40 - Intelligence for warehouses.
10:07 - How does it work within an ecosystem?
18:00 - Selling in India and why the ecosystem is evolving?
26:00 - The SME story in robotics.
29:51 - Making robots inexpensive for Indian companies.
37:49 - Funding robotics in India and protecting intellectual property
44:19 - Components should be available globally if you build Robots.
51:30 - Support of the founders.
How tech companies plan their routes to boost employee productivity with Routematic's intelligence
In this episode we talk to Sriram Kannan the co-founder of Routematic about how he has made more than 20 cities and their private corporations use smart mobility to ensure employees come to the office on time and are safely reached home after a tiring day.
00:00 - Routematic and its journey.
05:44 - The customer profile and how they use Routematic
14:40 - Why government can use data from Routematic about city productivity.
21:40 - Smart communities and cities.
34:44 - Understanding corporate SLAs.
36:33 - How not to stagnate?
42:25 - Final thoughts
Support the...
India's #crypto story and why retail investors are appreciating it - the Coinswitch interview
In this episode of theUpStreamLife we talk to Ashish Singhal, the co-founder of Coinswitch who talks about regulation in crypto currencies, retail investors and the rise of crypto as an investment class.
00:00 - Introduction
01:22 - A quick short history on crypto exchanges in India.
06:00 - How to invest in crypto - have a long term mindset.
12:00 - Talking to government about Web3, payments and its impact.
18:19 - Managing stakeholders like VCs
19:58 - Crypto assets, Security and Protection
25:17 - Developers who love to build on blockchain.
29:41 - Blockchain and its future...
GitHub's open source and how is it converging with #ai - a view from Karan M V
In this episode we talk to GitHub's Karan M V about how AI and Open Source is converging.
00:00 - Introduction to the podcast.
02:00- The open source community and the developers.
12:48 - Open source has revolutionized technology.
15:43 - Why you must use open source.
21:00 - Productivity gains with AI
29:38 - Developers globally
36:00 - How AI agents operate?
36:55 - College students and AI, humans cannot fear.
Support the show
Thanks for Listening! Follow Us on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, LinkedIn or Find us on YouTube
How the world of finance is gearing up to #AI - a view from Acuity Analytics
In this episode we talk with Acuity Analytics and its tech head Arijit Mitra who talks about how tech is always about generating insights.
00:00- Introduction
03:40 - Transformation to AI and the new tech layer.
13:00 - AI and what should engineers think of.
20:00 - Corporations and how are they evolving with AI
31:07 - How is tech playing out globally?
Support the show
Thanks for Listening! Follow Us on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, LinkedIn or Find us on YouTube
Gyrophint: #ai based reader that detects chemicals in boxes, helping airports save lives
In this video Ideaspring's founder, Naganand talks to Gyrophint's scientist and co-founder, Siva Umapathy, about the power of Indian deep science and Gyrophint's readers which save lives.
00:00 - Introduction
01:00 - The beginning of Siva's India journey.
06:28 - The early days of using Raman Spectroscopy.
11:00 - Convincing people to invest in science based startups.
17:07 - The products of Gyrophint and their applications.
28:30 - Listening to users and building on the AI.
32:20 - Going to market, in India and abroad.
35:30 - Tech must be democratized to help everyone.
Support the...
Beyond the Hype: Practical AI insights from Elastic with Ajay Nair
In this episode we talk with Ajay Nair, General Manager - Platforms, Elastic, about enterprises building their business with AI.
00:00 - Introduction.
01:00 - Generative AI as a data problem.
05:18 - Driving value with AI.
09:00 - The problem of fragmentation.
11:07 - Regions and AI adoption.
14:10 - Thoughts on the developer community in India.
Support the show
Thanks for Listening! Follow Us on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, LinkedIn or Find us on YouTube
Forging the Future with Elastic: Agentic AI and the Power of Contextual Search
In this episode of theUpStreamLife we talk with Baha Azarmi, the global VP, Customer Engineering, Elastic about new developments at the company. We unlock the power of Elastic's technology for corporations and how it plays a major role in the era of AI.
00:00 - Introduction
01:09 - Roadmap to innovation at Elastic
03:00 - Being relevant in the era of LLMs.
04:40 - Being cost effective for businesses.
07:52 - What are customers using Elastic for?
11:56 - Learning from customers.
12:49 - Opportunity with Indian startups.
Support the show
Thanks for...
After funding 200 plus companies, why 247VC's Shashank believes in India's future is in deep tech
In this episode I meet with ace seed stage and Series-A investor Shashank Randev, the founder of 247VC. He talks about about how India is changing its outlook towards deep tech and consumer businesses. He talks about all things that will continue to make India rise over the next decade.
00:00 - Introduction to the episode in BHive.
02:53 - 247VC and how it views the Indian startup ecosystem.
05:53 - The growth that mattered between 2014 and 2021.
09:22 - The seeding of ideas that made impact.
16:00 - Enterprise tech, deep tech and more.
19:30 - The concept...
Phyx44 & the happy cow: the recombinant milk based protein alternative for a sustainable future
In this episode Ideaspring Capital's founder Naganand talks with Bharath Bakkaraju, the founder of Phyx44, a company manufacturing recombinant protein. They are a deep tech company that is figuring out the alternative to milk and the emission caused by dairy cattle. The numbers are stark and you have to listen to this conversation to understand why companies like Phyx44 are the future in mankind's evolution to consuming protein from a lab and reducing emissions in the form of methane from cattle.
00:00 - Introduction to Phyx44.
01:00 - Bharath's background, recombinant protein and Phyx44.
03:55 - Cattle, emissions...
Why this tech investor wants to make farmers his partners while acquiring land for development
In this episode I talk with Bhavdeep Reddy, angel investor in several companies and founder of Access Developers. In this four decade career he has seen it all - from the rise of #ITservices to #cloudcomputing to #ai. What has remained constant in this rise is the growth of cities and development. Bhavdeep, also known as Bobby, talks about growth that is inclusive in this podcast.
Note: Bobby is an investor in theUpStreamLife and thanks to BHive for being a fabulous workspace..
00:00 - Introduction
03:31 - Why make farmers partners.
06:06 - Institutional land banking.
War to deploy LLMs in enterprises is wide open, adoption of GPTs require experts - Arun of Articul8
In this episode we talk to Arun, the founder of Articul8, an LLM company that focuses on building models specifically trained for enterprise scale and security. Learn a lot more about the AI wars in this episode, which is similar to the cloud wars that began more than a decade ago between AWS, Google Cloud and Microsoft Azure. This time around startups like Articul8 have the ability to scale in a niche market. Let us find out Arun's strategy to scale the company.
00:00 - Introduction.
04:26 - Training the AI models.
11:40 - AI stack and how w...
Story of consumption & Indian brands until 2040 - conversation with Vinay Singh of Fireside Ventures
In this episode we talk to Vinay Singh, the co-founder and Partner at Fireside Ventures. Vinay's Venture Capital firm has bet on Indian brands even before the world believed that India can be capable of building long term brands. They got their thesis right by betting on companies that defined India's aspiring consumers. India is ripe for growth, it also needs to think of sustainability. Here are Vinay's thoughts. Don't forget to like and subscribe to the podcasts.
00:00 - A quick introduction to the conversation.
00:45 - Statistical references to India's growth.
03:38 - The growth happened...
Deep tech's success is a key to a sustainable future - Social Alpha's founder Manoj Kumar
In this episode we talk with Manoj Kumar, the founder of deep tech venture building foundation Social Alpha. This venture development platform started as a passion project but overtime it has helped over 350 startups. The model of Social Alphas unique as in it works with foundations to achieve their deep tech goals. Enjoy the interview.
00:00 - Introduction
01:48 - Social Alpha's early days.
09:06 - Aligning incentives with those Social Alpha works with to foster deep tech research.
19:51 - Difference in Indian deep tech versus India
30:30 - Deep tech cannot solve problems in India as...
India's fastest growing chronic pain management device, the journey of Litemed and its founders
In this episode Naganand Doraswamy of Ideaspring Capital talks to Litemed founders about pain management devices and their efficacy.
00:00 - Introduction to Litemed
00:33 - What does Litemed do?
02:58 - Building a device for pain management and the science of it.
08:14 - Litemed's go-to-market strategy.
12:39 - Innovative marketing of Litemed.
15:50 - Marketing spends and getting people to buy the product.
19:23 - Using Litemed.
21:00 - Key challenges of the startup.
26:13 - Figuring out the market as you scale.
Support the show
Thanks for Listening! Follow U...
The journey of Jay Modh's "Intuitive" - AI led business in North America & startup investments
In this episode of theUpStreamLife we talk with Jay Modh, serial entrepreneur and startup investor.
00:00 - Introduction
01:35 - Transformation with Intuitive
04:44 - Companies that need to innovate fast.
09:40 - Acceleration versus stagnation.
14:47 - Buying habits from clients and what is changing.
23:00 - Why India is changing fast
25:00 - Kids should start learning the value of money.
28:24 - Startup investments and what they mean.
34:00 - Having the right vision, being with people who believe in you.
37:50 - Don't be handicapped by changing technology.
Support the show
<...