PRESS RELEASE

Consulate General of India, New York, Hosts First India Demo Day

(June 5, 2015)

In a brilliant display of its commitment to supporting entrepreneurial talent in India, the Consulate General of India, New York, hosted the first India Demo Day on Friday, 5 June, 2015. The event, conceived and coordinated by business incubator DLabs at the Indian School of Business in Hyderabad, gave an opportunity to eight of the most promising start-ups- selected over several months from across India - to raise the capital they needed by making a ten minute pitch to an audience of venture capitalists, industry leaders and angel investors in the Tri-State area.

The occasion was graced not only by Consul General Dnyaneshwar Mulay but also by India's newly-appointed Ambassador to the United States, Arun Kumar Singh, who was on his first visit to New York City. Mr. Mulay kicked off the proceedings by formally welcoming all present and emphasizing that successful start-ups such as the ones chosen for the event were truly symptomatic of the economic development in India. Amb. Singh then addressed the gathering focusing on how the Indo-US relations in the future were bound to be marked by an "Innovation Partnership" which, in turn, would be facilitated by strong entrepreneurial spirit. This was followed by brief speeches by Tariq Khan, CEO of Games 24X7 Inc., and by Priti Pandya Patel, President of Asian Indian Chamber of Commerce which was a co-sponsor of the event.

The founders and CEOs of the start-ups then delivered their pitches one by one. Their presentations succinctly guided the audience through the features of their products, the markets they were looking to tap into and the proposed use of the invited capital. Each presentation was strictly limited to ten minutes and was followed by questions from a panel comprising industry leaders. The presenters were, in general, able to sufficiently answer the concerns that seemed to revolve primarily around the revenue models of the companies. The list of start-ups spanned a plethora of industries including health care, education, big data and the "Internet of Things". However, an element of innovation supported by strong technological base was clearly visible in all the ventures alike. The event was concluded with closing remarks from Mukesh Patel from Rutgers Entrepreneurship Program and a dinner which gave the start-up executives an opportunity to directly interact with the potential investors.

The Consulate General of India was thanked by Shwetank Verma, co-founder of India Demo Day, for hosting the initiative and by the audience for providing the NRI community and other interested institutions in the US with yet another crucial platform to take part in the Indian growth story.