When Urvashi Barooah utilized to MBA applications in 2015, she centered her functions round her dream of turning into a enterprise capitalist. She received rejected from each college, and was advised she was being unrealistic about her prospects within the enterprise trade, however she didn’t let that deter her.
Now, eight years later, Barooah, 33, is getting promoted to associate at Redpoint. She joined the agency as an affiliate 4 years in the past, and has served as a principal since late 2021. Silicon Valley-based Redpoint is at present investing out of it’s $650 million ninth fund. Barooah is now one of many agency’s three companions centered on early stage.
Barooah advised cryptoteprise that whereas in some methods these enterprise faculties have been proper to inform her she was being unrealistic about her targets. She knew it could be arduous to interrupt into the comparatively small trade with no community or contacts in Silicon Valley, however she’s glad she didn’t hearken to them.
“I wasn’t deterred, however it did really feel type of inconceivable at one level,” Barooah stated. “I used to be so faraway from it. I didn’t know the truth on the bottom. I simply knew what individuals wrote about within the papers.”
Barooah grew up distant from Silicon Valley in Guwahati, a small metropolis, by India’s requirements, sandwiched between Bhutan and Bangladesh. Each her mother and father ran their very own companies. Her dad ran a chemical enterprise, whereas her mother designed and bought furnishings.
“My mother and father, rising up, requested me, ‘what sort of enterprise do you wish to begin?’ That’s what essentially the most profitable individuals in India did,” she stated. “They all the time inspired me to forge my very own path and begin my very own firm. I considered that for a very long time however there was nothing that excited me. If there was no concept that I used to be keen about, the subsequent neatest thing I might do was work with founders.”
In 2017, Barooah utilized to US enterprise faculties once more after working as a advisor and had higher luck. She landed a spot at Wharton and stated she catered all of her lessons and additional cirriculars round studying the whole lot she might concerning the enterprise trade. She began speaking to entrepreneurs, creating an funding thesis and chilly calling VCs to pitch it.
After an estimated 50 chilly calls, she landed an internship at New York-based Major Enterprise Companions in 2019. She received one other at Redpoint shortly after and was capable of convert that right into a full-time function and has been there ever since.
Whereas rising up with entrepreneur mother and father didn’t introduce Barooah to enterprise capital, she thinks her upbringing makes her a greater VC. She stated seeing their day-to-day triumphs and failures helped present her simply how arduous it’s to run a enterprise and the right way to roll with the punches when issues do go unsuitable.
“They all the time fought in opposition to the percentages and did what was essential to preserve their enterprise going,” Barooah stated. “[They taught me] this concept that it’s important to preserve transferring ahead regardless of all odds and that it was presupposed to be arduous. If one in every of my corporations has a set again, I do know that it’s simply par for the course and one thing that may be overcome.”
Barooah’s portfolio contains Dune Analytics, an ethereum-focused platform for making on-chain knowledge accessible, Offchain Labs, a startup that helps corporations scale with ethereum, and The Rounds, a supply service centered on sustainability, amongst others. She has two new investments which have but to be introduced the place she’ll be taking board seats too.
These first few years as an investor have taught her that the very best VCs are versatile and prepared to comply with the place the market is telling them to go. She spent her first few years backing blockchain and crypto corporations, however now she’s spending most of her time on vertical SaaS startups using AI.
Barooah stated she’s excited to maintain increasing her portfolio and appears ahead to this new function as associate and being their for the founders after they need assistance.
“I began my journey in enterprise 4 years in the past and knew nothing,” Barooah stated. ” Over these 4 years, I’ve formed my judgment on what a great firm is. It’s not one thing I’ve perfected by any means, however I’ve a couple of extra successes than I did once I first joined. That provides me extra confidence to tackle extra contrarian bets, and in VC it’s about believing in issues nobody else believes and being proper.”
