Praveen Kumar

Discover Mockingbird, Vectara’s advanced Retrieval Augmented Generation #RAG and structured output-focused Language Learning Model #LLM. Suleman Kazi, Vivek Sourabh, Rogger Luo & Abhilasha Lodha take you on a technical deep dive into Mockingbird's impressive performance and capabilities. 1️⃣ Why Another LLM? - Learn why Vectara developed its own LLM focused on tasks that matter to our customers. 2️⃣ Training Mockingbird - Explore the rigorous training process for RAG and structured output tasks. 3️⃣ Evaluation Metrics - See how Mockingbird excels in generation quality, citations, and structured output. 4️⃣ Human Ratings - Understand the human evaluation process and how Mockingbird compares to leading models like GPT-4. Mockingbird is integrated into the Vectara platform, offering unparalleled performance with high-quality, secure outputs. 🌐 Dive into the full blog and see how Mockingbird can transform your data handling and generation processes. https://gag.gl/2WqJGM?

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FemVertising & male contraception? The 'Manforce v/s Mankind' ads. #D_Funda The new male contraception product ads (one by Manforce & the other by MANKIND PHARMA LTD), play on an identical insight: Contraception (& its choice), From the PoV of female character. Neither new or novel, Manforce tries being (over) ambitious by trying to position itself as a synonym to the entire Category with its tagline, "Condom Nahi Manforce Bolo". Cringe 101s, IMHO! Mankind on the other hand, pulls-off a well-executed PTC ad with a strong FemVertising narrative. They also manage to smoothly insert product benefits like a "vegan-friendly formula" and "easy peel packaging". Links to both ads & their official handles, In my thread of X/Twitter, linked below. _ #advertising #femvertising #contraception #marketing #positioning #messaging https://lnkd.in/dErQkiRW

PhonePe is hiring a Product Manager! ✨ Here’s what you’ll get to do: → Own and drive the product roadmap for platform and user-centric products. → Collaborate with cross-functional teams, ideating and executing product objectives at scale. → Craft detailed product specs, identifying key problem statements and aligning them with business goals. → Prioritize and influence stakeholders with strong data-driven insights. → Manage communication and product cadences to ensure seamless execution across teams. → Constantly innovate and refine product features based on user feedback. If you’re passionate about solving complex problems, enjoy working with data, and want to make a real impact, this could be the perfect role for you! Apply here ⬇ https://lnkd.in/ejvFbmXd --------- Worried you don't have a portfolio website to showcase your PM skills? 🤔 What if I told you that you could launch your portfolio website in less than 5 minutes? 🕒💨 That's exactly why we built Designfolio! Launch your portfolio website right now 👉 www(.)designfolio(.)me (Link in the first comment) ✨ Tag your Product Management friends and share this opportunity! Let's spread the word! ♻️

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Santosh Sharan famously said, “Gains from the best (GTM) practices decay over time” After experiencing this firsthand over the last year, I completely second this. We've seen various go-to-market motions adopted by different companies. In my first journey at Innovaccer, we used an outbound email go-to-market motion, which was successful back then. However, even after knowing this method worked in the past, trying it for six months at kim.cc proved it wasn’t the right fit, and we had to stop. This reinforced my belief in the importance of finding your mojo - a GTM motion that aligns perfectly with your current market conditions. For example, Adam Robinson successfully used LinkedIn as a go-to-market motion. Others have leveraged SEO for inbound, while some have used Shopify. The key is understanding where your customers are and ensuring your positioning or pitch resonates with them. What GTM strategy has worked for your startup, and how did you discover it? #gtm #businesslessons #startups #dtcbrands #entrepreneurship

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Kunal Shah-led fintech unicorn CRED reported a revenue of Rs 2,473 crore in FY24, marking a 66% increase driven by higher product adoption and the growth of monetised users. The startup also reduced its operational loss by 41% to Rs 609 crore. However, net loss—after accounting for employee stock ownership plan (ESOP) expenses and taxes—stood at Rs 1,644 crore, reflecting a 22% year-on-year increase. The Bengaluru-based startup achieved a 58% growth in its monetised user base, while significantly cutting costs. Marketing expenses were reduced by 36%, and customer acquisition costs (CAC) dropped by 40%, largely due to a greater number of customers joining the platform organically. “Our focus is on creating deepening relationships with our customers and on many things from UPI to Garage and other products that we have launched in the last year," said Shah. #cred #fintech #unicorn #business #startup #creditcard #news #Indianstartupnews

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99.99% Sure: ONDC will reshape India’s e-commerce! 🚀🚀 But, I also believe that ONDC is about systemic change, which makes it more of a marathon than a sprint. It will take time and patience. Right now, ONDC is more about building the rails which will drive the explosive e-commerce disruption that was promised. . This, in my opinion, makes it crucial for investors to understand both the immense opportunities and potential hurdles as this ambitious project unfolds. Here are some of our thoughts on the subject at Dexter Ventures. .. ONDC's true test lies in its ability to foster widespread adoption. This means not just sellers onboarding, but building consumer trust in smaller platforms and ensuring smooth experiences across a decentralized network. Startups playing a key role in easing this transition have the potential for high growth. .. The ones who really make it here will excel in: -> Frictionless onboarding for sellers: Especially those in smaller cities and less tech-savvy demographics – this is where ONDC's promise of inclusion can be realized. -> Personalized discovery: Replicating the ease of search and recommendation engines on a single platform is tough when drawing data from disparate sources. Startups solving this elegantly will be game-changers. -> Hyperlocal focus: ONDC could benefit regional brands catering to specific tastes. The platforms unlocking that discoverability have a unique edge. .. However, there is a big challenge. The landscape is evolving rapidly with the ONDC protocol itself undergoing major changes every few weeks and months. Thus, investors like me need to focus on adaptable solutions aligned with the ONDC's long-term vision. Betting on a specific tech stack too early carries risks if those standards change. .. ONDC's success hinges on it becoming the default way commerce happens, which requires behavioural change at a mass scale. This takes time, but the potential for democratization makes it a sector worth watching closely. .. If you are someone building in this space, I/team would love to learn more. Do share with us at deals@dexter[dot]ventures keeping me in CC at anuradha@dexter[dot]ventures :) #Dexter #DexterCapital #DexterVentures #Startups #IndianStartups #VC #Entrepreneurs #Entrepreneurship #AngelInvesting #InvestmentBanking #ONDC | Open Network For Digital Commerce (ONDC), Devendra, Devendra, Jayant, Multibhashi, Dexter Capital Advisors

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TL;DR - Of all the knowledge I've gained about personal finance and investments, these two videos capture it so perfectly. They're a must-watch for every Indian—whether you're a parent or a child. I truly wish this had been part of our school education. Watch this - https://lnkd.in/gqWs5QcM Then watch this - https://lnkd.in/g2CXdbRB It took top institutions and great mentors to teach me the fundamentals of saving, investing, insurance, and building an emergency fund. I learned to distinguish between needs and wants, and to understand the rules of managing money. Coming from humble beginnings, like the majority of Indians, it took me decades to grasp these foundational principles of financial freedom. While I still consider myself a learner, I’m grateful to have started my journey in the right direction. Once again, I can't help but wish these basics were part of our early education. Please share 😇

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The single biggest decision that you have to make if you want to start a company is to decide how seriously you want to do it. You may wish to do it with some safety net. Like trying to work on some product ideas while managing a full-time job in another company. When Raj, Rajat, and I decided to start Vizuara while doing our PhD, we thought at least it would become a resume point if nothing came out of our idea. But if we continued with that mindset, our idea would have inevitably become just another resume point. Our thoughts and actions became very real from the moment we decided to not work on Vizuara as a side project. There is a huge difference between working on a startup with a plan B already in place v/s making your plan A work out. When your idea starts affecting your income, quality of life, level of respect you get from others, where you live, what you eat, how you travel, etc., it becomes very real. Once you have a real idea, your startup dream is much more likely to happen.

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Do you know someone who can design and build bridges, sell online groceries, and make wonderful games? That's Akshat Bansal who is disrupting the RMG (real money gaming) space with Ziffi Chess. I downloaded it to give it a try and got hooked on it. It is one of the best gaming products out there and you will know in this conversation why it is so good. Listen to full conversation here: https://lnkd.in/g4eQp5AP #startups #CleverTapForStartups

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A while back at Canyfix, we had one of those crazy days. Orders were piling up, and one important delivery got delayed. Frustration kicked in, and I was about to lose my cool. But then I thought, Agar ab gussa kar diya toh kya hoga? (If I lose my temper now, what good will it do?) So, I took a deep breath and calmly asked the team, “Okay, what’s the solution?” That day, I realized the power of controlling your emotions, especially anger. Gussa karne se problems aur badh jaati hain (Anger just makes problems worse). But if you stay calm, the team feels more confident, and solutions come faster. In business, you can’t control everything, but you can always control your reaction. And that makes all the difference. #Leadership #Business #Entrepreneurship #Motivation

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Final AMA for AIR5 For the @AntlerIndia Residency #5, apps from individual founders are due Aug 2nd. Existing teams can continue to apply (rolling decisions). Nandini Vishwanath & I are doing one final AMA this evening (July 29, 6-7 pm IST). We cover all things Residency - the best way to move from your -1 to 0 phase to an investment decision. https://lu.ma/7n35d1z5

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Never work in Stealth Mode for a Startup Idea. Very risky. This is the time that the idea needs a lot of Validation, Understanding Use Cases, Market Insights, Understanding Competition, Adoption challenges, Market Sizing. More prospects/customers in this phase needs to be met. Asking all the right & tough questions. The Foundations of Problem Validation & Value Proposition needs to be clear here. Working in Stealth Mode cuts you off from these inputs. We have worked with 100+ MedTech/Healthcare startups over the last 3 years. Impact : ✅ Some startups pivoted after they worked with us in GTM Readiness. ✅ Few founders even went back to their Corporate jobs realising the problem they were solving was wrong & didn't see a path to PMF. ✅ Few changed their Pricing and Business Model and entered the Market. Explore GTM Readiness Services. Enter the form in the comments section for a discussion.

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5+ Cr in investment. Team in 3 countries. 18 months in the making - Layers is going bigger in August 2024. It all started when we first launched Layers in 2022, we had 0 experience of - D2C, Branding, SKUS and everything in between. We hustled, failed, but ultimately figured things out building India’s largest skins brand—100% bootstrapped, selling over 2.5 lakh skins. (The Neel who scored -2 Marks in JEE would have never imagined this.) But, the entire experience taught us 3 core things: > The confidence to succeed in markets that never existed > The freedom to think long-term and take bets in short term > The understanding of a creator-led D2C brand’s potential It wasn’t easy, but that’s the fun part. And now, we’re taking on the next big challenge. LAYERS IS LAUNCHING ITS FIRST TECH PRODUCT! In all honesty, building a tech product is ten times tougher than building the skins business. We had to revisit our entire strategy—pricing, distribution, customer service— and most importantly, the right innovation to stand out in the market. In the skins market, we had little competition. But here, we face giants with 1000X resources and decades of experience. Competing with them and building a superior tech product - bootstrapped with a lean team, is a huge challenge. I am quite nervous and afraid. Don’t know what’s gonna happen.. Until then, feel free to guess what the product is! :)

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"I don't care about ROAS. Just get me orders." - Our streetwear client, July 2024 Fast forward 2 months: • 1,042 genuine orders (up from mostly fake) • 4x ROAS (started at 2) • ₹23.5 lakh in sales How'd we pull it off? Let's peel back the curtain... just a little. 👀 𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗦𝘁𝗿𝘂𝗴𝗴𝗹𝗲: - Launch: May 2024 - New streetwear brand enters market - Target: College students (15-24) seeking oversized tees and hoodies - Founder's goal: 200-500 monthly orders 𝗥𝗲𝗮𝗹𝗶𝘁𝘆 𝗶𝗻 𝗝𝘂𝗹𝘆: • High rate of fake orders (>50%) • Genuine sales well below target • Low return on ad spend (ROAS ~2) 𝗢𝘂𝗿 𝗔𝗽𝗽𝗿𝗼𝗮𝗰𝗵: 𝟭/. 𝗗𝗮𝘁𝗮 𝗗𝗲𝘁𝗲𝗰𝘁𝗶𝘃𝗲 𝗪𝗼𝗿𝗸: We uncovered a hidden customer segment by analyzing purchase patterns across 10,000+ transactions. The results shocked even us. 𝟮/. 𝗖𝗼𝘂𝗻𝘁𝗲𝗿𝗶𝗻𝘁𝘂𝗶𝘁𝗶𝘃𝗲 𝗧𝗮𝗿𝗴𝗲𝘁𝗶𝗻𝗴: We shifted focus to an audience segment our client had overlooked. Conversion rates jumped 300% almost overnight. 𝟯/. 𝗖𝗿𝗲𝗮𝘁𝗶𝘃𝗲 𝗥𝗲𝗯𝗲𝗹𝗹𝗶𝗼𝗻: We A/B tested 50+ ad variations, breaking every "best practice" rule. The winning ad? Let's just say it wasn't what anyone expected. Our data-driven approach challenged conventional wisdom at every turn. The results speak for themselves, but there's more to the story. Interested in the detailed strategies behind this turnaround? Let's discuss how they might apply to your business. Book a consultation: https://lnkd.in/eGM9__P #EcommerceStrategy #DigitalMarketing #DataDrivenResults

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“I created a single product (1 unit only) and sold it thousands of time.” Although this might seem absurd but this is exactly how e-products work. Especially Ebooks. In India, readers are swiftly shifting to e-books as they are more convenient to access and comparatively cheap. Making E-books and planning a structure around them to get a good audience and then sell them can be challenging but once solved, this is a highly profitable business. I am currently working on an E-book store myself as a side project and we’ll be adding some extra functionalities that are not there in other existing e-book platforms (even kindle). So with a little innovation, you can try this low investment business idea to get a good side income. #businessidea #startupidea #ebooks #digitalproducts #letsconnect

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Feel like you're running on a GMAT treadmill? Putting in countless hours but your score barely budges? You're not alone. Score plateaus are the silent dream killers of GMAT prep. But what if there was a way to break through? Meet Shubham, who shattered his plateau and soared from 625 to an impressive 695 (Q90, V84, DI83). His 70-point improvement isn't just a score—it's a blueprint for busting through barriers. Let's decode Shubham's plateau-breaking strategy: 🧠 𝐐𝐮𝐚𝐧𝐭 𝐐𝐮𝐚𝐧𝐭𝐮𝐦 𝐋𝐞𝐚𝐩: Perfect Q90 Shubham didn't just study more—he studied smarter. Using the PACE engine, he identified and targeted his weak spots, saving over 50 hours of aimless practice. Result? A perfect Quant score that many dream of but few achieve. 📚 𝐕𝐞𝐫𝐛𝐚𝐥 𝐕𝐢𝐜𝐭𝐨𝐫𝐲: Climbing to V84: Shubham's approach was revolutionary. Instead of chasing the 'right' answer, he mastered the art of elimination. This mindset shift turned Verbal from a guessing game into a strategic conquest.   📊 𝐃𝐚𝐭𝐚 𝐈𝐧𝐬𝐢𝐠𝐡𝐭𝐬 𝐌𝐚𝐬𝐭𝐞𝐫𝐲: Nailing DI83, Subham tackled Data Insights by blending Quant precision with Verbal comprehension. His time management mantra? "Don't get stuck. Move on after 2-3 minutes." 🧭 𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐌𝐞𝐧𝐭𝐨𝐫 𝐄𝐝𝐠𝐞: Personalized Guidance Even self-starters need direction. Dhruv Subham's mentor provided Shubham with tailored strategies, proving that sometimes, a fresh perspective is all you need to see the path forward. 🚀 𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐁𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐤𝐭𝐡𝐫𝐨𝐮𝐠𝐡 𝐅𝐨𝐫𝐦𝐮𝐥𝐚- Shubham's journey isn't just inspiring—it's instructive. It shows that breaking through score plateaus isn't about gruelling hours; it's about strategic preparation, the right tools, and a willingness to change your approach. Are you stuck in a GMAT rut? What's your biggest hurdle? Share in the comments, and let's break through together! For a detailed roadmap of how Shubham demolished his GMAT plateau, check out his full interview here: https://lnkd.in/g9pw5iH5 Follow Payal Tandon and e-GMAT for more such breakthrough stories.   #GMATBreakthrough #ScorePlateauSolved #MBADreams #TestPrepRevolution #eGMAT 

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📊 Unveiling the Zomato Experience: A Deep Dive into User Behavior 🍽️ Imagine stepping into the vibrant world of Zomato—a place where every click, review, and dining experience weaves a unique story. Recently, as part of my Product Management Cohort, I had the privilege of conducting a comprehensive survey to uncover these narratives and understand how users engage with Zomato, each response has illuminated crucial aspects of user behavior. 🔍 Key Findings: Diverse Demographics, Unified Passion: Our findings reveal a vibrant tapestry of age groups and dining preferences, each contributing uniquely to the Zomato experience. Celebrating Culinary Excellence: Insights into popular cuisines and exceptional satisfaction ratings highlight what truly delights our users. This journey is a collaboration, and your participation is essential! Let's leverage these insights to craft actionable strategies together and elevate the Zomato experience to new heights. 🌟 Join the Conversation: Your voice matters! If you haven't already, please take a moment to contribute to our survey. Thank you for investing your valuable time in contributing. Here's the gateway to share your insights:https://lnkd.in/gHbDK7_V #ProductManagement #UserResearch #Zomato #CustomerInsights Anubhav Mishra Anurag Mishra CipherSchools Zomato

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BYJU’S has gone from $20 billion to $200 million. That is 1% of their evaluation. Does that mean Indian startups are failures or scams? While you can easily generalize one startup, you need to understand that setbacks are a part of the startup culture. Remember that exceptions cannot become examples for you. You should use them to know what not to do instead of using them to define our culture. The Indian startup ecosystem has many successful examples like MakeMyTrip and Zomato that have been driving economic growth. Startups play a very important role in creating jobs and building innovation, helping with overall growth. They teach about entrepreneurship, going beyond the comfort zone and challenging the status quo. Every setback is unfortunate but they don’t define the successful stories that are growing every day. If you want to stay ahead, you have to know how to learn from both the stories. What do you think about BYJU’S story? #entrepreneurship

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flutrr has a microtransaction pricing model, allowing users to pay as little as ₹25 to access a premium feature on the app. Initially, 90% of these transactions happened through Google Play Store and only 10% through Razorpay. The issue was that Google charges 30% commission on every in-app purchase and has a 45-day settlement cycle. This not only slowed down our cash flow but also took away a big chunk of our revenue in commission. So, we made a simple tweak to the payments UI. We put Razorpay UPI at the very top and Google Play Store at the very bottom of the page. From day one of making this change, 90% of payments went through Razorpay UPI and only 7% went through Google. With Razorpay settling payments the next day and not charging a hefty commission, we solved our problem with just a minor design adjustment. The smallest of changes can drive the biggest results. Keep iterating! #tech #product #startup #datingapp

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