LuminarThere's a race to the bottom in making self-driving cars more affordable than ever, but Austin Russell has been running an entirely different race.The 22-year-old college dropout has been sitting quietly for the last five years and watching as manufacturers rush to create cheaper versions of Lidar, a laser-based radar system that's a key component in self-driving cars since it allows cars t0 "see" the road. Russell, now the CEO of self-driving car technology startup Luminar, decided to skip working on a cheap system, instead spending the last five years with cofounder Jason Eichenholz putting together a Lidar system they hope is better than the rest."There's a reason we've been in stealth so long," Russell said. "If we announced our plans five years ago, everybody would be doing this."<h2>Comes down to seconds</h2>Just four piers down from San Francisco's famous seals at Fisherman's Wharf is an empty cruise terminal filled with a smattering of fake deer, mannequins, and tires strategically stationed at points on the floor.Biz Carson/Business InsiderFake deer and abandoned tires litter the floors of an empty cruise terminal where Luminar does its range testing.At one end of the warehouse, <a href="https://www.luminartech.com/">Luminar</a> has installed its Lidar device into a car, pointed at its target: A blackboard as tall as an SUV, sitting next to a "200 meter" sign. This had been Russell's target to hit before publicly debuting his five-year-old startup, Luminar. 200 meters is longer than most Lidar systems for self-driving cars can see, and seeing dark black objects reliably at that distance is even harder.During a press demonstration at the pier, Russell and Eichenholz's system zoomed in on the black billboard in the distance. The Lidar was even able to pick up the pigeon walking in the middle of the fake deer on the floor, nearly 100 meters away from the car.Russell was a kid of barely legal driving age when he decided to conquer self-driving cars. He'd been a tinkerer most of his life.He memorized the periodic table by two, transformed a Nintendo game handset by the sixth grade, and made a holographic keyboard in high school. In 2012, Russell founded Luminar and soon after started doing independent research at the Beckman Laser Institute.When he got to Stanford University in 2013, venture capitalist Peter Thiel paid the then-18-year-old Russell $100,000 to drop out of school. His Thiel fellowship bio said he had a "passion for developing innovative optoelectronic technologies". For Russell, being innovative meant having the patience to build a better Lidar that would not only advance an industry, but do it in a field that could save people's lives."We're able to see seven seconds out instead of one second," Russell said. "That's a really big breakthrough."While some manufacturers say they can produce a Lidar that sees out to 200 meters, most advertised models can't scan that far ahead. Going highway speeds, that means a car equipped with Luminar's Lidar would have seven seconds of reaction time when it identifies an object at 200 meters compared to the typical few seconds most Lidar systems provide, Russell claims.LuminarWhat Luminar's lidar sees from the road.Of those that can hit the 200 meter mark, Eichenholz says Luminar is in a class of its own because it can see objects with 10% reflectivity at that distance. That low-reflectivity number is key because objects like black cars and even people wearing black t-shirts can be harder to spot since the color is less reflective. "You don't have to say everyone has to wear a white t-shirt," Eichenholz joked.<h2>An entirely different system</h2>Russell and Eichenholz claim Luminar can do all this because they're not using the same off-the-shelf parts as other Lidar companies. Instead, they spent the last five years designing a system from scratch. For starters, the company eschewed traditional Lidar designs and build a new one on a different wavelength than traditional systems. While many Lidars systems operate at a 905 nano-meter wavelength, Luminar is at a 1550 nano-meter wavelength, which means it can emit 68 photons for every single one put out on the traditional wavelength, making it more powerful but still safe for eyes."Eye safety is a really big deal in this industry, It's actually is a limiting factor of a lot of Lidar sensors today," Russell said. "You can't fry people's eyes with sensors."LuminarAustin Russell installing Luminar LiDAR onto vehicleThe decision to switch wavelengths set off a cascade of events for the startup. Namely, there were no off-the-shelf products it could use. It's had to do everything from creating its own chips and circuit design to manufacturing its own indium gallium arsenide, a chemical compound that it's using as a receiver in its Lidar unit instead of silicon. The company tried 2,000 different ways to construct a Lidar system before deciding on one that was both functional and manufacturable, Russell said.The company raised $36 million from venture capitalists including GVA Capital, Canvas Ventures, and the 1517 Fund, a venture firm backed by Thiel. With the money, Russell acquired one of Luminar's suppliers to lock up its supply chain from competitors, He also brought on Eichenholz's previous company, Open Photonics, and named him cofounder and CTO. LuminarCofounder and CTO Jason Eichenholz (second from right) with Luminar employeesWhile Russell oversees the company's Silicon Valley office, a converted tank repair facility in Portola Valley, the majority of the company's 150 employees are based in its Orlando, Florida office, which contains both R&amp;D headquarters and 50,000 square foot manufacturing facility. Even though Luminar has stayed quiet for the last five years, it's already produced 100 units for its strategic partners, which include both unidentified automakers and software companies. Now, Luminar is ready to begin its first major commercial run of 10,000 units, set to be distributed among many customers instead of just putting it in the hands of a few. "Our plan is to power every autonomous vehicle that's produced and make them so they can truly be safe and autonomous," Russell said of his long-term vision. To do that, the college dropout's startup will have to overcome major incumbents like Velodne as well as another onslaught of software companies - like Google and Waymo - that have developed their own in-house Lidar systems. But Russell is confident that Luminar's system will become the new standard, and he's not worried that everyone will soon be joining his race lane now that his company's plans are public. "The key thing here is that starting this five years ago we have a huge head start and advantage," he said. "No matter how much money you throw at this problem, you don't need hundreds of millions or billions to develop this. It's about the time it takes." <h3>NOW WATCH: <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/uber-self-driving-volvo-suv-san-francisco-2016-12">We took a ride in Uber's new self-driving car on the streets of San Francisco - here's what it was like</a></h3> Please enable Javascript to watch this video

Meet the 22-year-old college dropout who wants to power every future self-driving car

<div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table float_right click-to-enlarge"><div><div class="image on-image"><a title_source="JD Lasica/Socialmedia.biz" title_caption="Netflix CEO Reed Hastings" class="zoomin" href="https://static-ssl.businessinsider.com/image/530d0d6decad046d18777d15-960/reed-hastings-netflix-15.jpg"></a><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/jdlasica/5186317325/">JD Lasica/Socialmedia.biz</a>Netflix CEO Reed Hastings</div></div></div>Back in February, <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/netflix-comcast-deal-explained-2014-2">Netflix CEO Reed Hastings cut a deal with Comcast chief Brian Roberts</a>. Netflix and Comcast's servers would now communicate directly, so that Netflix's content isn't interrupted by bottlenecks on its way to customers. In return, Netflix would pay Comcast for smoothing delivery of its movies and shows.
The deal was arcane but massive in scope - Netflix video content at times accounts for 30% of all worldwide internet traffic.
It was not obvious at the time, however, that the deal actually revealed how weak and vulnerable Netflix is to broadband internet service providers - or how angry Hastings is about it.
The deal was no run the of the mill contract signing, either - Hastings and Roberts <a href="http://gigaom.com/2014/02/23/what-happened-in-vegas-comcast-netflix-peering-agreement-talks-got-serious-at-ces/">reportedly met in person at CES, the big computer trade show in Las Vegas</a>, to seal it.
Yesterday, Hastings used his Q1 earnings call to blast Roberts' plans to acquire Time Warner Cable - a deal Comcast desperately needs to shore up its superior position in a market riven with uncertainty due to <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/cord-cutters-and-the-death-of-tv-2013-11">"cord-cutters" turning their backs on paid TV subscriptions</a>. In a note to investors favoring "strong net-neutrality," Hastings called the Comcast-Time Warner deal an unacceptable accumulation of monopoly power, and cited the deal he had struck with Roberts as an example of that abuse. If Comcast wasn't forced to obey the principles of "net neutrality," he argued, <a href="http://files.shareholder.com/downloads/NFLX/3110934442x0x745654/fb5aaae0-b991-4e76-863c-3b859c8dece8/Q114%20Earnings%20Letter%204.21.14%20final.pdf">it would have the power to charge companies and consumers different fees for different levels of access to the web</a>:
The Internet faces a long term threat from the largest ISPs driving up profits for themselves and costs for everyone else ...
... Comcast is already dominant enough to be able to capture unprecedented fees from transit providers and services such as Netflix. The combined company would possess even more anti-competitive leverage to charge arbitrary interconnection tolls for access to their customers. For this reason, Netflix opposes this merger.
<div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table float_right click-to-enlarge"><div><div class="image on-image"><a title_source="" title_caption="Comcast chief Brian Roberts" class="zoomin" href="https://static-ssl.businessinsider.com/image/4e00f9e249e2ae3e2f000000-960/-1-53.jpg"></a>Comcast chief Brian Roberts</div></div></div>Comcast didn't wait any time to get its rebuttal in. In a blog post, <a href="http://corporate.comcast.com/comcast-voices/comcast-response-to-netflixs-opposition-to-time-warner-cable-transaction">the company all but called Hastings a liar</a>:
Netflix is free to express its opinions. But they should be factually based. And Netflix should be transparent that its opinion is not about protecting the consumer or about Net Neutrality. Rather, it's about improving Netflix's business model by shifting costs that it has always borne to all users of the Internet and not just to Netflix customers.
The spat appears to have come about because, after Netflix paid Comcast, Comcast failed to join Netflix in its position favoring "strong" net neutrality. Back in March, <a href="http://blog.netflix.com/2014/03/internet-tolls-and-case-for-strong-net.html">Hastings had called out Comcast by name</a>, again citing their deal. He even compared Comcast unfavorably to Cablevision, a rival:
Some major ISPs, like Cablevision, already practice strong net neutrality and for their broadband subscribers, the quality of Netflix and other streaming services is outstanding. But on other big ISPs, due to a lack of sufficient interconnectivity, Netflix performance has been constrained, subjecting consumers who pay a lot of money for high-speed Internet to high buffering rates, long wait times and poor video quality.
Netflix believes strong net neutrality is critical, but in the near term we will in cases pay the toll to the powerful ISPs to protect our consumer experience. When we do so, we don't pay for priority access against competitors, just for interconnection. A few weeks ago, we agreed to pay Comcast and our members are now getting a good experience again. Comcast has been an industry leader in supporting weak net neutrality, and we hope they'll support strong net neutrality as well.
The battle Hastings is fighting is poorly understood. Back in February when the two companies struck their deal, many concluded that it didn't impact the net neutrality debate. The bottlenecks in Netflix's traffic had been occurring at the level of internet backbone providers, traffic management companies that few people outside the industry have ever heard of like Cogent and Level 3. The Comcast deal looked like more of a workaround.
But since then Hastings has repeatedly pointed out that if Netflix can be forced to pay for superior access to its customers, then everyone else might be, too. For Hastings, this isn't simply a workaround, it's an existential threat to any company that becomes big enough to draw the attention of internet service providers. And by moving huge companies into direct contact with ISPs, it reduces the importance of the backbone companies that used to manage traffic on the net. This would rearrange the landscape of the web, <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/the-comcast-netflix-deal-threatens-net-neutrality-2014-2">as The Economist put it</a>:
The Netflix/Comcast agreement effectively re-draws the model for internet provision in the US, and ends years of dispute between internet companies and service providers over who should shoulder the responsibility of paying to upgrade the country's internet infrastructure. Crucially, it puts ISPs and content providers in direct contact with each other, threatening the future business of backbone internet providers such as Cogent.
Although this is not the first time that Netflix has secured a direct link agreement with a broadband provider (it has sealed agreements with smaller operators in the past, such as Cablevision Systems), the key difference this time around is that Comcast has demanded payment. And by convincing Netflix to shoulder the cost, not only does this give already-dominant US ISPs such as Verizon and Comcast significantly more leverage over pipeline infrastructure investment negotiations, it also puts them in primary position to decide whether they wish to engage in discriminatory practices when it comes to handling content provider data.
One example of that leverage? After Netflix agreed to pay Comcast to deliver its traffic, <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/the-netflix-comcast-deal-led-to-a-serious-speed-increase-2014-4">delivery speeds did indeed increase (chart below)</a>. In other words, Comcast extracted its fee and demonstrated its power ... and Hastings doesn't like it one bit.
<div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table click-to-enlarge"><div><div class="image"><a title_source="Statista/Business Insider" title_caption="" class="zoomin" href="https://static-ssl.businessinsider.com/image/535020296da8118037f1c956-960/20140417_netfix_comcast_bi.jpg"></a>Statista/Business Insider</div></div></div>

Why Netflix Has Gone To War Against Comcast Just Weeks After Cutting A Huge Deal With The Company

Mobile Insights is a daily newsletter from <a href="https://intelligence.businessinsider.com/welcome?utm_source=House&amp;utm_medium=Edit&amp;utm_term=MI&amp;utm_content=link&amp;utm_campaign=BIIMobile">BI Intelligence</a> delivered first thing every morning exclusively to <a href="https://intelligence.businessinsider.com/welcome?utm_source=House&amp;utm_medium=Edit&amp;utm_term=MI&amp;utm_content=link&amp;utm_campaign=BIIMobile">BI Intelligence</a> subscribers. <a href="https://intelligence.businessinsider.com/welcome?utm_source=House&amp;utm_medium=Edit&amp;utm_term=MI&amp;utm_content=link&amp;utm_campaign=BIIMobile">Sign up for a free trial of BI Intelligence today</a>. 

ULTRAMOBILE YEAR AHEAD: Gartner has updated its annual device forecasts for PCs, tablets, and mobile phones for the new year. On the whole, the research outfit thinks sales of all of these devices combined will grow by just over 7% in 2014, which would be a re-acceleration in growth compared to the 4% growth achieved between 2012 and 2013. 
Mobile phones, both feature phones and smartphones, will dominate in terms of sales volume, with expected annual sales of almost 1.9 billion. But it will be the "ultramobiles" category, in which Gartner includes tablets, hybrids, and flip-form devices, that will set the pace for growth, with increased sales of nearly 54% during the year. We feel this is a function of growing demand for "phablets," or devices that carry a screen size somewhere between the standard 5-inch smartphone and the 8-inch tablet. <a href="https://intelligence.businessinsider.com/phablet-shipments-are-exploding-in-asia-2013-9" target="_blank">Phablet shipments have already skyrocketed</a> in key markets for mobile growth like China and India. PC sales, meanwhile, will continue to be hampered by the mobile movement. Gartner thinks PC sales will decline 7% in 2014. 
ONE BILLION ANDROID DEVICES! If 2013 was the watershed year for Android in terms of market share, then 2014 will be the year Android solidifies its stronghold on the <a href="https://intelligence.businessinsider.com/androids-dominance-of-the-global-computing-platform-market-grows-at-both-windows-and-apples-expenses-2013-12" target="_blank">global mobile market</a>. Gartner estimates Android will sell 1.1 billion devices for the year. They also confirm that Android blows past Apple in terms of installed base, with 1.9 billion active Android devices already in use. With slowing growth in mobile uptake in developed markets, expect Android to make massive waves with new, lower-income users in emerging mobile markets, where most new customers are priced out of the premium device market dominated by Apple. (<a href="http://www.gartner.com/newsroom/id/2645115" target="_blank">Gartner</a>)
 
<div class="KonaFilter image-container float_right click-to-enlarge" style="width:400px"><div class="image"><a title_source="BII" title_caption="" class="zoomin" href="http://static2.businessinsider.com/image/52cd54236da811a55d512e27-960/appleappstorerevenuesannual-2.png"></a>BII</div></div>
10 BILLION DOLLARS: Apple's App Store had a massive year during 2013. iOS users spent over $10 billion on app downloads from their iPhones, iPads, and iPods, according to new data Apple shared recently. December alone brought in over $1 billion in revenue, likely tied to the upshot in devices sales from the launch of the new iPhones and new iPads. While Android may have proven itself in terms of global scale (see above), this is further proof that Apple will continue to have Android's number in terms of user usage and monetization. (<a href="http://www.apple.com/pr/library/2014/01/07App-Store-Sales-Top-10-Billion-in-2013.html" target="_blank">Apple</a>)
PRICE CUTS: China Telecom is set to <a href="http://www.zdnet.com/cn/china-telecom-slashes-iphone-price-ahead-of-china-mobile-release-7000024917/" target="_blank">slash the price of its iPhone 5S by 10%</a> in advance of the phone's launch on China Mobile. BlackBerry claims its new phones made by Foxconn <a href="http://www.zdnet.com/blackberrys-foxconn-made-phone-to-cost-under-200-as-ceo-pledges-not-to-give-up-on-consumers-7000024920/" target="_blank">will cost less than $200</a>. On both the high and low end of the market, the smartphone competition is only getting fiercer in emerging markets, especially China. (ZDNet)
Apple iWatch is having trouble with battery life and screen technology, and the overall manufacturing of the device has been a struggle so far for Apple, according to reports from <a href="https://www.theinformation.com/bumps-in-the-road-for-apple-s-iwatch" target="_blank">The Information</a>. With so many wearables debuting this week at CES, could Apple already be behind? (<a href="https://www.theinformation.com/bumps-in-the-road-for-apple-s-iwatch" target="_blank">The Information</a>)
SAMSUNG WINS THE HOLIDAY TABLET SEASON: There were more users after Christmas on Samsung Galaxy Tabs than any other tablet, according to new data from Onswipe. Samsung's 50.4% growth blew past the iPad's growth of just 20%. Onswipe thinks the Galaxy Tab line benefited from a "halo effect" - all the new Samsung Galaxy smartphone owners perhaps wanted to be locked-in to Samsung's hardware when choosing their hardware. *For more in-depth analysis, please refer to the BI Intelligence article, "<a href="https://intelligence.businessinsider.com/post-holiday-tablet-growth-pinpoints-a-broader-global-market-trend-2014-1">Post-Holiday Growth In Samsung Tablets Is A Sign Of The Tablet Market's Fragmentation</a>." (<a href="http://blog.onswipe.com/uncategorized/samsung-beats-apple-in-tablet-growth-to-win-christmas-2013" target="_blank">Onswipe</a>)
SOCIAL SEARCH: Twitter co-founder Biz Stone has just launched his newest venture, Jelly, a mobile-social app aimed at becoming a social search engine. Users search through Jelly and the app shares information sourced from the users' social network connections. (<a href="http://blog.jelly.co/post/72563498393/introducing-jelly" target="_blank">Jelly</a>)
Growing online video service Vimeo recently updated its video player to optimize across all devices. In doing so, the service relied fully on HTML5 to support video playback, which will help double video download and playback speed. (<a href="http://news.cnet.com/8301-1023_3-57616770-93/vimeo-speeds-its-online-videos-goes-html5-by-default/" target="_blank">CNet</a>)
YAHOO MOBILE NEWS FROM CES: A flurry of mobile news surfaced from Yahoo's keynote address at CES yesterday. First, Yahoo announced the acquisition of Aviate, whose technology <a href="http://techcrunch.com/2014/01/07/yahoo-announces-that-it-has-acquired-intelligent-homescreen-startup-aviate/" target="_blank">brings the most relevant apps to users' homescreens</a>. Yahoo may use Aviate technology to deliver content to users in a more personalized fashion, such as via <a href="http://yahoo.tumblr.com/post/72587474725/yahoo-news-digest-get-in-the-know-in-no-time" target="_blank">News Digest</a>, the first project born out of the acquisition of startup Summly earlier in 2013. Yahoo introduced News Digest during the address as a personalized, mobile-centric news app.
Yahoo also announced a massive overhaul to its advertising platform. Per <a href="http://yahoo.tumblr.com/post/72591025021/introducing-the-new-yahoo-advertising" target="_blank">Yahoo's Tumblr</a>, "The new Yahoo Advertising includes a comprehensive suite of web, mobile, and video ad products across native, audience, and premium display, which are accessible through a new buying platform. These products are supported by Yahoo's data and analytical tools, with insights into the daily digital habits of more than 800 million people worldwide." 
Here's what BI Intelligence members are reading…
<a href="https://intelligence.businessinsider.com/how-tech-and-mobile-centric-players-are-transforming-the-credit-card-processing-industry-2014-1" target="_blank">How Tech- And Mobile-Centric Players Are Transforming The Credit Card Processing Industry</a>
<a href="https://intelligence.businessinsider.com/kickstarter-projects-raised-more-than-800-million-2014-1">Kickstarter Projects Raised More Than $800 Million In Four Years - With Social Media's Help</a>
<a href="https://intelligence.businessinsider.com/ces-trends-products-and-announcements-2014-1">CES PREVIEW: The Devices And Stories That Will Actually Make A Consumer Impact This Year</a>

GARTNER: One Billion Android Devices Will Be Sold In 2014

The <a href="http://www.businessinsider.in/searchresult.cms?query=IPL">IPL </a>controversy memories may not have faded yet, but the man at the center of it - Mr <keyword id="18641" type="PERSON" weightage="100" keywordseo="Raj-Kundra">Raj Kundra</keyword> - has managed to sail through troubled waters to keep his prosperous business career flourishing. Yes, for this former <keyword id="13802" type="CITY" weightage="100" keywordseo="Rajasthan-Royals">Rajasthan Royals</keyword> co-owner, his IPL investment goes out of the window, but there are newer ones on the cards already. The launch of his new Viaan mobile smartphones is testimony to the fact that there has been no stopping him ever since Justice Lodha Committee read out that judgement over IPL betting a few months ago, pronouncing him guilty and banning him for life. 
 This sports enthusiast feels it was an unfair trial but life doesn’t stop for him there. It didn’t stop for him either when doors were slammed on his face at the beginning of his career as he tried to sell the Pashmina shawls he bought from Nepal, to fashion houses in London. He was persistent. Soon, he rose from being a small-time seller to becoming the largest buyer of Pashmina shawls. Business opportunities in Antwerp, Russia, Ukraine and UAE pushed him forward into various ventures and investments across the board from mining to <keyword id="6354553" type="COMPANY" weightage="100" keywordseo="real-estate">real estate</keyword> and renewable energy to entertainment and hospitality. That’s not all. Today, he owns Indian television home shopping channel - Best Deal TV Pvt Ltd and a construction company called Kundra Constructions Pvt Ltd. Married to one of the prettiest and fittest <keyword id="143" type="CITY" weightage="100" keywordseo="Bollywood">Bollywood</keyword> stars, <keyword id="6358615" type="PERSON" weightage="100" keywordseo="Shilpa-Shetty">Shilpa Shetty</keyword>, Raj has evolved as one of the most recognized faces in the biz world today, more so after his recent decision to plunge into the risky consumer electronics space with the launch of affordable smartphones in the name of his son Viaan. 
 At a time when the mobile market is flooded with all kinds of phones – affordable to premium to luxury – and <keyword id="6354504" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="100" keywordseo="Reliance-Jio">Reliance Jio</keyword> is bracing up to descend in the market with its affordable Lyf phones, how is this British businessmen really planning to work this out for himself? As he bets his money in yet another business prospect that he believes in, <a href="http://www.businessinsider.in/">Business Insider</a> chats with him to get you a sneak peek into his beginning days of struggle, journey to a successful career amid lows and highs, and his newest venture with his wife Shilpa Shetty. 
 
Q) We understand you dropped out of college to choose a career path of your choice. Take us back to the beginning of your journey when you sold Pashmina shawls. 
 
I was 17 when my father gave me six months’ ultimatum to either choose a career line or manage the family-run restaurant business in London. Running the restaurant was not something I was keen on doing. So, I backpacked and set off to discover something that I would want to do my entire life, well aware that I will have to return to London and run the restaurant in case nothing worked out in these six months. However, during my visit to Nepal, my eyes were fixated on the colourful Pashmina shawls that were hanging outside several shops in Kathmandu. As I learnt more about it from the shopkeepers, I felt the product was interesting for the cold climate conditions in London. A credit card with 2000 pound limit in it was all I had. I asked the shopkeeper if he had a factory. He said yes. I asked him to give me one piece of every colour assuring him that I’ll soon get him orders. I swiped my credit card and put all the money into these Pashminas, and took these to London with me. As I reached out to several companies to sell the idea, doors were slammed on my face. Nobody wanted to talk to me since I was a single-man army. Soon, a chance meeting with someone at the airport landed me with a whopping 10,000 crore order. There started my journey. Luck was on my side, and there has been no looking back ever since. 
 
Q) Amid your successful businesses is a low point you faced when Justice Lodha Committee pronounced you guilty in the IPL betting controversy in July this year. It brings your crucial IPL business investment to an end. How has that affected you? 
 
It was not an investment for us, but something Shipla and I were passionate about. We had nothing to sell neither any product to advertise, it was just for the love of the game. I don’t agree with the report. First time around, they said Raj is in the clear but we need to investigate a bit more. To my surprise, without showing me any evidence they suddenly called me guilty. This is huge violation of natural justice. All I know is whoever was guilty has been arrested. I was not once arrested or picked up by the cops. Even they agree that there is no evidence against me. It was an unfair trial. I am not guilty. There’s nothing I have done and I clearly mentioned that if an iota of wrongdoing is found on my part, I’ll forfeit my shares. In any case, it was a judgement that we cannot argue about, so we silently walked off. I don’t want to do anything where there is violation of natural justice. 
 
What brings you to the mobile segment now? 
 
After trading Pashmina shawls, I got into buying and selling mobile phones in UK. It led to me learn the business and eventually, I understood that space very well. Today, I look at India as having so much potential with the demands of nearly 500 billion middle class population residing in the country. I would often complain about certain handsets not working in a certain way. Sometimes you just want to pick your phone, hear a human voice and get your work done. The personal touch that is lost in this tech age is something I still like. And so, I thought not everyone likes to use an app to book their tickets and maybe we need someone to go back to the basics. 
 
What’s the USP? 
 
Our USP is V Assist - 24x7 personalized concierge service which will provide users details on best deals on products and services. With the cheapest entry level phone, you have got a personal secretary at your service to do everything. Just pick your phone, get details and ask our staff to do it for you. It is a free subscription for 1 year. Also with every handset, we are giving a 2 lakh accidental insurance. It’s a lovely add-on. The trivia is that India is known as the accident capital of the world. We cannot prevent these accidents, but a lot of it happens when you are busy on your mobile phones. At least, we can help in this way. We are going to be all about service. 
 
So are others. Don’t you feel that the entering the mobile market is a risky affair with the telecom giants innovating day by day. Soon, Reliance Jio’s Lyf phones which are again affordable phones like yours will hit the market. How do you aim to crush your competition? 
 
I think there is no dearth of demand. Look at the consumption. There are 2 crore handset requirements every month in India and it’s growing at 20-30 per cent every year. It’s a huge consumer market and an average consumer changes his phone twice in a year. With a billion people living in the country, one can imagine the actual consumption. Yes it’s cluttered and you need to create the brand, but it all goes down to service when it comes to a handset. You will provide the same features - camera, memory, speed etc. What different can you do? It is all going to be in the service you offer, the quality of your phone and the affordability factor. 
 
What are you expecting as returns from this new venture in the coming 2-3 years? 
 
We have tied up with a company in Ukraine and we have already launched in 7 CIS countries simultaneously. This one agent in Ukraine is going to look at the CIS turf. His projected business is $80 million a year. If I am taking $80 million internationally and I am doing the same kind of figure in India, you have done a business which is nearly $200 million in the first year itself. Success is assured. 
 
With several start-ups waiting to climb up the ladder of success, what would be your one advice to the newbies? 
 
You have to take risks if you want to run a business. As they say, with no risk comes no gain. However, you can minimize the perceived damage the decision can have of play safe if you take calculated risks. When you put money somewhere, just make sure you are able to see an exit option during unforeseen circumstances.

You Searched For "speed biz" and got 4 results

Meet the 22-year-old college dropout who wants to power every future self-driving car

Biz Carson

Why Netflix Has Gone To War Against Comcast Just Weeks After Cutting A Huge Deal With The Company

Jim Edwards

GARTNER: One Billion Android Devices Will Be Sold In 2014

Tony Danova

Raj Kundra- The shrewd opportunist, with a never-say-die-attitude

Anushree Singh