One of the most prolific enterprise investors in the industry, Ravi has partnered with multiple Founders to help bring their companies to acquisition and IPO.
As Partner and Co-Founder of Lightspeed, Ravi has dedicated over 25 years to building the firm, its enterprise practice, and its investment portfolio into a premier global technology investment firm.
He has invested broadly in technology over three decades and has partnered with multiple founders to shepherd their companies from early stage to IPO/exit.
Ravi focuses on working with founders who are leading innovators in technology businesses and has invested across IT, consumer, life sciences and blockchain over his career. He is passionate about helping them create value and unlock possibilities for their companies, customers, and themselves, mentoring them to become industry visionaries and leaders.
Ravi’s deep expertise has led him to partner with many transformative companies over the years including Anduril, AppDynamics, Guardant, MuleSoft, Natera, Nutanix, Offchain Labs, Rubrik, ThoughtSpot, Zscaler, and many others. Guiding founders through the challenges and opportunities of their startup journey is both a mission and calling for Ravi. “Success is measured in years and decades,” he says. “I do not allow the fear of failure to hold me, Lightspeed, or our founders back from succeeding.”
Whether he’s helping founders realize their full potential, or hiring new partners who will push the firm forward, a high-conviction mindset infuses everything he does. “It’s imperative to have the ability to believe in yourself and not get discouraged easily,” he says. “We look for both investors and founders at Lightspeed who are doers, problem solvers, and can think on their feet.”
It’s a mindset that was hardwired into him at a young age. The son of an Indian immigrant and a Brooklyn-born mother, he lived on three different continents and in four different states before turning 18. The startup world is inherently fluid, something Ravi understands instinctively. “It’s made me more open to change, new ideas, and new people.”
As a founder himself, Ravi has dedicated his life to hard work and advancing the technology start-up ecosystem throughout the valley and beyond, beginning with his time at Stanford, where he earned a BS in electrical engineering, a BA in economics, and an MBA.
Before entering venture capital, Ravi worked in the tech industry at Silicon Graphics, as a management consultant at Booz Allen and also as a software engineer for a biotech instrument manufacturer. “I’m always open to reinventing myself,” says Ravi. “Part of that is doing, listening, and learning from every experience, and sharing what I’ve learned with others. I hope I never stop evolving as an investor and human.”
Ravi has served on the Stanford Business School Trust advisory board and was a previous member of the Board of Directors for WAVC (Western Association of Venture Capitalists) and The Indus Entrepreneurs Group (TiE) in Silicon Valley and has been recognized multiple times as a top dealmaker on Forbes’ annual VC Midas List.
