The Great Tech Game Podcast: Geopolitics, Technology, Business and Global Affairs, with Anirudh Suri

Ep. 54 - Entrepreneurs: The New Freedom Fighters For India? Kanwal Rekhi, VC with Anirudh Suri

In this episode of The Great Tech Game podcast, we sit down with Kanwal Rekhi, venture capitalist, the first Indian-American to take a venture-backed company public on the NASDAQ, and co-founder of The IndUS Entrepreneurs (TiE). We discuss why he believes entrepreneurs are the new freedom fighters for India. Rekhi traces the journey of India from being branded as a "land of snake charmers" to becoming a global "technological powerhouse," arguing that the next phase of India’s independence is economic—freedom from hunger and poverty driven by a massive surge in entrepreneurship. Rekhi offers a provocative look at how India should aim to reclaim its #1 global economic spot by 2047. He challenges conventional wisdom on "brain drain," the role of the government in regulation, and why a "politics of wealth creation" must precede the "politics of wealth distribution". We explore: - How has the nature of starting a business changed from the early days of PC hardware and networking to the current era of AI?\ - Why are entrepreneurs the "new freedom fighters"? - Is "brain drain" actually a benefit? Has the exodus of Indian talent to the US built a "brain trust" for India instead? - What is the "Noble Experiment" of India? Can a country this diverse and poor sustain both a constitutional democracy and a free market better than the model seen in China? - Why should India build 1,000 IITs? Why is investing in "people and their brains" the highest ROI the government can achieve? - How do we fix the "dead arm" of the Indian economy by empowering entrepreneurs in small towns? - What can India learn from the US about venture capital and taxes? - Why is the current Indian regulatory framework potentially stifling the 10 million entrepreneurs we need by 2047? ▶️ Watch the full conversation now, and subscribe to The Great Tech Game. --- About the Guest: Kanwal Rekhi is an Indian-American entrepreneur, investor, and mentor best known as the first Indian-American founder to take a venture-backed company public in the United States, when networking startup Excelan was listed on the stock exchange in 1987. After the company’s IPO and merger, Rekhi shifted his focus toward enabling entrepreneurship, mentoring more than 10,000 founders and investing in over 200 early-stage startups, including companies such as Exodus Communications, Poshmark, redBus, Sierra Atlantic, and NetMagic. Today, as Managing Director of Inventus Capital Partners and SV Quad, and as a co-founder of TiE Global, Rekhi continues to champion entrepreneurship with a mission to help create 10 million entrepreneurs by India’s 100th anniversary. About Anirudh Suri, Host of the Podcast: Anirudh Suri is a non-resident scholar with Carnegie India, where his research and writing focus on technology, artificial intelligence and geopolitics. He is the author of The Great Tech Game: Shaping Geopolitics and the Destinies of Nations, and host of The Great Tech Game Podcast. He is also the Managing Partner at India Internet Fund, a US and India based technology-focused venture capital fund. The Great Tech Game by Anirudh Suri - https://amzn.eu/d/1Su38My Follow Anirudh here: X (formerly Twitter): https://x.com/anirudhsuri Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/anirudhsuri/ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/anirudh_suri Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/AnirudhSuri.in Website: (http://www.anirudhsuri.com/) Book and Podcast: (http://www.greattechgame.com/)#thegreattechgame #tgtgpodcast #anirudhsuri #IndianEconomy #Entrepreneurship #Startups #IndianStartups #AI #ArtificialIntelligence #IndiaAI #Technology #Innovation #Geopolitics #EconomicGrowth #ViksitBharat #SiliconValley #VentureCapital #FutureOfIndia #TechPodcast #GlobalSouth #IIT #EconomicFreedom #Entrepreneurs #TechAndGeopolitics #IndianTech #AIRevolution #KanwalRekhi

Ep. 53 (AI Futures) - How Local Innovations Could Drive Global AI Breakthroughs | Vilas Dhar, Patrick McGovern Foundation

In this episode of the AI Futures Podcast, host Anirudh Suri sits down with Vilas Dhar, President of the Patrick J. McGovern Foundation, member of the UN High Level Advisory Body on AI, and Harvard Kennedy School alum, to unpack Vilas' unique perspective on how technology can be harnessed as a force for global good. The conversation explores Vilas’s personal journey—from a childhood split between rural Illinois and villages outside Bangalore—to his current work overseeing half a billion dollars in investments focused on responsible AI. Dhar highlights successful initiatives like Climate Trace, which uses data to monitor carbon emissions, as examples of how AI can serve humanity beyond mere profit. The conversation addresses the importance of moving away from a Western-centric "AI race" toward a model of inclusive leadership.Key topics include:* How local constraints in the Global South are driving world-class innovation, such as India’s Sarvam AI.* The transition from tech "overdependence" to global interdependence, where every country finds its unique niche.* Real-world examples of AI for good, including Climate Trace, a platform for tracking carbon emissions used by thousands of organizations.* Why the next generation of students in Indian universities gives Vilas more hope for the future than anything coming out of Silicon Valley.Watch Anirudh and Vilas in conversation to understand what an AI-enabled world could look like if we started from values and principles first, as the world's AI conversation moves to India.Subscribe and listen to the full conversation now.Chapters & Timestamps00:00 – Introduction & Reflections on the India AI Summit02:30 – A Journey Between Two Worlds05:15 – The Patrick McGovern Foundation & Responsible AI06:45 – AI for Good: Tracking Climate Change with Climate Trace08:30 – India’s AI Strategy: Innovation, Constraints, and Sarvam AI11:00 – From Overdependence to Global Interdependence in AI13:15 – Why Indian University Students are the Real Source of Hope15:30 – Shifting the Narrative: From "AI Race" to "AI Leadership"18:00 – Grounding Technology in Music, Arts, and Human Values20:15 – Final Reflections & Book/Podcast Recommendations-------Follow the India AI Impact Summit 2026: https://impact.indiaai.gov.in/*About Vilas Dhar*Vilas Dhar is recognized as a leading global expert on the future of AI and its role in shaping society. As President of the Patrick J. McGovern Foundation, he leads one of the world’s foremost philanthropies committed to demonstrating how data and AI can be harnessed to advance equity, human dignity, and collective progress. Vilas has also served as a member of the United Nations Secretary-General’s High-Level Advisory Body on Artificial Intelligence, and is the U.S. Government’s nominated expert to the Global Partnership on AI. Read more about Patrick J. McGovern Foundation here: https://www.mcgovern.org/Climate Trace Project: https://climatetrace.org/*About Anirudh Suri, Host of the Podcast*Anirudh Suri is a non-resident scholar with Carnegie India. He is the author of The Great Tech Game: Shaping Geopolitics and the Destinies of Nations, and host of The Great Tech Game Podcast. He is also the Managing Partner at India Internet Fund, a US and India based technology-focused venture capital fund. The Great Tech Game by Anirudh Suri - https://amzn.eu/d/1Su38My Follow Anirudh here:X (formerly Twitter): https://x.com/anirudhsuriLinkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/anirudhsuri/Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/anirudh_suriFacebook: https://www.facebook.com/AnirudhSuri.inWebsite: (http://www.anirudhsuri.com/) Book and Podcast: (http://www.greattechgame.com/)#IndiaAI #IndiaAIImpactSummit2026 #AIFuturesPodcast #AISummit #TGTGPodcast #AnirudhSuri #AI #TheGreatTechGame #VilasDhar #patrickjmcgovernfoundation #aiforgood #philanthropy #responsibleai #climatetrace #globalsouth #globalsouthai

Ep. 52 (AI Futures) - Switzerland 2027: Is a Global AI Treaty Possible? Amb. Thomas Schneider with Anirudh Suri

In this episode of the *AI Futures* podcast, host Anirudh Suri sits down with *Ambassador Thomas Schneider* who led the negotiations for the *world's first binding international treaty on Artificial Intelligence.* Ambassador Schneider shares his views on how Switzerland is adopting a decentralised, bottoms up approach to devising its AI strategy, unlike other countries that have a top-down, centralised approach, and what AI for good really means. As the person who will also be helping put together the 2027 Switzerland AI Summit, he also shares how Switzerland is planning to leverage its "trusted hub" reputation in the world of AI as well. We explore: - How can a small country compete with AI giants like the US and China? Discover why Switzerland doesn't have one single, centralised "AI strategy" and how they use an "agile ecosystem" to stay ahead. - Is a global treaty on AI actually possible? Hear from the person who negotiated with 55 countries to create shared AI rules for a fragmented world. - Will AI take our jobs in the next five years? We discuss the risk of 10% to 20% of office jobs being displaced and which skills humans must keep for themselves. - Who is responsible when AI goes wrong? We explore the idea of "liability" and why companies should pay for the risks they create. - In a world optimized for efficiency, how do we ensure ecologically responsible energy choices? - How can we avoid some of the same mistakes made during the Industrial Revolution that are causing an ecological crisis now? --- The AI Futures Podcast series, hosted by Anirudh Suri, is organized in collaboration with the *Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology, Government of India* as the intellectual prelude to the India AI Impact Summit 2026 being held from Feb 16 - 20, 2026 in New Delhi, India. Follow the India AI Impact Summit 2026: https://impact.indiaai.gov.in/ Whether you are a student, a policymaker, or just curious about the future of AI, this conversation breaks down the complex world of AI into lessons we can all understand. --- *About Thomas Schneider* Thomas Schneider is Ambassador and Director of International Affairs at the Swiss Federal Office of Communications (OFCOM) in the Federal Department of the Environment, Transport, Energy and Communications (DETEC). He is a long-standing expert in digital governance and in the governance of the information and knowledge society and artificial intelligence. He led the negotiations for the Framework Convention on Artificial Intelligence, adopted in 2024 as the world's first legally binding international treaty on AI. *About Anirudh Suri, Host of the Podcast* Anirudh Suri is a non-resident scholar with Carnegie India, where his research and writing focus on technology, artificial intelligence and geopolitics. He is the author of The Great Tech Game: Shaping Geopolitics and the Destinies of Nations, and host of The Great Tech Game Podcast. He is also the Managing Partner at India Internet Fund, a US and India based technology-focused venture capital fund. Previously, Anirudh has worked with the Government of India in New Delhi, McKinsey and Co in New York, Goldman Sachs in London, the Carnegie Endowment in Washington DC, and China Institute of International Studies in Beijing. He completed his MBA from The Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania, and his MPA from the Harvard Kennedy School. Named a Goldman Sachs Global Leader, Anirudh has also served on the Board of the Harvard Alumni Association. The Great Tech Game by Anirudh Suri - https://amzn.eu/d/1Su38My Follow Anirudh here: X (formerly Twitter): https://x.com/anirudhsuri Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/anirudhsuri/ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/anirudh_suri Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/AnirudhSuri.in Website: (http://www.anirudhsuri.com/) Book and Podcast: (http://www.greattechgame.com/) #IndiaAI #IndiaAIImpactSummit2026 #AIFuturesPodcast #AnirudhSuri #ThomasSchneider

Ep. 51 (AI Futures) - Why You’ll Soon Be a "Manager of AI Agents": Jeetu Patel, President, CISCO with Anirudh Suri | AI Futures | Ep. 51

In this episode of the *AI Futures* podcast, host Anirudh Suri, tech investor and policy advisor, sits down with Jeetu Patel, President and Chief Product Officer of Cisco, for a raw and visionary conversation about the AI revolution. This conversation is a deep exploration of how AI is reshaping business, labor, and society, interwoven with the inspiring story of how Jeetu rose to one of the most influential leadership roles. Whether you're a developer, a student, or a business leader, this interview provides a roadmap for thriving in a world where AI is no longer a tool, but a colleague. Key Discussion Points:- How can countries like India carve out leadership amidst the US-China duopoly in AI?- How are companies like Cisco positioning themselves in the AI revolution?- Why modern software development has "completely flipped" and what it means for the next generation of engineers.- How will organizational structures change as AI automates entry-level tasks? - What skills should the next generation build to stay relevant in an AI-driven world?- How do we embed trust, ethics, and human values into AI agents and AI systems?- Will AI make us intellectually weaker—or push us toward deeper thinking?-----The AI Futures Podcast series, hosted by Anirudh Suri, is organized in collaboration with the *Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology, Government of India* as the intellectual prelude to the India AI Impact Summit 2026 being held from Feb 16 - 20, 2026 in New Delhi, India.Follow the India AI Impact Summit 2026: https://impact.indiaai.gov.in/-----*About Jeetu Patel*Jeetu Patel is the President and Chief Product Officer at Cisco and is recognized as one of the world’s leading thinkers on product strategy and technological disruption. Under his leadership, Cisco has driven innovation across its broad portfolio of products, establishing the company as the critical infrastructure for the AI era.Patel joined Cisco in 2020 to lead the collaboration and security business. He quickly became recognized for his commitment to product design and user experience, leading the team through a period of rapid innovation to transform Webex and support customers through the global pandemic. In 2024 he was promoted to the role of Chief Product Officer, where he now leads several multibillion-dollar categories, including networking, computing, security, Splunk, and more.*About Anirudh Suri, Host of the Podcast*Anirudh Suri is a non-resident scholar with Carnegie India, where his research and writing focus on technology, artificial intelligence and geopolitics. He is the author of The Great Tech Game: Shaping Geopolitics and the Destinies of Nations, and host of The Great Tech Game Podcast. He is also the Managing Partner at India Internet Fund, a US and India based technology-focused venture capital fund. Previously, Anirudh has worked with the Government of India in New Delhi, McKinsey and Co in New York, Goldman Sachs in London, and the Carnegie Endowment in Washington DC. He completed his MBA from The Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania, and his MPA from the Harvard Kennedy School. The Great Tech Game by Anirudh Suri - https://amzn.eu/d/1Su38My Follow Anirudh here:X (formerly Twitter): https://x.com/anirudhsuriLinkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/anirudhsuri/Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/anirudh_suriFacebook: https://www.facebook.com/AnirudhSuri.inWebsite: (http://www.anirudhsuri.com/) Book and Podcast: (http://www.greattechgame.com/)#IndiaAI #IndiaAIImpactSummit2026 #AIFuturesPodcast #AISummit #AI #Cisco #FutureOfWork #JeetuPatel #AnirudhSuri #Coding #IndiaTech #TechLeadership #TGTGpodcast #AIcoding #humanintheloop #AIsecurity #TechSovereignty #FutureOfWork #AIStrategy #India #PersonalJourney #Podcast

Ep. 50 (AI Futures) - AI vs AI: The New Cyber Wars | Anne Neuberger, Former US Deputy National Security Advisor for Cyber | AI Futures Series | Ep. 50

In this episode of the *AI Futures* Podcast, host Anirudh Suri sits down with Anne Neuberger, former U.S. Deputy National Security Advisor for Cyber and Emerging Technology under the Biden administration, to explore the intersection of AI and cybersecurity. As cyber conflict has evolved from a human-led “cat-and-mouse” game to a machine-against-machine battlefield, we unpack critical questions in this episode: - How is AI reshaping both cyber threats and cyber defense? - As attacks become faster and more scalable, can defenders realistically keep up? - Who are the key actors in cyberspace today — nation-states, criminals, transnational groups — and how do they operate in a borderless digital domain? - Can AI-driven secure code meaningfully reduce systemic vulnerabilities? - How can AI strengthen the protection of critical national infrastructure? - What can the world learn from India’s Digital Public Infrastructure (India Stack)? - And as AI automates technical work, what cross-disciplinary skills will define the next generation of leaders? As non-state actors proliferate and geopolitics increasingly plays out in cyberspace, this conversation offers a rare policymaker’s perspective on how these risks should be managed. Watch Anirudh and Anne in conversation to understand what’s at stake in the world of AI and cyber, as the world’s AI conversation moves to India. #IndiaAI #IndiaAIImpactSummit2026 #AIFuturesPodcast #AISummit #TGTGPodcast #AnirudhSuri #AI #TheGreatTechGame #cyberattacks #cybersecurity #AICyberSecurity #AnneNeuberger