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‘SF founders talk to me like a peer’: Student highlights contrast between US and Indian startup bosses
A man sparked debate on X after comparing how approachable SF startup founders are compared to some Indian bosses.
A man who actively cold-messaged startup founders across both Silicon Valley and India took to X to highlight a stark difference in communication styles. Comparing the two ecosystems, he observed that San Francisco founders often treat outreach as peer-to-peer conversations, whereas some Indian founders tend to maintain a hierarchical distance.
“I have cold DM’ed a bunch of founders from both India and SF One thing I noticed,” Hriday Kadam wrote on X. He continued, “A lot of founders in SF talk to me like a peer. They ask questions, hear out my ideas, and have genuine conversations, even though I am just a student.”
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Contrasting this approachable dynamic with his experience reaching out to Indian entrepreneurs, he pointed out a distinct shift in attitude. While acknowledging that India has its share of remarkable tech leaders, he highlighted how corporate hierarchy often creeps into everyday interactions.
“While I have met some amazing founders from India too, I have also noticed some seem to carry a bit more of a ‘founder’ aura, as if they’re positioning themselves above the conversation.”
Kadam continued, “Not saying this is universally true. Just an interesting difference in communication styles that I have observed.”
What did social media say?
An individual wrote, “Interesting observation. However, it is more of a cultural thing. The same is true in the workplace, too. See, you have to understand that the East is a bit hierarchical in nature, and hence someone who is a founder might develop an aura based on how those around them treat them. The West is not that hierarchical and hence the conversations change. This is a good learning because dealing with customers will also change in different societies/countries.”
Another commented, “Ya true, but there are some great founders too.” A third posted, “That's why India is not even in the AI Race. Thinking you know everything usually keeps other smart people away, and in AI research, it's usually the teams of people. Being in a conversation is not always a good thing. And yeah, not everybody is the same.”
A fourth expressed, “Bro, it’s pretty much the same with Japanese founders imo.”
(Disclaimer: This report is based on user-generated content from social media. Hindustantimes.com has not independently verified the claims and does not endorse them.)
