Episode #195
Show Proof of Value Before You Build for Scale
Rohini Chakravarthy, Managing Partner at NewBuild Venture Capital, shares her journey from engineering in Silicon Valley to more than two decades of venture investing at Intel Capital, NEA and NGP Capital. She explains why she and her partners created NewBuild around the transformation of the physical enterprise—from procurement and manufacturing to logistics and delivery. Rohini also explains what NewBuild looks for at the earliest stages, expounding on the difference between proof of value and proof of market. In this episode, you'll learn: [ 01:43 ] How Rohini went from engineering in Bangalore and Silicon Valley to venture capital, including her experience at Intel Capital, NEA and NGP Capital. [ 07:06 ] Building NewBuild around the transformation of the physical enterprise and supply chain. [ 13:18 ] What "proof of value" means at the earliest stages—and why NewBuild wants to see evidence of customer utility before significant revenue. [ 15:48 ] Three pieces of advice for founders: start with a burning problem, examine founder-market fit and deliberately de-risk the company one stage at a time. [ 20:50 ] How investors actually build conviction through conversations, research, validation and back-and-forth with founders. [ 25:48 ] Why investors and founders need the right network of partners and experts [ 27:16 ] The opportunities and challenges Rohini sees in the US-India startup ecosystem. [ 31:01 ] Why Rohini believes computer science remains valuable in the AI era—and why combining computer science with another domain could be especially useful. The nonprofit organizations Rohini is passionate about: IIT Madras Foundation , Neythri About Rohini Chakravarthy Rohini Chakravarthy is the Managing Partner of NewBuild Venture Capital, where she invests in early-stage companies focused on supply chain and the physical enterprise. She has more than 20 years of venture investing experience, including roles at NGP Capital, NEA and Intel Capital. Before entering venture capital, she worked as a hardware design engineer at Bay Networks. Rohini holds a B.Tech from IIT Madras, an MS in Electrical Engineering from Case Western Reserve University and an MBA from MIT Sloan. About NewBuild Venture Capital NewBuild Venture Capital is an early-stage venture firm focused on supply-chain application and infrastructure, physical enterprise and agentic AI. The firm's thesis centers on the transformation of the physical enterprise through technologies including cloud, data, AI and robotics. Portfolio companies include: Lyric, Freehand, Drumkit, Precursory, Manifold Freight, Cognichip, Pull Logic and others. Subscribe to our podcast and stay tuned for our next episode.
