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Vidya Narayanan

Co-founder and CEO with extensive experience in tech and startups

Vidya Narayanan is a technology entrepreneur and executive with extensive experience in mobile computing, context-aware systems, and video platforms. She is currently the Co-founder and CEO of Rizzle, a fast-growing short video platform that she has been building since March 2019.1

Professional Background

Current Role

As the Co-founder and CEO of Rizzle, Narayanan is focused on developing a platform for episodic short (60-second) videos, enabling users to create and host multiple channels for vlogs, comedy shows, and scripted short series.1

Previous Experience

Entrepreneurial Ventures::

  • Co-founder and CEO of UrbanAMA (2015-2019), a video AMA platform that hosted content from government officials, NFL players, and renowned authors.1

Corporate Experience::

  • Lead of Android always-on location & context at Google (2012-2015).1
  • Head of Context Aware Research at Qualcomm (2006-2012).1

Earlier Roles::

  • Technologist at IETF (2003-2011), where she contributed significantly to Internet, Security, and Real-time Applications & Infrastructure areas.1
  • Engineer at Motorola (1998-2005), where she worked on mobile VPN and network architectures.1

Expertise and Contributions

Narayanan has demonstrated expertise in:

  • Mobile context-aware computing
  • Machine learning and semantic modeling
  • Wireless and resource-constrained optimizations
  • Peer-to-peer network architecture
  • Internet protocols and standards

She has authored numerous internet drafts and co-authored several RFCs (Request for Comments) during her time at IETF.1

Education and Location

While her specific educational background is not mentioned in the provided information, Narayanan's LinkedIn profile indicates that she is based in the San Francisco Bay Area.1

Vidya Narayanan's career trajectory showcases a blend of entrepreneurial spirit and deep technical expertise, particularly in mobile technologies and video platforms.

Highlights

Aug 20 · linkedin

If you're at Podcast Movement DC today, please come by. I'll be talking about leveraging AI to create videos for additional podcast monetization.

#PMDC24 #Podcasting #AI

Aug 2 · linkedin

If I interact with you closely, I will demand 𝗶𝗻𝘁𝗲𝗹𝗹𝗲𝗰𝘁𝘂𝗮𝗹 𝗵𝗼𝗻𝗲𝘀𝘁𝘆. I can keep 𝗻𝗲𝗴𝗮𝘁𝗶𝘃𝗲 𝗽𝗲𝗮𝗰𝗲 with people but they won't be in my inner circle.

My co-founder and I have our screaming matches. It's part of personal growth and innovation. But, we always figure out how to move forward. That's because our trust is rooted in intellectual honesty.

We know that we can have different opinions, but not different facts.

We know that we must not argue from conclusions for true progress.

𝗖𝗼𝗴𝗻𝗶𝘁𝗶𝘃𝗲 𝗳𝗿𝗶𝗰𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 naturally occurs when we have 𝗰𝗼𝗴𝗻𝗶𝘁𝗶𝘃𝗲 𝗱𝗶𝘃𝗲𝗿𝘀𝗶𝘁𝘆 - i.e., when people who think differently come together, it can lead to friction. However, innovation can thrive if we deal with this friction with 𝗶𝗻𝘁𝗲𝗹𝗹𝗲𝗰𝘁𝘂𝗮𝗹 𝗵𝘂𝗺𝗶𝗹𝗶𝘁𝘆 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗵𝗼𝗻𝗲𝘀𝘁𝘆.

But often, cognitive friction leads to bad outcomes due to intellectual dishonesty.

It's important to note that intellectual dishonesty is different from blatant lying. Sometimes, when people are intellectually dishonest, they also resort to lying, but they are not the same concept.

Here are some examples of intellectual dishonesty:  • Being deceptive or fudging reality  • Pretending to answer questions but not really answering them • Pretending that something makes sense when it doesn't • Pretending to be fair while being unfair  • Arguing from conclusion to drive people to a specific conclusion

Most of the time, intellectual dishonesty is deliberate, although sometimes, it can be unintentional when people are lying to themselves.

What makes it worse is when people in power are intellectually dishonest. This allows the powerful to prey on the weak - and destroy organizations, especially at earlier stages.

An MIT Sloan review lays out a great four-quadrant dissection of how intellectual honesty and psychological safety can lead to 𝗶𝗻𝗻𝗼𝘃𝗮𝘁𝗶𝘃𝗲, 𝗰𝗼𝗺𝗳𝗼𝗿𝘁𝗮𝗯𝗹𝗲, 𝗮𝗻𝘅𝗶𝗼𝘂𝘀, 𝗼𝗿 𝗱𝗶𝘀𝘁𝗿𝗲𝘀𝘀𝗲𝗱 𝗰𝘂𝗹𝘁𝘂𝗿𝗲𝘀, depending on what is at risk.

I will do a deeper review of this in a future post - but for now, here is a link for those who want to read more.  https://lnkd.in/gTiMtJHn

PS: Negative peace is an absence of confrontation where you choose to remain silent to pretend there is peace. It never leads to good outcomes.

#LessonsInEntrepreneurship #Entrepreneur #Innovation

Related Questions

What inspired Vidya Narayanan to start Rizzle?
How did Vidya Narayanan's experience at Google influence Rizzle?
What are some unique features of Rizzle compared to other short video platforms?
How has Vidya Narayanan's background in tech impacted her leadership at Rizzle?
What challenges has Vidya Narayanan faced as the CEO of Rizzle?
Vidya Narayanan
Vidya Narayanan, photo 1
Vidya Narayanan, photo 2
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Experience

Co-founder and CEO at Rizzle (March 2019 - Present)
Co-Founder and CEO at UrbanAMA (March 2015 - January 2019), Lead, Android always-on location & context at Google (June 2012 - March 2015), Head, Context Aware Research at Qualcomm (January 2006 - June 2012)

Location

San Francisco Bay Area