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Tag: Gautam Sinha

  • Gautam Sinha, former CEO of Times Internet launches his new venture SimpleO

    Gautam Sinha, former CEO of Times Internet launches his new venture SimpleO

    Mumbai: Gautam Sinha, the former – CEO of Times Internet has embarked on a new entrepreneurial journey with the launch of SimpleO.ai. With SimpleO.ai (short for Simple Office), Gautam and his team are on a mission to simplify the enterprise using AI, starting with the management of contracts and the risks, obligations, SLA’s, audits, compliance, and governance associated with them.

    Gautam is a global executive with over 35 years of rich experience including a wealth of startup and industry expertise. Prior to confounding SimpleO, Gautam was the CEO of Times Internet Ltd., the digital arm of The Times of India Group, where he drove the strategy, vision, and execution for all the internet, mobile and telecommunication properties of the group. With iconic brands like Times of India, Economic Times, Gaana, Mx, Magicbricks, TLabs, Dineout, Cricbuzz, Gradeup under the flagship of Times Internet, his contribution to the internet economy of India is well acknowledged.

    Prior to Times Internet Ltd., Gautam was the chief operating officer of CashEdge Inc., a company based out of New York and California working in payments and wealth management, where he worked since 2001 building and leading the company from startup to profitability. Prior to CashEdge, he held senior management positions at Sevant, Aspect Communications, at the Neural Applications Corporation, and as a scientist at the ministry of defense in India (DRDO).

    Reflecting on his new venture Gautam Sinha, said, “I used to have a personal pain point around management of contracts.  I used to sign many contracts on any average day, and with that used to take risks, obligations, SLA’s, governance, and audit commitments on behalf of the organization.  However, there were no end-to-end smart/AI tools to automatically dashboard and manage the risks, obligations, SLA’s, audits, compliance, and governance around the tens of thousands of signed contracts. Even the process of creating, negotiating, and executing contracts was very tedious and time consuming.  With the maturing of GenAI, we saw an opportunity to radically simplify the entire lifecycle and manageability of contracts by building a legal-grade GenAI product suite. SimpleO strives to infuse simplicity into the core of corporate operations, offering an innovative solution for the efficient and effective management of contract lifecycles. We believe that tackling this challenge will contribute to the overall efficiency and success of organizations, allowing them to focus on what matters the most.”

    SimpleO.ai is backed by successful investors and entrepreneurs in US and India, Satyan Gajwani, Sahil Barua, Mohit Tandon, Mukesh Singh and Vetri Vellore.

  • LoanTap’s technology division LTFLoW elevates Gautam Sinha as CEO

    LoanTap’s technology division LTFLoW elevates Gautam Sinha as CEO

    MUMBAI: The technology focussed division of LoanTap, LTFloW announced the appointment of Gautam Sinha as chief executive officer on Thursday. Prior to this, Sinha was marking his time as senior vice president of LTFLoW division of the online Fintech platform.

    Based in Pune, Sinha’s responsibility will involve working towards the functioning of and executing all projects at hand of LTFLoW. He will be responsible for business growth and build upon the company’s success in growing client participation and meeting commitments. He will be working towards the operational perspective of the organisation. Sinha will be responsible for the smooth functioning of LTFLoW and lend his knowledge and governing skills as a tech expert to the growth of this independent division.

    Sinha has over two decades of experience, having served in responsible positions in organisations like Infosys, HCL, and Edgeverve, to name a few.

    He has been instrumental in bringing about major innovations within LoanTap and has been actively involved in bringing operational efficiency to the organisation, said the company in a statement. He specialises in digital transformations, innovation and building components which help to homogenize and augment business processes for development. His deep-rooted knowledge and experience in product development, managing large size programs, goal-oriented project planning and executions & defining strategies for continuous improvement have been key assets for the organisation.

    Speaking on the appointment, LoanTap founder and CEO Satyam Kumar said, “Gautam is not just an industry insider, but his experience and knowledge make him one of the biggest assets to the industry. We are extremely proud to have him as a part of the leadership team. His expertise and leadership are sure to guide the company towards heightened customer success and create new products that will take this space to a whole new level.”

    As the CEO of LTFLoW, Gautam Sinha added, “It brings me immense pleasure to have been given the opportunity of Chief Executive Officer of LTFLoW. I am looking forward to this role. Tech enabling is the backbone of every business today as it widens the scope of every business and in a post-pandemic world, this is exceptionally important. With technology at its heart, we are looking at transforming every transaction and every process to get more efficient, seamless and hassle-free.”

    “Our customers are our motivation and we at LTFLoW understand that financial inclusion is only going to be possible when we digitise the entire process and make it beneficial for them. Business transformation towards growth has always been key and in my new role, my aim will be to mobilise the team and continue with our pursuit of impactful customer experience,” he further said.

  • Gaana brings in Sandeep Lodha as new CEO

    Gaana brings in Sandeep Lodha as new CEO

    Mumbai: Music streaming app Gaana has bolstered its management by naming Sandeep Lodha its new chief executive officer and roped in former Times Internet executives Vivek Pandey as chief operating officer (COO), and Ram Awasthi as chief technology officer (CTO). With this new leadership team in place, the Times Internet-owned streaming service plans to foray into the OTT sector.

    All the three leaders bring with them almost 60 years of rich experience that is poised to provide Gaana with the growth impetus, said the platform in a statement on Tuesday.
    Times Internet, chief executive officer, Gautam Sinha said that the Indian OTT ecosystem is about as “exciting, dynamic, and competitive” as it has ever been and there is “unprecedented interest” from global companies keen to tap into the Indian consumer opportunity. “At Gaana, we are equally excited about our next stage of tech-led relationships with users, content producers, and advertisers,” Sinha added.
    A leader within the media and entertainment industry, Lodha has 22 years of rich experience in scaling brands in hyper-growth sectors with Disney, Bain & Company, Weddingz, and Intel Capital. 

    Pandey has been the vice president of revenue strategy and analytics at Times Internet and also managed TIL’s adtech stack. Previously, he was at the helm of major digital transformations at companies like Tata Cliq, MakeMyTrip, and Indiatimes Shopping.

    Awasthi is a technology leader with experience in envisioning, architecting, and delivering a broad range of distributed, internet-scale, and real-time applications. In his earlier role, he was responsible for leading new business initiatives and setting up high-performance technology teams and evaluating tech stacks for different business units under Times Internet.

    “Our new CEO Sandeep’s experience leading hyper-growth brands like Disney & OYO, Vivek’s 360-degree product, growth and monetisation experience, and Ram’s strong & visionary leadership in technology make us believe we can achieve the audacious goals we have set for the brand in the coming years,” Sinha said.

  • Times Internet adds Durga Raghunath and Rohit Saran to leadership team

    Times Internet adds Durga Raghunath and Rohit Saran to leadership team

    NEW DELHI: Times Internet has embarked on an ambitious plan to cater to users across the world. To strengthen this next chapter of user-centric transformation, the company has roped in Durga Raghunath and Rohit Saran to lead its largest base of users into the next generation of engagement and reader revenue.

    Raghunath has been named digital head of Times of India, Mirror Brands (Mumbai Mirror, Pune Mirror, Bangalore Mirror and Ahmedabad Mirror), Newspoint, Gadgets Now and Etimes. Most recently as SVP Growth at Zomato and previously as founder and CEO of Firstpost and Network18 Digital, Raghunath brings a unique understanding of transactions, news and publishing. She began her career in book publishing with HarperCollins in New York. She has an MBA from the Indian School of Business and a publishing degree from Columbia University.

    Saran has been named as the chief editor of Times Internet.  He was previously the managing editor for The Times of India (print) and executive editor of The Economic Times (print). He has held senior editorial positions at the India Today Group where he was executive editor of India Today and editor of Business Today. He also edited The Khaleej Times in Dubai. He has conceptualised and launched several publications, including ET Magazine, ET Wealth and Money Today. He was also the editor of the south Asian edition of Harvard Business Review and Scientific American. He holds a master’s degree in economics and has a deep interest in data and digital journalism. 

    Times Internet CEO Gautam Sinha said, “We are excited about our next stage of technology-led relationships with users, content producers and advertisers. Durga’s entrepreneurial energy and experience, and Rohit’s broad editorial exposure and deep understanding make us believe we can set and achieve audacious goals over the next five years. Both senior leaders would report to Times Internet COO Puneet Gupt.”

  • Times Internet announces elevation of Puneet Gupt as its COO

    Times Internet announces elevation of Puneet Gupt as its COO

    MUMBAI: India’s leading digital products company, Times Internet announced the elevation of Puneet Gupt as the COO of Times Internet,with immediate effect.

    Puneet has been associated with the Times Group for over ten years and and since 2011, he has been head of Times Internet’s vast and diverse News business. Under his leadership, the company has been able to reinforce the #1 position of TOI, reach the #1 position in languages and launched products like eTimes, GadgetsNow and NewsPoint to address emerging opportunities. Puneet has played a critical role in Times Internet’s News business registering a stunning 6.5X growth and enabled the company to become the world’s #1 premium digital publisher.

    Announcing Puneet’s elevation Gautam Sinha, CEO of Times Internet said, “Puneet has been an invaluable asset to Times Internet. He is audacious, customer-obsessed and has rich experience in starting, growing and scaling up digital businesses. Puneet will be working closely with me to drive our ambitious growth agenda. He will lead our efforts in making Times Internet the go-to digital destination for every Indian’s information, entertainment and transaction needs.”

    Puneet added, “Times Internet is a company that dares you to think big, and empowers you to make your dreams a reality. I look forward to amplify our growth by identifying and building category defining digital products that become the benchmark in quality and value proposition for our customers.”

    It’s turning out to be quite an eventful year for Times Internet. The company partnered with Tencent to invest in Gaana, acquired and re-launched a video OTT platform MX Play, as well as launched popular gaming platforms like BaaziNow & CricPlay. The company’s dining out platform, Dineout acquired restaurant management software firm Torqus last month.

    With 40+ digital products, Times Internet reaches 400+ million people every month. Most of its digital products are market leaders across news, sports, music, video and more in India.

  • Times Internet strengthens leadership team

    Times Internet strengthens leadership team

    MUMBAI: Times Internet recently announced two changes. Nidhi Agarwal was named as the head of corporate initiative and planning while Dipti Tandon was elevated as business head for a live video gameshow platform, BaaziNow.

    Before joining Times Internet, Tandon was a founding member of JeevanSaathi, one of India’s leading digital matrimonial platforms today. She was the product head at MagicBricks and TechGig driving both these brands to become leaders in their respective categories. Dipti has been with Times Internet for over thirteen years, having taken up multiple roles across various businesses of the company.

    Times Internet CEO Gautam Sinha said, “Dipti has been leading the BaaziNow initiative right from the time of its conceptualisation. She has been the driving force in making BrainBaazi and BingoBaazi the most popular and technologically advanced live video gameshow platforms in India.”

    “Nidhi brings with her a sharp strategic mind and a keen entrepreneurial spirit. She will be a tremendous asset for all our businesses in identifying new avenues of growth and creating innovative, technology-enabled solutions. To begin with, she will start her entrepreneurial journey within TIL with TimesPoints,” Sinha added.

    Sinha concluded by saying, “Both Dipti and Nidhi are proven leaders and entrepreneurs who have started and scaled up digital businesses successfully. They will be pivotal in driving Times Internet’s vision of shaping and defining how internet-based services get consumed and delivered in India.”

    Prior to joining Times Internet, Nidhi was the founder and CEO of Kaaryah, a disruptive women’s apparel brand on the cusp of technology, data, and design. She has also worked in the corporate strategy teams at Honeywell International and Bain and Co, with experience across diverse industries including aerospace and defence, telecom, FMCG, and education.

  • TIL launches BrainBaazi, a live gaming and entertainment show on mobile

    TIL launches BrainBaazi, a live gaming and entertainment show on mobile

    Times Internet, India’s largest digital products company, announced the launch of its interactive live gaming and entertainment show – ‘BrainBaazi’. The show follows on the heels of Times Internet’s digital strategy and reimagines live video entertainment. Audience participation is facilitated through a downloadable app, currently made available on the Play Store for android devices.

    “At Times Internet, we think digital-first, and we wanted to reimagine what mobile video entertainment could be. And, so we built BrainBaazi, a completely new format for video entertainment. It’s a live trivia show, with real participation from the people who watch it. It’s engaging, exciting, and the thrill isn’t just watching someone else, but actually being in the show, as someone with a chance to truly win.

    We’ve built BrainBaazi to scale, using the latest and strongest technologies. We have carefully put together a stack of codecs along with proprietary handling of cues and quiz payloads to ensure realtime delivery of video and questions to millions of users with high diversity in devices and bandwidth. 

    Today, we’re excited to bring this to a wider audience. Our hope is to see this become the first true primetime show for millenials, with a reach that is competitive with television, and the engagement of an immersive digital product.

    BrainBaazi is built for India with a deep understanding of the nuances of its consumers and the infrastructure. It’s a major technical challenge to be able to have a real-time, responsive, live show at that scale, everyday, and we’re excited to put our platforms to the test”- said Gautam Sinha, CEO, TIL.

  • Nestle to fund SilverPush & IotPot pilots, ad:tech concludes

    MUMBAI: ad:tech, one of the largest digital marketing event, concluded its 7th edition of Digital Marketing & Advertising Conference & Exhibition in India at Gurgaon.

    ad:tech 2017 had keynotes from industry veterans and enlightening sessions for the adverting marketing community. The event witnessed a large footfall which included exhibitors, marketers, and industry leaders and an Innovation Zone with the latest disruptive technology in digital marketing.

    The second day of the action packed digital marketing event saw keynote from Times Internet’s Gautam Sinha on ‘Re-inventing digital engagement’ followed by GroupM’s Rob Norman who engaged the audience with a dynamic session on ‘Facebook and Google duopoly and the challengers to that’. These introductory keynotes were followed by spotlight sessions on topics like ‘Ecommerce companies as media platforms’, ‘Vernacular on Mobile’ and others.

    The second day concluded with the keynote by Bharat Anand, HBS Professor and author-The Content Trap who shared his insights on ‘Reflection of marketing in a digital age’.

    SilverPush and IotPot walked away with the coveted ‘The Next Big Thing’ title along with a fully-funded pilot with Nestlé. This year ad:tech brought its global initiative ‘The Next Big Thing’ to India in partnership with Nestlé India with the aim to build a platform that brings entrepreneurs and marketing leaders together and kick start collaborations. This proves to be a great platform for start-ups to prove their mettle by showcasing their indigenous ideas in front of Nestlé and digital media professionals and thereby walking away with a fully funded project.

    Comexposium India Country MD Jaswant Singh said, “The 7th edition brought together more than 100 companies from across the globe to exhibit what’s new and what’s next. Over the years ad:tech is developing as a coveted platform for the community to deliver content which is relevant in this fast changing dynamic industry.”

    This year’s event witnessed phenomenal additions of companies like IBM, Accenture, Gameloft, Taboola, GSK, SAP, Yes Bank, Maruti Suzuki and Pepsico India,

  • Times Internet appoints Rattan Chugh & Vivek Pandey in leadership roles

    MUMBAI: Looking to further consolidate its position as India’s leading digital product company, Times Internet, today, announced the addition of two experienced and proven corporate leaders to their senior management team. Rattan Chugh comes in as the new chief people’s officer from Standard Chartered, while Vivek Pandey joins in from the Tata Group as the vice president of growth and analytics.

    Rattan Chugh, who earlier held the role of executive vice president & head of Global HR Shared Services at Standard Chartered Bank, has over 25 years of experience with diverse companies ranging from leading multinationals to startups. He will be at the forefront of the people strategy at Times Internet. The former Country Head for Fidelity Investments in India, also founded Cornerstone Portfolio Services.

    Vivek Pandey, a published author of books and research papers, has held leadership positions across marketing, business, analytics and product development in large corporates like Tata group, Times Group and MakeMyTrip. Vivek will be responsible for Growth marketing and analytics functions for the company.

    Times Internet CEO Gautam Sinha said, “At this critical juncture in our trajectory, where we are set out to make Times Internet stronger than ever before.”

    “Rattan’s career journey and aspirations are in complete alignment with the vision that we have for Times Internet. It is this alignment of purpose and perspective, that gives us the confidence in his anchoring of the most important aspect of our strategy – our People.”

    “Vivek’s experience in leadership positions across marketing, business, analytics and product development will be of immense benefit for Times Internet. With Times’ resources and their proven ability to lead, we are well positioned to continue to lead this digital revolution in India.”