India Internet Day: Of guerrilla warfare and barbarians at the gate

Most Indian start-ups and e-commerce are largely funded by foreign investors

Carpet bombers, aggressors, barbarians at the gate — these are among the names by which global ecommerce majors Amazon, Uber and Alibaba were referred to on India Internet Day, hosting domestic new-economy companies on Friday. The event, organised by TiE Delhi NCR, witnessed a high-pitched demand for a “level-playing field” as well.

Prominent speakers included Ola co-founder Bhavish Aggarwal, MakeMyTrip’s Deep Kalra and Flipkart Chief Executive Officer Kalyan Krishnamurthy. 

While most Indian start-ups and ecommerce companies are funded largely by foreign investors, international firms in the space were missing at the event. US-based Amazon and Uber were part of the previous editions.