206.84.235.253 at 05:25, 4 June 2021

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{{Use dmy dates|date=February 2020}}
{{Use Indian English|date=April 2018}}
{{Infobox person
| name = Gururaj Deshpande
| image = Gururaj Deshpandey.jpg
| image_size =
| caption =
| birth_date =
| birth_place = [[Hubli]], [[Karnataka]], India
| nationality =
| occupation = Chairman of [[Sycamore Networks]], [[Sandstone Capital]], [[A123 Systems]], [[HiveFire]], [[Tejas Networks]]
| spouse = Jayshree Deshpande
| alma_mater = [[IIT Madras]] [[Queen's University at Kingston|Queen's University]]
| website = [http://www.sycamorenet.com/corporate/board.asp sycamorenet.com] [http://www.deshpandefoundation.org/About/our-story.html Deshpande foundation.org ]
| signature =
| parents =

}}

'''Gururaj Deshpande''' ('''"Desh" Deshpande''') is an [[Indian American]] [[venture capitalist]] and [[entrepreneur]], who is best known for co-founding the [[Chelmsford, MA]]-based internet equipment manufacturer [[Sycamore Networks]],<ref name=bo>[http://www.sycamorenet.com/corporate/board.asp Board of Directors] Sycamore Networks website.</ref> the Deshpande Center for Technological Innovation at [[MIT]] and the [[Deshpande Foundation]].<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://web.mit.edu/deshpandecenter/about.html|title=Deshpande Center for Technological Innovation| author=MIT}}</ref>

Presently,{{When|date=August 2018}} Deshpande is the Chairman of [[A123Systems]], [[Sycamore Networks]], [[Tejas Networks]], HiveFire, Sandstone Capital, Sparta Group,<ref name=co/> and sits on the Board of Airvana.<ref name=bo/><ref name=mi/>

Deshpande is a Life Member of the [[MIT Corporation]], the [[Board of Trustees]] of MIT,<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://web.mit.edu/corporation/members/Deshpande-G.html|title=Corporation Membership: Desh Deshpande HM|publisher=[[MIT Corporation]] website}}</ref> and sits on the board of the [[MIT School of Engineering]] Dean's Advisory Council (DAC).<ref>[https://engineering.mit.edu/about/leadership/deans-advisory-council/ "MIT School of Engineering Dean's Advisory Council"; Massachusetts Institute of Technology School of Engineering Dean's Advisory Council. Accessed Sept. 11, 2019.]</ref>

In July 2010, Deshpande was appointed by President [[Barack Obama]] to the Co-Chairmanship of the National Advisory Council on Innovation and Entrepreneurship, a group established to support the US President's innovation strategy.<ref name=co>{{Cite web|url=http://www.commerce.gov/news/press-releases/2010/07/13/locke-announces-national-advisory-council-innovation-and-entrepreneur|title=Locke Announces National Advisory Council on Innovation and Entrepreneurship Members|date=13 July 2010|publisher=United States Department of Commerce}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.siliconindia.com/shownews/Deshpande_on_Obama_panel_to_support_innovation_strategy-nid-69865-cid-1.html|title=Deshpande on Obama panel to support innovation strategy|date=20 July 2010|publisher=siliconindia news|accessdate=20 July 2010}}</ref>

==Early life and education==
Gururaj Deshpande was born in [[Hubli]], [[Karnataka]] in [[India]]. His father was a labor commissioner with the Indian government.<ref name=on>"[https://web.archive.org/web/20120317060627/http://jobs.oneindia.in/careerhub/profiles/gururaj.html Gururaj Deshpande - The billionaire next door]", OneIndia Jobs, as retrieved by the [[Wayback Machine]] on 17 March 2012.</ref>

He graduated with a [[Bachelor of Technology]] in [[Electrical Engineering]] from the [[Indian Institute of Technology Madras]]. He completed his [[PhD]] in [[Data Communications]] from [[Queen's Faculty of Engineering & Applied Science|Faculty of Engineering & Applied Science]] at [[Queen's University at Kingston|Queen's University]] in [[Ontario]], Canada and a Master of Electrical Engineering from the [[University of New Brunswick]] in [[Fredericton]], [[New Brunswick]], Canada.

==Career==
Deshpande started his career at [[Codex Corporation]], a [[Motorola]] subsidiary located in Ontario, Canada which manufactured [[modem]]s, before moving to the U.S. in 1984. Later, he co-founded Coral Networks, a router developer. He left the company prior to its sale in 1993 to SynOptics. He sold the company for $15 million.<ref>network world, Dec 1993{{Vague|date=August 2018}}</ref>

Deshpande knew Peter Brackett PhD, a professor of electrical engineering at Queen's university in Ontario for a few years in between industry positions. Brackett offered Deshpande a job at Codex. Brackett also sponsored him for Canadian residency.<ref>Chennai36, courtesy The Philanthropy Roundtable, 4 Feb 2014, (http://chennai36.iitm.ac.in/innovation-for-the-real-world/)</ref>

In 1990, Deshpande co-founded [[Cascade Communications]], whose products were important in routing the early internet, initially serving as its President and later Executive Vice President; he hired Dan Smith as CEO. He sold Cascade to [[Ascend Communications]] for $3.7 billion in 1997.<ref name=mi>{{Cite web|url=http://www.livemint.com/2009/12/18203315/Gururaj-Deshpande--The-serial.html| title= Gururaj Deshpande: The serial entrepreneur|date=18 December 2009|author= Venkatesha Babu|website=[[Mint (newspaper)|Mint]]}}</ref>

Subsequently, with the help of MIT researchers, he launched [[Sycamore Networks]] in 1998. Sycamore Networks went public in October 1999, and raised a market cap of $18 billion. With his 21% shareholding in hand, this IPO made Deshpande one of the wealthiest self-made businessmen in the world. In 2000, he was featured on the [[Forbes 400]] listing of Richest Americans.<ref name="fo">{{Cite web|url=https://www.forbes.com/finance/lists/54/2000/LIR.jhtml?passListId=54&passYear=2000&passListType=Person&datatype=Person&uniqueId=MK25 |title=Deshpande, Gururaj, E. on Forbes 400 |year=2000 |work=[[Forbes]] |url-status=dead |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20090814222148/http://www.forbes.com/finance/lists/54/2000/LIR.jhtml?passListId=54&passYear=2000&passListType=Person&datatype=Person&uniqueId=MK25 |archivedate=14 August 2009 }}</ref>

He is also Chairman of [[A123Systems]],<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://ir.a123systems.com/directors.cfm|title=Board of Directors|publisher=[[A123Systems]] website|access-date=20 July 2010|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101203110652/http://ir.a123systems.com/directors.cfm#|archive-date=3 December 2010|url-status=dead}}</ref> which manufactures high-power [[Lithium-ion battery|lithium-ion batteries]], which went on [[NASDAQ]] in October 2009, and raised $438 million and trading at a 50% premium on the day of listing.<ref name=mi/>

==Philanthropy==
Desh, along with his wife Jaishree, donated $20 million to launch the [[Deshpande Center for Technological Innovation]] (DCTI) at [[MIT]].<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://web.mit.edu/deshpandecenter/release_010202.html|title=MIT unveils new center supporting technological innovation in New England|date=3 January 2002|publisher=[[Deshpande Center for Technological Innovation]] website}}</ref>

In December 2010, the Deshpandes gave a $5 million pilot grant to start the '''[http://mvsandbox.org/ Merrimack Valley Sandbox]''' (later renamed to '''[http://eforall.org/ Entrepreneurship for All, or EforAll]''') in Lowell and Lawrence, Massachusetts. Since its inception, ''Entrepreneurship for All'' has helped thousands of entrepreneurs launch ventures which, in turn, improves the social and economic well-being of the entrepreneurs and their communities nationwide.

In September 2011, the Deshpande Foundation gave $2.5 million to the University of New Brunswick to launch the '''[http://www.ponddeshpande.ca/ Pond-Deshpande Centre for Innovation and Entrepreneurship (PDC]).''' Along with a $2.5 million gift from serial tech entrepreneur Gerry Pond, the PDC was tasked with the mandate of catalyzing more entrepreneurial activity in the province of New Brunswick both traditional market driven entrepreneurship and social mission driven entrepreneurship. Since its inception, the Pond-Deshpande Centre has worked with hundreds of emerging entrepreneurs in Atlantic Canada through early stage innovation grants, mentorship, new venture acceleration and the hosting of multiple conferences bringing thought leaders together from across North America.

Deshpande is also the Chairman of Akshaya Patra USA.<ref>http://www.indusbusinessjournal.com/ME2/Audiences/dirmod.asp?sid=&nm=&type=Publishing&mod=Publications%3A%3AArticle&mid=8F3A7027421841978F18BE895F87F791&tier=4&id=4D4F4B6BAF8A40BA8E003BA526E877F5&AudID=F1B696626A8943B7B50052A323677014 {{dead link|date=April 2018}}</ref>

==Awards and honors==
In 2013 he received the [[IEEE Ernst Weber Engineering Leadership Recognition|IEEE Ernst Weber Managerial Leadership Award]].

==Personal life==
He is married to Jaishree Deshpande ''[[née]]'' Kulkarni, who is the sister of [[Sudha Murthy]] (wife of [[Infosys]] founder [[Narayan Murthy]]) and [[Caltech]] astrophysicist [[Shrinivas Kulkarni]]. She is the co-founder of the [[Deshpande Center for Technological Innovation]] at MIT. The couple have two children and live in [[Chelmsford, Massachusetts]]. They also maintain a residence in their native Hubli, India.<ref name=mi/><ref name="fo"/>

==References==

{{Reflist}}

==External links==
* [http://www.sycamorenet.com/corporate/board.asp Board members at Sycamore Networks]

{{DEFAULTSORT:Deshpande, Gururaj}}

[[Category:Living people]]
[[Category:IIT Madras alumni]]
[[Category:Queen's University at Kingston alumni]]
[[Category:American businesspeople of Indian descent]]
[[Category:American people of Kannada descent]]
[[Category:People from Hubli]]
[[Category:Year of birth missing (living people)]]

Gururaj Deshpande - Revision history

206.84.235.253 at 05:25, 4 June 2021