Born on January 28, 1955, in Pune, Maharashtra, Vinod Khosla was raised in an upper-middle-class family with an army officer father. Despite no familial connections in business, Khosla was determined to carve out his own path. His inspiration came early when he learned about Intel’s founding and its immigrant founder. This ignited his desire to succeed in Silicon Valley.
Khosla's first entrepreneurial attempt was a soy milk venture aimed at aiding those without refrigeration in India. Despite its noble intention, the venture failed to take off, marking the first of several setbacks. His next venture, Data Dump, co-founded in 1981, also stumbled.
However, Khosla’s fortunes began to change when he co-founded Sun Microsystems in 1982 with Stanford classmates Scott McNealy and Andy Bechtolsheim. Under his leadership as the first CEO, Sun Microsystems grew rapidly, ultimately achieving Rs 8381 crore in annual sales within five years.
Khosla’s venture capital journey took off with Kleiner Perkins, where he played a pivotal role in successful investments such as Nexgen and Excite. His knack for identifying promising technologies was evident as he helped incubate Juniper Networks and Cerent Corporation, both of which yielded significant returns.
In 2004, Khosla launched Khosla Ventures to focus on innovative, socially impactful technologies. His firm became a major player in clean energy investments, supporting ventures like Impossible Foods and QuantumScape. Khosla's investments span diverse fields, including food delivery and fintech, with notable early stakes in Instacart and Stripe.
Today, Khosla Ventures manages around Rs 125726 crore, reflecting Khosla’s journey from failure to a formidable business empire. His 53-acre estate, valued at $40 million, symbolises his remarkable ascent. With an estimated net worth of Rs 62017 crore, Khosla is one of the richest IITians in the world, exemplifying how overcoming failure can lead to extraordinary success.
