From India to the U.S.: The global push to transform broadband

On this episode of Connected Nation, we chat about a new "attraction" at the Connected America Conference - an India pavilion. Find out why companies from the other side of the globe were here to talk American connectivity. 

Recommended links: 

Hardik Soni LinkedIn

Nav Wireless Technologies

Ravi Joni LinkedIn

Unified Reach

Transcript

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Jessica Denson (00:05):
This is Connected Nation, an award-winning podcast focused on all things broadband. From closing the digital divide to improving your internet speeds, we talk technology topics that impact all of us, our families, and our neighborhoods. 

On this episode of Connected Nation, I talk about a first that's never happened at Connected America before. There's an India pavilion. Find out why companies from around the globe are coming here to talk American connectivity. 

I'm Jessica Denson, and this is Connected Nation. I'm at Connected America taking place in Dallas, Texas, and this year they have something that's very unique. It's the first time they've had an India pavilion. And I have asked Hardik Sony, who is with Nav Wireless, to talk with me about his company and what you guys do. Uh, welcome, Hardik. 

Hardik Soni (00:56):
Yeah, thank you. <laugh> 

Jessica Denson (00:58):
Thank you for joining me. I know I kind of just asked out of the blue. Um, talk about what, uh, Nav Wireless does. 

Hardik Soni (01:04):
All right. So, uh, we are into, uh, communications. We design a light based systems. Having said that, we are an optical wireless communication technology provider. We manufacture a light based company systems. Mm-hmm. We provide a product to telecoms. We provide to, uh, product, our product to all broadband connections, iSpace, system integrators. Mm-hmm. So, largely, it is, uh, optical communication, but without fiber, it's called optical wireless communication. Uh-huh. That's known in the market called light fidelity, Li-Fi and free space optics. 

Jessica Denson (01:37):
And what is your pr- footprint in the, in the global market? 

Hardik Soni (01:41):
Yeah, so we, we have an office in, uh, US, just, we just established our office in US, and we have supplied our production in Australia, New Zealand, and in Europe as well. So- 

Jessica Denson (01:52):
Uh-huh. Yeah. So in multiple countries then? Yes. Yeah. Yeah. And you've just opened the offices in the US, you said? 

Hardik Soni (01:58):
We just opened our office in US last month. Mm-hmm. Yeah. 

Jessica Denson (02:02):
And what are you hoping, what do you hope to do in your perfect world here in the US market? <laugh> 

Hardik Soni (02:07):
I see that, you know, uh, based on the terrestrial, uh, landscape that of US has, is require lots of connectivities, right? So they require lots of fiber to get roll out to connect all of remote locations or in develop cities like, you know, Delaware. To roll out a communication is 5G 60 signals, they require new fibers to get installed, right? So it's recall lots of time, lots of money to be there. And I see that it's a great opportunity for us to see this, that we can replace optical fiber cable to go into wireless domain using optical channels straight away. Uh-huh. And they can quickly roll out 5G, 6G telecom signals, and they can also roll out the unconnected areas to be connected using all technology in a, in a much, uh, faster way. Uh-huh. So I see that the landscape that we hear in US is quite big, so, and there are lots of areas which is required to get connected right.

(03:03)
So we can definitely use our product over here. 

Jessica Denson (03:05):
So how does our landscape, our, our, our broadband landscape is what I mean, um, compared to some other markets that you guys ha- ha- are done work in? 

Hardik Soni (03:15):
I mean, uh, every countries are looking for a connectivity to the rural areas or tribal areas, right? Uh-huh. And those areas are required high speed internet data. 

Jessica Denson (03:26):
Uh-huh. 

Hardik Soni (03:26):
And I see that, uh, the same that in India as well is happening in US as well. So- Uh-huh. We see that this technology that what we have can provide a faster connectivity and can connect all the rural areas and tribal areas to get connected with the like fiber like speed- 

Jessica Denson (03:42):
Uh-huh. ... 

Hardik Soni (03:43):
But in wildest of yeah. 

Jessica Denson (03:44):
Gotcha. So this is the first year there's been an India pavilion. Uh, why do you think there has been s- is it just suddenly there's an interest or that there has always been an interest in coming into the market and it's just kind of been a tipping point? 

Hardik Soni (03:58):
I mean, uh, being in an India side that, uh, the government of India is largely supporting those, uh, new technology companies in India- mm-hmm. ... and they wanted that the technology should go out of India to go on the market as well. And that's the reason that India prevalent is available right now from the government of India and then they are supporting us to promote and produce and then implement our technology to US market, yes. So this is a large and good platform for us to demonstrate the technology as Indian pavilion- Uh-huh. ... and as Indian company to make lots of, uh, you know, benefit to the US, uh, people over here. 

Jessica Denson (04:34):
Uh-huh <affirmative>. So, uh, talk a little bit about the Indian market specifically. Is that where you guys were started or is it somewhere else? 

Hardik Soni (04:45):
In India, we are already commercialize this technology on a larger scale. Mm-hmm. So, yeah, so we, with the market, Indian market is already established. Uh-huh <affirmative>. So now we are going out of wind and that's why we are here in US. 

Jessica Denson (04:56):
Gotcha, gotcha. So what is your role with the company? 

Hardik Soni (04:59):
I'm looking after all technical development. I'm a co-founder 

Jessica Denson (05:03):
And a Hardik Soni (05:03):

Technical director of this company. 

Jessica Denson (05:05):
And talk a little about yourself. What's your background? 

Hardik Soni (05:08):
Yeah. So I did my electronics and communications, I did my masters, I did my PhD in 

Jessica Denson (05:13):
The photonic 

Hardik Soni (05:13):
Side, yeah, 

Jessica Denson (05:15):
So. So are you, have you always just been drawn to technology? What made you do that? <laugh> 

Hardik Soni (05:20):
Yeah, I mean, being in a, being in a, uh, technology domain, I wanted to innovate something which is going to be largely benefit all the sort of the, uh, in, in, in application side, so yeah. 

Jessica Denson (05:31):
Yeah. We 

Hardik Soni (05:31):
Love to do innovations. 

Jessica Denson (05:33):
So having a PhD <laugh> in that, you don't see that very often. What, what made you do that? 

Hardik Soni (05:39):
I mean, you know, you always see that, uh, the existing technology which has some bottleneck, right? So- 

Jessica Denson (05:46):
Uh-huh 

Hardik Soni (05:47):
<affirmative>. When I was pursuing my masters, I was aware about that the world is moving towards to faster data, high data rate, right? Having the call, uh, quantum to be get implemented. Uh-huh <affirmative>. In that ecosystem, they require a new technology to incorporate and can travel the data on the quantum side. And that's the reason that, you know, we thought it is, it's good to go to design something, uh, new in this particular space which is going to be demanded in the future. Uh-huh 

Jessica Denson (06:13):
<affirmative>. That's 

Hardik Soni (06:13):
Why we are here with this technology. 

Jessica Denson (06:16):
So I can't leave you without talking about AI riht now and how that's impacting not just the US but global markets completely. What is your company's position on it and what's your position on AI?

Hardik Soni (06:30):
I believe, you know, uh, AI is largely, you know, um, making lots of science, uh, and they require lots of data to be get connected to each other so that the engine can work automation. 

Jessica Denson (06:43):
Uh-huh 

Hardik Soni (06:43):
<affirmative> And what, where we play a role at, uh, all these data centers, which has all informations available store required to talk to each other to generate and, uh, automated script. 

Jessica Denson (06:55):
Uh-huh 

Hardik Soni (06:56):
<affirmative>. And to have connectivity between all these data centers, they require low latency, higher bandwidth links to get connected and where we see a role of technology which can be connected with all the data center to make AI more effective, more, uh, faster and more quicker. 

Jessica Denson (07:13):
Uh-huh <affirmative>. Yeah. Um, how important do you think, you know, we're in a world that's very digital, that's online, how important is it to have events like this or to come to something like this and talk in person? 

Hardik Soni (07:25):
<laugh> I mean, you know, so we, we, we all are familiar with an optical communications in the fiber, right? Yeah. 

Jessica Denson (07:33):
So, 

Hardik Soni (07:34):
And the wireless domain, we always see that radio frequencies are already, you know, there in this space. So I see that later transition which is required from an existing technology to a newest technology and it takes their own time to get, to implement in larger scale. Uh-huh <affirmative>. So I see that transition really happening very fast with this kind of technology innovation that we have in place and I see it's going to be play a bigger role in the market. 

Jessica Denson (07:59):
Yeah. Yeah. Okay. So what do you hope for Nav wireless, what are you excited about for the future? What do you, where do you hope to be in five years? 

Hardik Soni (08:09):
I see that, you know, uh, we, we see a future that the next generations that we all are talking about are 6Z and all AI, all Quantum, they need our technology as a backhaul link. So I see it's a great future that we have in place because this is what is going to be look like the world is moving towards from RF to optical links and largely in a wireless domain, so yeah. 

Jessica Denson (08:33):
And have you had some good conversations already today on that, heading down that road? Yeah, 

Hardik Soni (08:38):
I mean, on the Connected America platform, we got lots of tractions now, we got lots of, uh, visitors at our booth- Uh-huh <affirmative> And we see that, you know, uh, quickly we'll be having, uh, some customers in US now. 

Jessica Denson (08:51):
Uh-huh 

Hardik Soni (08:52):
<affirmative> Yeah. 

Jessica Denson (08:52):
All right. Well, thank you so much. Thank you. I appreciate your time, Nardik. 

Hardik Soni (08:56):
Thank you. Thank you. 

Jessica Denson (08:59):
I am in the vendor hall at Connected America, and I just asked Ravi Jan, am I saying that right? Yes. Yes. To join me, he is in a new pavilion area that has never happened at Connected Am- America. It is the Indian Pavilion, as in from India. Um, Ravi, tell us about your company. It's called Unified Reach, is that right? 

Ravi Jain (09:20):
Yes. 

Jessica Denson (09:20):
Tell us about what you guys do. 

Ravi Jain (09:21):
So we are basically transforming the complete telecom, uh, across globe. Uh, our presence is India, Dubai, Singapore, and we are planning to start in US now. And, uh, this is basically for digitalization of telecom. Uh, we provide end to end solution like softwares for telecommunication and especially for the broadband. Mm-hmm. <affirmative>. Like we are doing, um, uh, financial services, communication platform, um, and taking to the depth of the Africa, um, where, you know, it's much needed for the rural areas. Mm-hmm. <affirmative>. And I've been very happy to be a part of Indian Pavilion and I've been associated with them for the last five years and it's really interesting to be part of the different globe and attending the sessions. 

Jessica Denson (10:03):
What is your role with the company? 

Ravi Jain (10:05):
Um, you can say I'm a strategist, like, you know, defining business, uh, interacting with the CXOs of the world and, uh, trying to figure out the new problem statements that are prevailing, uh, how we can assist or take it to the customer experience to the next level. Mm-hmm. <affirmative>. I've been associated with the telecom over 20 years now. Um, I've been working with Vodafone and, uh, bigger Opcos, uh, where I've learned a lot and, uh, yes, the, the technology is transforming. So I have worked on 2G, 3G, 4G, and 5G, and now been associated in India for the 6G part of it. So it's really interesting to work in all the dimensions and working with the society. 

Jessica Denson (10:43):
And your, the company, is it, it's global? 

Ravi Jain (10:45):
It's global. It's definitely global. Uh, we are the global companies, and our R&D center is in India, I'm the best, and, um, government is really assisting us. Uh, India Pavilion is also a part of g- government initiation, uh, which is taking us everywhere across globe where the events are happening, and interesting to be a part of it. Mm-hmm. 

Jessica Denson (11:04):
Is this your first time in Dallas, Texas? <laugh> 

Ravi Jain (11:06):
Uh, no, I've been a part before. I've been on and off because I was associated with organizations, uh, where headquarters like Mavenir is here. So I have come here before twice and on Oracle as well. Mm-hmm. So I've been a part of Oracle as well. So yes, it's, it's a, it's a nice place to be. 

Jessica Denson (11:22):
So what about the company? Does it have any kind of a US footprint yet or is that what you're trying to make happen? 

Ravi Jain (11:28):
No, this is the first time. So we are trying to get a new footprint in, uh, in US. Mm-hmm. Um, I've been talking to multiple partners and channel partners here, and they are really excited to see the portfolio that we carry, and, uh, we can do wonders moving further. 

Jessica Denson (11:41):
Mm-hmm. Well, what do you think that your company can really offer here that we don't have? 

Ravi Jain (11:46):
Uh, I think it is, uh, the consolidation and, uh, everything in one platform. That's what we are offering. Uh, the smaller players really are excited to have everything in the, in the same place. 

Jessica Denson (11:57):
Yeah. Um, 

Ravi Jain (11:58):
Uh, we are very agile so that, you know, uh, any new changes we are not afraid of because that's what, uh, you know, the nursery is transforming to. Uh-huh <affirmative>. And, and also the AI that is coming on top of it, it's really optimizing the cost. I think telecom needs optimization and cost and we are the, one of the leaders to do that, assist the companies to accelerate with us. 

Jessica Denson (12:19):
Awesome. Well, um, I would be interested, and I think my audience would too, in hearing a little bit about India and its broadband, um, landscape, obviously a bigger population in a smaller area. Talk about some of the, what you guys do there and the challenges of broadband there. 

Ravi Jain (12:36):
Um, I think, uh, we have come, come much ahead of the global footprints. Like what I say is that, uh, we are around 150 koros of population, which is, uh, very big footprints. And in terms of excelling, like we have all the use cases that go, global footprints have. Mm-hmm. We have the biggest consumption of data across globe. So we are the leaders in that. Mm-hmm. So the platforms are really big. Uh, uh, Reliance Geo, Airtel, they are the big players that are really transforming the digital journey- Uh-huh. ... and it's really interesting because serving so, such a big population, bigger footprints, and growing to the last mile, like, uh, we have different right? You know, uh, we are going every hook and corner of the world of India basically and then that's really good to see and the con- consumption is really going higher.

(13:26)
So, uh, diversify, we are really good, we are good brains, uh, in software, and that's what I think the world needs today. 

Jessica Denson (13:33):
So, um, you, from your accent and from where you're from, I take it you, you grew up in India? 

Ravi Jain (13:38):
Yeah, I grew up in India. 

Jessica Denson (13:39):
Talk about what it, what, where and, um, what your background is. Uh, 

Ravi Jain (13:43):
I'm by birth, uh, not by birth, but I've been grown and studied in India- Uh-huh <affirmative>. ... uh, uh, the ubi Institute of communication and electronics. So, uh, that's, that's a B-tech degree basically and I'm carrying it forward to enhance it in, uh, in engineering only. So, uh, after learning over a period of time, the telecommunication, I, I thought of starting my own company. So here I am with my own company, own brand, and to give India a bigger footprint globally, that's what my, I'm looking forward for. 

Jessica Denson (14:14):
That's exciting. So what do people get right and wrong about India? <laugh> 

Ravi Jain (14:20):
I think both things are, you know, uh, we are making a mark with, uh, our prime minister- Uh-huh 

Jessica Denson (14:26):
<affirmative>. 

Ravi Jain (14:26):
... is very popular across globe. I think we are, uh, that's a good path and, uh, I think I can only say about the good paths that we have. Yeah. I don't think so. We are going wrong anywhere. We had good relationship globally. Mm-hmm. <affirmative>. We are announcing our footprint, uh, politically and, you know, uh, in the situations like this, we are, India is doing great, so far sustaining the global crisis we are looking across. 

Jessica Denson (14:49):
So, uh, for India, is it, is, would you, is much of the population pretty tech savvy or is that still something that's, that's working? There 

Ravi Jain (14:57):
Needs to be some business. It's very, very tech savvy, you know? The, the acceleration that we are getting from the governments, the age they are putting in, in the technology, like in, I think, um, uh, the whole globe is moving towards, uh, automation, uh, like automatic vehicles, drones, uh, all those things. India is very, very tech savvy, you know, the brains that we are, the competition we have because we have a, we have a large population, right? 

Jessica Denson (15:20):
Uh-huh 

Ravi Jain (15:20):
affirmative> That's why the competition is very, very high, okay? And the education level is really good in India so that it gives the, it give the, you know, the base for people to learn and grow and compete very hard and globally. So, and you can see that all the bigger MNCs globally have Indian brains into it, right? Mm-hmm. <affirmative>. We are making a mark in all the global MSCs across globe. Yeah. So I think we are really, really competitive across globe. 

Jessica Denson (15:46):
Um, the big talk in the US right now is of course around AI. I imagine it's the same other places. Is that something that India's looking at as well? 

Ravi Jain (15:56):
Yes, because we are contributing in all the, all the, you know, uh, softwares, the AI. Mm-hmm. <affirmative>. And I think AI is more towards consumption and the data sets. So India is one of the biggest market for the, uh, for the data sets, right? You know, you need, uh, people to use it. And I think India is one of the major consumer of AI and giving, uh, the world the data set which they can mature on. Mm-hmm. <affirmative>. So that's very important. That's a crucial role because until unless you use it, you are not going to enhance it. Yeah. 

Jessica Denson (16:27):
And Ravi Jain (16:28):

For use, you need the people, right? And, and for that, India is the right market. 

Jessica Denson (16:32):
What, what do you, in your opinion, how do you see AI evolving or moving forward? 

Ravi Jain (16:38):
So from my perspective, AI is really good because it is fast-tracking. Like what you can't envisage or, so you previously used to take time to envisage and, uh, spend a lot of time that how the output will be, but the tools that are coming in place will, it's shortening the time and I don't think so it is disrupting, um, the humans in any sense. They are not decreasing the value of humans. Uh-huh <affirmative>. Uh, that will be very much intact from my perspective, but it is giving you more, uh, you can fast track it, but you can't replace, uh, people out of it, you know? Right. That's what I'm saying. There's so many. You can optimize. So it's just the optimization of it, not the, you know, removing certain things because at the end we are the brains, right? Uh-huh <affirmative>. So brain can't be removed, right?

Jessica Denson (17:21):
Yeah. Is, are there any, any AI platforms that you're excited about that you really think are going the right direction or for ... 

Ravi Jain (17:29):
You know, I think AI is not new. We were, we were doing it like, you know, it's the software that, uh, you know, giving, uh, it's a consolidation of the softwares that's happening, right? Uh-huh <affirmative>. AI was from day one, right? It's, it, it can be an Excel or it can be a software. Uh, it's just that you're automating to a next level, okay? And you're putting more processor. I think when you get more processing speeds, you can analyze faster. 

Jessica Denson (17:55):
Yeah. 

Ravi Jain (17:56):
Right? And quicker and in the right direction. So you don't wait for the output. So previously the super computers were very big. Now they, they become small because you have most, more, uh, you know, processing speeds are there, right? And that's give the edge to it. Uh, but otherwise we are the same people, things are not going to change, but improvise, that's it. 

Jessica Denson (18:15):
Yeah, that makes sense. Uh, so for, for your company, uh, have you had some good conversations so far? I know it's still early in the co- in the conference. 

Ravi Jain (18:23):
No, people ... So, you know, all events are like, you know, you always get good leads to connect, to share the mindset, to share what peers are doing, uh, to improvise yourself, and that's the takeaway of all the events that I attend, right? And, uh, yes, it started. We, we got the footfall, and it's really good to be 

Jessica Denson (18:40):
Here. So what do you hope is in the future for your company and what you're doing? 

Ravi Jain (18:45):
I think we did, uh, great last year, and we are going to continue excelling it, and that's what I'm looking forward for. We, we are really, uh, I think you can say that we are really, really good start last year. I started last year and this really gave me a good traction for me in the last year and looking forward for the same acceleration this year. 

Jessica Denson (19:03):
All right. Well, Ravi, thank you for joining me. I really appreciate your time. 

Ravi Jain (19:07):
And I really appreciate your time and your conversation. 

Jessica Denson (19:10):
Yeah. 

Ravi Jain (19:10):
And nice talking to you. 

Jessica Denson (19:11):
Nice talking to you. 

Ravi Jain (19:12):
Yeah. Thank you. 

Jessica Denson (19:21):
On future episodes of Connected National, we'll bring you more details from Connected America taking place in Dallas, Texas. Until then, I'm Jessica Denson, and this is Connected Nation.