I was a co-founder of a startup during the dot com boom. I was 28 at that time, and I was considered old to be a founder, because the world, and even India was awash with folks in their early twenties kicking off startups with gusto.
My innings as a startup founder came almost a decade later. I was about 37 when I started the firm Energy Alternatives India, a cleantech consulting firm.
This time round. I was considered a bit young to be a founder of a company in the sector, as this sector was full of founders and entrepreneurs who were basically veterans from energy and environment fields - with some well into their sixties!
Talk of irony.
Is age (and the consequent experience) having on your side assets for the climate tech startup sector? Conversely, is youth (and the consequent inexperience & immaturity) a liability?
The answer to the first question is a very likely YES, but I'm not sure about the second.
Here's a video interview I did with Dr Sivaram, a co-founder of Proklean Tech, a startup in which all the founders were over fifty when they founded it. The video should be able to fairly settle the answer for the first question.
