Pranav is a VP, based in London, where he focuses on Growth investment opportunities across enterprise and consumer, with an interest in Bio and Health. He is responsible for sourcing, due diligence and providing ongoing support to investments at Series B and beyond.
Pranav Vangala
Pranav is a VP, based in London, where he focuses on Growth investment opportunities across enterprise and consumer, with an interest in Bio and Health. He is responsible for sourcing, due diligence and providing ongoing support to investments at Series B and beyond.
I love working with founders who are curious and determined in equal parts - willing to leave their comfort zone to make a difference. Founders with diverse skill sets, and the ability to channel their experiences into building exceptional teams and transformative businesses. A quote emblazoned on my childhood classroom door springs to mind: 'If you want to be interesting, be interested!'
Moving between continents shaped me.
I was born in India, lived in Singapore for a few years then moved to the UK for most of my schooling. I could see how much my horizons had expanded as a result of moving around, so when the time came I chose to leave my sleepy suburb for university in the US. I proceeded to spend the next nine years there, living in five different cities, before moving back home to London.
Technology can solve human problems everywhere.
I’ve been fascinated by medicine and technology since I was a child. Growing up in a household of doctors and engineers, I saw first-hand how these two fields were able to foster dynamic and scalable progress across very different populations. For example, when I was in school I worked for a startup in India that made pregnancy tests using locally spun silk cloth for rural communities. Later, they leveraged the same technology to enter the US market, by developing an FDA-approved lab-on-a-chip for blood-protein diagnostics.
A business is a lot more than a great idea.
As an undergrad I worked with a team of peers building a ‘smart insole’ for running shoes that provided real time feedback on the user’s running style as well as the shoe’s lifespan. The prototype attracted positive feedback but we learned some hard lessons about making it commercially viable. This led me to seek out a job in management consulting after graduation, to better understand what contributes to building exceptional companies and teams.
I deeply value education and learning.
I love chatting with, and learning from, people who have consciously chosen a more arduous path in order to expand their knowledge - whatever that may be. I originally chose to study an MBA program, but later added on an MS in Engineering. I had a lot of fun doing more Maths than I expected, but also gained a lot of useful knowledge about commercialising and operationalising technological innovations.
I love to travel - ideally somewhere warm, with amazing food and a racing circuit.
When possible, I try to plan my holidays around great meals and the Formula One calendar. When those activities aren’t on offer, you’ll either find me behind my camera trying to capture some of the local wildlife, or diving into a good book. After a long run of non-fiction I’m enjoying novels again, especially by diasporic writers. Always open to recommendations though!
