Vinod Muthukrishnan

@cisco_brad @zkerravala @Cisco Omnichannel, secure and funny 😃

@zkerravala @vinod_cc Its like you have a @Cisco #AIAgent with you.

It seems @vinod_cc is stalking me on my flight! #CiscoLive

There are some moments in life that feel like they’ve waited years to happen. Meeting @kanwal946 felt like one of them. For over two decades, I’ve been building communities for entrepreneurs. First around product founders, then SaaS, and now AI. Over time, you realise community building is not about events or scale. It’s about staying committed to belief. Year after year. Founder after founder. Perhaps that’s why this meeting felt deeply personal. We spent hours talking about founders, ecosystems, institutions, and what it takes to build something that lasts beyond individuals. What stayed with me most was his curiosity. Despite everything he has achieved, Kanwal was genuinely interested in our journey at @AIBoomi. He asked thoughtful questions about sustainability, learnings, and how communities evolve over time. These conversations unfolded at @vinod_cc’s home in Pleasanton. Vinod is, hands down, one of the finest hosts you’ll find in the ecosystem. Along with hosting around 60 founders that evening, he created the kind of space where conversations naturally became meaningful. There was a fireside conversation, stories from the early days of Indian technology, and reflections on how TiE became a global institution. As a community builder, parts of the evening felt surreal. In many ways, what Kanwal built through TiE is what many of us aspire to build for the next generation of founders. Spaces where entrepreneurs feel less alone. Spaces that outlive us. But the moment that stayed with me the most was a quiet one. When he signed his book for me, I instinctively folded my hands and said, “Namaste.” For a brief second, I wasn’t a founder, operator, or community builder. Just an admirer meeting someone who helped shape the entrepreneurial journey of an entire generation. Some moments don’t need celebration. They simply remain etched in your heart forever.

Forward deployed engineers, or equivalent, are about to become one of the most in-demand jobs in tech. And one of the most important functions for AI rollouts. Deploying agents is far more technical of a task than most people realize, often far more involved than deploying software. Software generally works the same way every time, and generally for the past few decades has been updated versions of an existing technology or concept (which basically means easier for the enterprise to update their workflows on a newer system). With agents, you’re actually deploying the equivalent of work output within the enterprise. The customer is effectively using you as a professional services provider for a task, which they expect to get solved nearly end-to-end now. This means you need to actually deeply understand the business process as a vendor, and get the customer from the current to the end state seamlessly. Companies need help figuring out which models will work best for their workflows, they need extensive evals setup often, they need change management support for workflows, they need to get their data setup for the agents, and constant tuning of the agentic system for their process. Massive role in tech now. And another example of the kind of highly technical work that AI is creating.

Are you really using AI to solve the human problems that matter most to your customers, or are you just jumping on the latest tech trend? In my conversation with Vinod Muthukrishnan, VP & GM of @Webex Customer Experience at Cisco, on Amazing Business Radio, we discussed why the best customer experience transformations start with identifying what your customers truly need. He talks about how AI is moving from a technology tool to a collaborative coworker that helps businesses personalize service, automate routine tasks, and close the customer experience gap. Plus, Shep and Vinod discuss why brands that go “all-in” on AI for customer support often end up reversing their decisions. Tune in! hyken.com/amazing-busine… #artificialintelligence #AI #customerexperience #CX @vinod_cc

Excited to further @Cisco’s strategic partnership with X.ai. What @elonmusk & team are doing there is nothing short of remarkable. cnbc.com/2026/01/06/elo…

Thrilled to have @kevinweil, CPO of OpenAI, join our @cisco Board of Directors! newsroom.cisco.com/c/r/newsroom/e…

The official aftermovie is here! 🎬 #SBAnnual25 brought together 1,300+ founders, VCs, CXOs & #SaaS + #AI leaders for 2.5 days of exchanging deep playbooks, real talk & lasting friendships. 🤝 Sponsors: @AvataarVC | @efficient_labs | @sprintoHQ | @xflowpay | @PaddleHQ | @qapita

Didn’t realize my laziness was actually hidden genius 😇😇😇

The world is built by those who build. Not by thinkers. Not by planners. Not by critics on the sidelines. By people who pick up the tools in front of them and start. Michelangelo didn’t debate the best way to sculpt David. He carved. The Wright brothers didn’t seek approval before attempting flight. They assembled wood and fabric and took off. James Watt didn’t theorize about steam power. He built an engine that rewrote the rules of industry. History doesn’t remember the committee that discussed change. It remembers the builders who made it happen. Builders don’t wait. They don’t stall for perfect conditions or guaranteed outcomes. They move forward, knowing that motion beats deliberation every time. Ideas are cheap. Execution is hard. But building... building is everything. Most people hesitate. They want certainty before they start. Builders know certainty is a mirage. The only way to find out what works is to make something real. The only way to create momentum is to take the first step. They work with what they have. The printing press wasn’t born out of endless research. Gutenberg repurposed a wine press and changed the course of knowledge. The first Apple computer wasn’t the result of a corporate strategy session. Jobs and Wozniak built it in a garage with borrowed parts. The path isn’t clear at the start. The plan will change. Setbacks will come. Builders don’t care. They adapt. They adjust. They push forward when others would stop. Most people spend their lives waiting. Builders spend their lives making. The future belongs to those who build.

Reaction to Donald Trump announcing 5 million Dollar #GoldCard

@ku1deep @sumanthr Aapke liye slot nahin poora calendar hai

@vinod_cc @sumanthr OK sir! give time slot. 😅

Noticed an interesting pattern among India’s VCs and angels while reflecting on my funding journey: All but one VC we pitched to passed on us. All but one angel we pitched to backed us! What does this tell you about the startup ecosystem?

.@saasboomi turns 6 today! 🤩 While our community has taken its route, I’ve also come a long way in the past six years. I’ve grown as a human being, a leader, and a colleague. I’ve unlearned patterns and developed a more positive mindset. I’ve overcome self-doubt and embraced new opportunities. Here's a quick read as a reflection of my thoughts >> saasboomi.org/saas/community… To many more years of journeying together! 💙 #Community #People #SaaS

@JohnTChambers @saasboomi Thank you for the wit, wisdom and warmth John ! The founders walked away incredibly energized and optimistic about the future.

What a great session at @saasboomi Caravan last week! It was an honor to share leadership lessons I have learned with the young startup founders in the audience & discuss my optimism for the future of US-India tech relations. Thanks @vinod_cc & team for having me.

Thank you @dkhare and @LightspeedIndia for supporting the @saasboomi movement ! Incredible evening of learning and connection

@ku1deep @saasboomi Thanks brother ! It was an amazing day

@vinod_cc @saasboomi Rock that room Vinni!!! 👏🏾👏🏾

And so it begins ! @saasboomi #caravan 2024 !!

We're having a captivating session with @JohnTChambers (CEO, @JC2Ventures | Chairman Emeritus, @Cisco), hosted by @vinod_cc (VP & COO - Webex Customer Experience, @Cisco).

We're thrilled to launch the third edition of Caravan at the Stanford Faculty Club, bringing together 200+ SaaS leaders, VCs, and investors! Get ready for exclusive insights on scaling SaaS in the US. Stay tuned for more! #SBCaravan24 #Startup #SaaS

Late-night hustle, coffee-fueled grind, and endless Slack pings—that’s the founder's life, right? Abhinav Shashank Co-founder & CEO of Innovaccer has lived it all! After a decade in healthcare tech, here's Abhi sharing why "amping it up" 24/7 isn’t always the answer. 👇 lnkd.in/gzMdzdAU Here’s to building a sustainable, impactful company—without the burnout! #Startup #Leadership #HealthcareTech