Pankaj Chowdhry's AxoNet is Ready to take Silicon Valley by Storm

By NINA WILFRED

INDIA POST NEWS BUREAU

FREMONT, CA: "The great thing about Silicon Valley is that if you are young it gives you a chance," says Pankaj Chowdhry, President and CEO of his own start-up, AxoNet Technologies. "No idea is too crazy for Silicon Valley. The breadth of knowledge here is incredible. There is always room for more and better as the market is so big."

Chowdhry got his chance. The Mountain View-based AxoNet has entered the hot market of ethernet switching and its initial product, an 8 port switch, has just begun limited quantity shipping. "What makes AxoNet unique," says Chowdhry, "is that we found a way to use existing technology to build ethernet switches--the fasted growing segment of the network market. We used existing microprocessors and asics in a more novel way to solve existing problems. We did not have to go out and invent new technology."

AxoNet's switches preserve the present infrastructure of network cards and cabling--and offer an 800 percent increase in performance. Because most companies cannot implement a switched network all the way to the desktop, they relegate the technology to a backbone or workgroup situation. AxoNet's switches allow switching to the desktop with a new class of switches by transferring the workgroup switch to the desktop switch. AxoNet's switches will plug and play into existing networks, thereby lowering costs.

AxoNet's competitive pricing makes its product affordable--priced at less than $500 while market rival 3COM's comparable switch is a whopping $2,798.

How did a 23-year-old get to be President and CEO of a company poised on the brink of making it big in Silicon Valley? The answer is hard work, an unflinching vision, an ability to attract top people, and the willingness to take risk.

It all began at Olympian Graphics, a printing press in Oakland, where Chowdhry started out as a data processor and worked his way up to Vice President of Information Systems. Along the way, he overhauled their entire information system. "There was no one to do it. I did it all," he says of his efforts. "No one had been able to implement a more efficient method of doing things. We were just traipsing along." Chowdhry's work saved Olympian Graphics money and time. It also taught him a lot about networking and the importance of using existing technology to improve on something. Meanwhile, to his parents' horror, he dropped out of San Jose State University where he was studying computer science. In September 1996 he left his well-paying job at Olympian Graphics to found AxoNet Technologies.

Chowdhry's vision prevailed and he was able to get financial backing to set his company up. His vision and knowledge impressed some big names in the Valley enough to take a bet on his company and come work for him. David Beardsley, Vice President Domestic Sales, left his job at Cisco Systems and Norma Odenweller, Vice President International Sales, previous work experience included stints at IBM, Sun Microsystems, 3COM, as well as several start-ups. Sasha Dubrovsky, worked with Chowdhry at Olympian Graphics has joined as Executive Vice President.

Beardsley told India Post that he believed AxoNet had the potential to become a multi-million dollar company in three years. Asked why he joined AxoNet, Beardsley replied: "Pankaj and Sasha are two of the brightest men I have met in a long time. What they lack in experience they make up in talent and knowledge. They both have good personalities and are able to deal with people. They are both multidimensional and are able to understand the marketing and the engineering aspect."

Says Chowdhry, "Only in Silicon Valley can a 23-year-old run a company like this. I am fortunate that all these people signed on to my vision."

Chowdhry's excitement is evident. He believes he is where he is today because of his willingness to accept risk in life. "I really like to win. I am always competitive. Every morning there is a different hurdle to cross. I think our biggest hurdle will be market acceptance. We will continue to invent new products. We want small and medium size companies to use new technology enabling companies to use our switching technology to be more efficient. We want to be the market leader in 24 port and less networking environment," he says.

Chowdhry, who was born in New Delhi, grew up in Louisiana and California. He says his parents have always been supportive of his endeavors, and instilled in him a drive for perfection, to strive to be the best and to never accept anything less. Probably the only CEO to live at home with his parents, Chowdhry says he does it to stay alive. "I work 20 hours a day. When I go home there is food!"

Chowdhry's future plans include more start-ups, working with protein-based computing and wireless networking.

"I always knew I would work with start-ups" says Chowdhry. I just didn't think it would happen this soon."

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