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Indian entrepreneur, industrialist, and philanthropist, Ratan Tata, dead at 86

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Re: Indian entrepreneur, industrialist, and philanthropist, Ratan Tata, dead at 86

#13
Arguably black-bar material. Outside view, it seems like he served a tenure atop a group comparable to Disney, in breadth, scale, and market share across many industries in India, as a magnate. Notably, in the period of massive telecom rollout in India.

  Largest wholly owned and most advanced subsea fibre network, carrying around 30% of the world’s internet routes
- Brave.com's Llama, sourced from Tata sites

Note "30% of the world’s internet routes" is BGP burden to other operators, but by the same token, a sign of widely distributed control of networks.

As an investor, "first Indian to buy a stake in Xiaomi" among dozens of startup investments. "Some senior executives from Xiaomi were quoted saying that they would seek Ratan Tata’s advice on how to expand globally."

As a philanthropist, perhaps larger still in relevance to seeding, supporting, & growing the hacker community, his philanthropy on US college campuses in tech, biotech & genetics, and scholarships, serve to support more bright, hungry, creative individuals to learn in the US.

Re: Indian entrepreneur, industrialist, and philanthropist, Ratan Tata, dead at 86

#14

[flagged]

You have a chance to speak eloquently or clearly against his life, his work, or his impacts. I'm curious to hear a contribution to conversation, but I find it easiest to guess a dislike the idea of very wealthy individuals.

Re: Indian entrepreneur, industrialist, and philanthropist, Ratan Tata, dead at 86

#16

People will talk about his different contribution to economy and philanthropy. However, my favorite is the story where he instructed his hotel employees to treat stray dogs well if they enter the premises. For a man of his wealth and power, to care about a stray dog truly speaks to his humble nature. RIP Sir, you were a crown jewel of the post independence India. https://m.economictimes.com/magazines/panache/ratan-ta…

I came here to comment about the same thing.

Re: Indian entrepreneur, industrialist, and philanthropist, Ratan Tata, dead at 86

#18

People will talk about his different contribution to economy and philanthropy. However, my favorite is the story where he instructed his hotel employees to treat stray dogs well if they enter the premises. For a man of his wealth and power, to care about a stray dog truly speaks to his humble nature. RIP Sir, you were a crown jewel of the post independence India. https://m.economictimes.com/magazines/panache/ratan-ta…

On one hand, stray dogs are a joy for many Indians. For many months the highlight of the day was going to a cafe at 10 pm in middle of work and throwing bones to the assembled dogs. On the other hand, they enter homes and kill babies, attack children and adults and carry rabies epidemics. Right thing to do is to prevent more strays from happening.

Re: Indian entrepreneur, industrialist, and philanthropist, Ratan Tata, dead at 86

#19
I don't think people outside India understand what Tata means. Who Ratan Tata was. He was not some random rich person who did some philanthropy. ~66% of everything that Tata companies make goes back to philanthropy and the people of India. And these days to people where Tata companies operates (I presume). To the TATAs, people are of primary importance. They are a behemoth of a group comparable to Samsung or other big companies/conglomorates.

They don't deceive, they don't put money over people. Because their mission IS to the people. You can buy a Tata product with a level of trust that no other brand can provide. Seeing TATA along with a product is more than enough. They are the best definition of capitalism I have ever come across.

This is why you don't see Ratan Tatas in billionaire's list or rich people's list.

Everything India is because of the Tatas. They single handledly is responsible for building India's foundations. Whether it is in Health, Nuclear, Tech or anywhere. You will see Tata's presence everywhere.

I genuinely shed a tear today morning because of his passing. And I am not sure I would do the same for any other business man.

Today is indeed a sad day. May he rest in peace.

Re: Indian entrepreneur, industrialist, and philanthropist, Ratan Tata, dead at 86

#20
post #13

Arguably black-bar material. Outside view, it seems like he served a tenure atop a group comparable to Disney, in breadth, scale, and market share across many industries in India, as a magnate. Notably, in the period of massive telecom rollout in India. Largest wholly owned and most advanced subsea fibre network, carrying around 30% of the world’s internet routes - Brave.com's Llama, sourced from Tata sites Note "30%…

I'm finding it really tough to understand your comment across the flipflopping of formats.

Here’s a clearer and more concise version of your text:

Comment from mcint on HN:

From an external perspective, he can be viewed as a magnate who led a group comparable to Disney in terms of breadth, scale, and market share across multiple industries in India. His leadership was particularly notable during the massive telecom rollout in the country.

He oversaw the largest wholly owned and most advanced subsea fiber network, responsible for carrying around 30% of the world’s internet routes (source: Brave.com’s Llama, via Tata). While the "30% of the world’s internet routes" signifies a burden on BGP for other operators, it also highlights the distributed control of global networks.

As an investor, he was the first Indian to acquire a stake in Xiaomi, among many other startup investments. Some Xiaomi executives even noted that they sought Ratan Tata’s advice on global expansion.

As a philanthropist, his contributions are even more impactful. He has supported the hacker community, donated to US college campuses in tech, biotech, and genetics, and funded scholarships to foster talented, driven individuals who come to learn in the US.

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