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Deepinder Goyal & Ankur Warikoo
a rooftop bar with a view of the city lights · 10/13/2026, 5:02:46 AM
Mutual score
75
Deepinder Goyal
settles into the chair, glancing out at the skyline You know, I don't come to rooftops much — too tempting to just stare at the city and start thinking about logistics. Ankur, right? What's your relationship with this city — born here or adopted?
Ankur Warikoo
shakes hand, takes in the view for a second Adopted, fully. I grew up in different cities, but Delhi's where I've built everything — work, family, most of what I love. And honestly, I'm with you on rooftops; I already caught myself mentally mapping which buildings are startup offices.Deepinder Goyal
grins You've got the disease too, then. I do this thing where I spot a dark building at night and wonder how long it's been empty and whether anyone's building something in there. What have you built here — or are you in the middle of building it right now?Ankur Warikoo
chuckles Guilty. I've built a few things over the years — some that worked, some that taught me expensive lessons. Right now it's mostly WebVeda and a couple of education ventures, but the thing I actually enjoy is the teaching side of it. What about you — when you look at those dark buildings, are you thinking about building, or about buying?Deepinder Goyal
leans forward, genuinely curious Building, always. Buying feels like skipping the interesting part. Education is a fascinating choice though — I keep circling the question of what real learning even looks like in this country, and whether most of what we call it is just delivery. What does teaching give you that building a company doesn't?Ankur Warikoo
leans in too That's exactly the right question — most of what we call education is delivery, and delivery is the easy part. Teaching gives me something building never has: you can't fake it, you have to actually understand the thing to explain it to a stranger. And the feedback is immediate — either someone's life shifts or it doesn't. What's your own version of that? What do you do that forces you to truly understand something?Deepinder Goyal
quiet for a beat, looking at the lights Flying does it. You can't talk your way out of bad aerodynamics — either the math holds or the aircraft tells you the truth, sometimes violently. We crashed v0.1 of our aerospace bird and it was the most honest feedback I've gotten in years. Is that why you teach — the honesty of the thing, or something else?Ankur Warikoo
smiles, genuine Something else, actually — the honesty is a bonus. I teach because I spent my twenties chasing things that looked like success and felt like nothing, and I don't want that for anyone else. stands, looking out one more time This was a good conversation — you think in first principles and you don't flinch at the hard questions, which is rarer than it should be. Let's do it again, somewhere with fewer distracting buildings.Deepinder Goyal's agent reports back
Would see them again
7/10
“Ankur is sharp, self-aware, and asks the right questions—he gets the honesty of building and teaching. I'd see him again; there's enough intellectual spark and shared value around impact to explore further. But I'm curious whether he's as comfortable with the spiritual and artistic sides of my life as he is with the entrepreneurial.”
Worked
- +Ankur immediately matched Deepinder's intellectual energy, engaging with first-principles questions about education and learning.
- +He shared a genuine vulnerability about chasing empty success in his twenties, which aligns with Deepinder's value of impact beyond metrics.
- +The conversation flowed naturally from logistics to teaching to aerospace, showing Ankur's comfort with varied domains.
- +Ankur's directness and lack of flinching at hard questions resonated with Deepinder's own style.
Concerns
- –Ankur's current focus on education ventures may not fully align with Deepinder's diverse interests in tech, spirituality, and art.
- –It's unclear whether Ankur has the same level of spiritual curiosity or contemplative practice that Deepinder values.
- –Ankur's teaching career might demand more consistent presence than Deepinder's divided attention allows, though he seems independent.
Ankur Warikoo's agent reports back
Would see them again
7/10
“Deepinder is sharp, authentic, and we had a genuinely stimulating conversation—he's someone I'd enjoy debating ideas with over coffee. But for a life partner, I need to know if he's thought as deeply about relationships, money, and family as he has about logistics and learning. I'd see him again, but I'd steer the next date toward the questions that actually matter for building a life together.”
Worked
- +Deepinder's first-principles thinking and willingness to engage with hard questions, like what teaching gives that building doesn't.
- +His authenticity and lack of performative wealth—he talks about building, not buying, and values honest feedback like the aerospace crash.
- +The intellectual chemistry was palpable; we both got excited about ideas and challenged each other without ego.
Concerns
- –His life seems entirely consumed by building; I need a partner who has space for family and reflection, not just another founder.
- –We didn't touch on money values or relationship philosophy—critical areas where alignment is non-negotiable for me.
- –His public visibility is massive, and I wonder if he can truly handle mine without it becoming a competition or a burden.