Who is Alec Ross? Futurist who ‘invested $900 million dollars into 45 startups’ meets PM Modi

Prime Minister Narendra Modi met “prolific thinker and author” Alec Ross during the NXT Conclave 2025 on Saturday, March 1. PM Modi, the chief guest, and Alec Ross were among the speakers at the conclave. The Prime Minister took to social media to share a picture with Ross.

“Pleased to meet Mr. Alec Ross today. He has made a mark as a prolific thinker and author, emphasising aspects relating to innovation and learning,” PM Modi posted on X.

A social media user lauded PM Modi’s meeting with the well-known futurist Alec Ross and said, “Great to see Mr. Alec Ross being recognized for his insightful contributions to innovation and learning. His work continues to inspire forward-thinking approaches in these fields!”

Who is Alec Ross?

Introducing himself at the NXT Summit, Ross spoke about his entrepreneurial background. “While I’m an academic and I write books, I come from this sort of cowboy world of entrepreneurship and venture capital,” he said.

At the conclave, Ross said that over the last 10 years, he “invested $900 million dollars into 45 startups on five continents, including in India.”

Alec Ross is a leading expert on innovation, a New York Times bestselling author, and a global thought leader in technology and policy, according to his profile on nxtnext.com.

Ross had started his career as a sixth-grade teacher through Teach for America in Baltimore City Public Schools. He was previously a distinguished senior fellow at Johns Hopkins University and a Senior Fellow at Columbia University’s School of International & Public Affairs.

Ross is the author of The Industries of the Future and The Raging 2020s: Companies, Countries, People and the Fight for Our Future. His books have been translated into 24 languages and been best-sellers on 5 continents, Ross’ LinkedIn profile says.

He currently serves as a Distinguished Visiting Professor at the University of Bologna Business School and a Board Partner at Amplo, a global venture capital firm.

During the Obama administration, Ross was the Senior Advisor for Innovation to the Secretary of State, helping to modernize diplomacy and advance US foreign policy.

According to his LinkedIn Profile, he served as the Convener for the Technology & Media Policy Committee on Barack Obama’s 2008 presidential campaign and served on the Obama-Biden Presidential Transition Team.

Ross also received a range of awards and recognitions. These include:

• US Department of State Distinguished Honor Award

• Oxford University Internet & Society Award

• Top 100 Global Thinkers by Foreign Policy Magazine

• National Consumers Union, Massimiliano Dona Award

‘Data is the raw material of today and tomorrow’s world’:

Speaking at the summit, Ross drew an analogy to the basic inputs of earlier economic epochs. He said, “…land was the raw material of the agricultural age. Iron was the raw material of the industrial age, and data is the raw material of today in tomorrow’s world.

Ross emphasized the importance of owning and using data, stating, “In today’s world, he or she who owned the data, controlled the data, or can harvest meaning from the data are those that are creating the industries and businesses of the future.”