Ram Rampalli

Vice President, New Ventures & Growth

Walmart Global Tech

Ram Rampalli leads the New Ventures & Growth division for Walmart Global Tech where among other things is responsible for driving innovation. Ram joined Walmart in 2011 and has held several product and engineering roles particularly focused on product data classification and catalogs. Prior to Walmart, Ram spent over three years at eBay. Ram holds advanced degrees in Math, Computer Science, and Engineering Management, granted 14 patents, and has co-authored several papers in product data and crowdsourcing.

Speaking in:

Tuesday

July 16

1:15 pm–1:45 pm

American Express Theatre

The role of strategic investing in guiding innovation and getting retailers into the investment game

This panel discusses the recent trend in strategic investing wherein retailers invest in start-up businesses. It answers questions, such as: why is it that large retailers from Walmart to Dollar General and Kroger are making investments in start-ups and tech companies? How can founders harness these opportunities as opposed to traditional venture capital? What are the benefits and downsides?