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WASHINGTON: US President Barack Obama today honoured three Indian-Americans among other entrepreneurs for their innovative and path-breaking start-ups which have had a major impact on people's lives and creating jobs.
The three innovators honoured by Obama are Privahini Bradoo from San Francisco, Ann Marie Sastry from Michigan and Suma Reddy from New York.
While Bradoo's BlueOak recycles electronics and mobile phones, Sastry has founded a company by the name of Sakti that is using materials science to develop the next generation of solid state lithium batteries that will power mobile phones, computers, and even cars.
Reddy's Waddle is a mobile, friend-to-friend discovery platform to help find the best places to go by using friends' ratings, reviews and recommendations.
"We've got people who are developing the next generation of lithium-ion batteries. A system of radio sensors that notices when a senior takes a fall while they're in their home," Obama said.
"A robotic teddy bear that helps kids with diabetes learn about managing their health and staying active," he said.
"There was an app that helps military families transition to their new communities; another app that helps you order replacement parts just by snapping a photo of the old one. And then there are the folks at Astrobotic Technology in Pittsburgh," Obama said.
"They are shooting for the moon, literally, with plans to land a rover on the lunar surface in the next couple of years, which is pretty exciting," he added.
"I wouldn't mind seeing how that turns out," said the US President.
Obama said start-ups, young firms account for almost 40 per cent of new hires.
"And as we've fought back from the worst economic crisis of our lifetimes, those firms have helped our private sector create more than 12.8 million jobs over the last 64 straight months, which is the longest streak of private sector job growth on record," he said.
"But we've got to make sure that we're taking full advantage of this moment by tapping all the talent America has to offer, no matter who they are or where they set up shop. And obviously there are chronic challenges for any entrepreneur," he said.
"Capital is tough to come by, but it's even tougher if you're not in one of a handful of cities that have a well-developed venture capital presence," Obama said.