A US-based Indian-origin entrepreneur has shared a leadership lesson he learned from CEOduring a midnight phone call that left a lasting impression on him.
According to a by Business Insider, Abridge CEO Shiv Rao recently spoke on an episode of the “20VC” . He recalled how Huang personally called him late at night after the startup founder had emailed him seeking advice about a challenge he was facing at work.
“He once called me at midnight, and it was like on his way home, and I knew it was him. I picked it up, and it was awesome,” Rao said on the podcast, as per Business Insider. “He wanted to unpack a challenge that I was experiencing,” he added.
Rao said he was surprised by how quickly Huang responded, especially given Nvidia’s size and the chipmaker CEO’s packed schedule. Nvidia is also one of Abridge’s investors.
Rao shared that Huang’s key piece of advice was simple but powerful: “Your job is to fall in love with whatever the job is. That is something you can do, and you can convince yourself,” Rao said, describing the mindset Huang encouraged him to adopt as a leader.
Founded in 2018, Abridge develops AI-powered tools that help transcribe and summarise doctor-patient conversations. Rao, who is also a cardiologist, cofounded the company to streamline clinical documentation using artificial intelligence.
According to Business Insider, the startup has seen rapid growth in recent years. In June, Abridge raised $300 million in a Series E funding round led by Andreessen Horowitz, with participation from Khosla Ventures, valuing the company at $5.3 billion.
(Also Read: )
Jensen Huang’s philosophy
During the podcast, Rao said Huang’s philosophy also changed how he viewed demanding aspects of startup life, including constant travel.
“One of the things I learned to bend my DNA to love was living on an airplane,” Rao said. “If you caught me like five years ago, I’d be like, ‘Never. We’re not going to do that. We’re going to find other ways to grow and scale.’ But this is what the job requires, and I enjoy it.”
Huang, who cofounded Nvidia in 1993, has repeatedly spoken about the importance of learning to enjoy one’s work rather than waiting to discover a perfect passion.
In a 2023 podcast appearance, Huang said he had embraced every role he had ever done. “I loved it when I was a dishwasher. I loved it when I was a busboy. I loved it when I was delivering papers,” he said. “I loved every single day at Nvidia that I’ve ever had, and I just learned to love what I’m doing,” he added.
