In this episode of View From The Top, Ganesh Nayak speaks with Kevin Edwards, Managing Director of Investments at Carnegie Mellon University, whose multi-billion-dollar endowment invests across global private and public markets.
Kevin shares insights from decades of managing institutional portfolios, reflecting on lessons from the Great Financial Crisis, how liquidity truly works, and what allocators look for in long-term partnerships.
Together, they explore:
- How India became one of the world’s most investable growth stories
- The evolution of its digital infrastructure and capital markets
- Why entrepreneurial energy and regulatory reform make India unique among emerging economies
- What global allocators want from Indian GPs raising capital abroad
- How universities and endowments balance preservation with growth
- How Kevin factors in geopolitics when thinking of investments
For founders and investors alike, it’s a rare look at how long-term capital truly thinks beyond valuation cycles, and toward enduring alignment.
About Carnegie Mellon University Investment Office:
Carnegie Mellon University challenges the curious and passionate to deliver work that matters. To paraphrase founder Andrew Carnegie, “Our hearts are in the work.” CMU’s Investment Office manages the university’s long-term financial resources, work that matters to provide financial support in perpetuity for the university’s research and education mission. Through disciplined investment process, we strive to maximize long-term expected returns for the investment portfolio within acceptable levels of risk.
CMU's long-term financial resources comprise a diversified portfolio invested globally across a broad range of asset classes, including private equity, venture capital, hedge funds, real estate, natural resources, public equity and fixed income. CMU works with some of the very best investment managers in the world to protect and grow these investments.
In the Frame
Ganesh Nayak
Ganesh leads fundraising and global capital markets at Avataar Venture Partners. He brings deep experience across venture capital, fundraising, and startup ecosystems.
Based in Bengaluru, Ganesh is an active angel investor in SaaS, B2B tech, and digital consumer brands, with notable investments in Curefoods, Uni Cards, and Capillary Technologies.
Ganesh combines strategic capital insights with a strong operator mindset spanning marketing, business development, venture investing, and mentoring early-stage founders.
Kevin Edwards
Kevin is a Managing Director of Investments at Carnegie Mellon University. He joined the investment office in 2023.
Prior to joining the university, he served as Senior Investment Director/Deputy Chief Investment Officer for Hartford HealthCare, investing and building out several programs in the pension, endowment, and insurance portfolios.
He also led investments at The University of Connecticut Foundation, Inc. as VP of Finance/Chief Investment Officer, managing endowed, non-endowed, and deferred gift portfolios.
Kevin serves on the Investment Advisory Board of the Student Managed Funds Program and as an Advisory Board member for the Financial Risk Management Program, both at the University of Connecticut, and has taught in the M.S. in Financial Risk Management program. He earned his B.S. in accounting from the University of Connecticut. Edwards is a CFA® charterholder.
