1. If your PhD research is directly applicable to a product you think is worth building. See, e.g., Google.
2. If you need to hire other PhDs or people with advanced degrees. Having a PhD gives you street cred which helps you build a team.
Beyond that starting a company is about talking to customers, prototyping ideas and products, and building a team. Along the way you might also have to convince other people to give you money to keep you going towards your ultimate, billion-dollar goal.
BTW, I'd definitely choose Stanford if your goal is to start a company. It's one school where the line between academia and business is very blurry -- people pass back and forth much more freely than at other schools.
This means you'll have access to a whole network of people with the same interests or experiences directly applicable to your situation.
Comments
There are a few ways a PhD can help:
1. If your PhD research is directly applicable to a product you think is worth building. See, e.g., Google.
2. If you need to hire other PhDs or people with advanced degrees. Having a PhD gives you street cred which helps you build a team.
Beyond that starting a company is about talking to customers, prototyping ideas and products, and building a team. Along the way you might also have to convince other people to give you money to keep you going towards your ultimate, billion-dollar goal.
BTW, I'd definitely choose Stanford if your goal is to start a company. It's one school where the line between academia and business is very blurry -- people pass back and forth much more freely than at other schools.
This means you'll have access to a whole network of people with the same interests or experiences directly applicable to your situation.