Last year's position : Not Placed

Arguments rage over who is the guiding light at Google. Some say the youthful Sergey Brin (24), others say Schmidt, who is thought of highly in tech circles, even after failing to work his magic on Novell. His career at Sun is well remembered, with him carrying a reputation as a "pedigree manager". Just the thing for an IPO, according to the VC on the panel.

"Google will IPO next year and everyone will watch that because it will be a benchmark of what happens in that industry," he said.