Ajay Kela, CEO of Wadhwani Foundation, highlights India's significant opportunity to lead in the diffusion of technology, creating national-scale use cases that reach millions of end-users. He also discusses the role of deep-tech startups and SMEs in job creation and the importance of upskilling initiatives.
The 515 Army Base Workshop (ABW) in Bengaluru has signed multiple MoUs to strengthen indigenous drone manufacturing and ecosystem resilience, marking a significant step towards modernisation and self-reliance in unmanned systems.
The 515 Army Base Workshop in Bengaluru has signed multiple strategic MoUs to bolster indigenous drone manufacturing and ecosystem resilience, marking a significant step towards modernisation and self-reliance in unmanned systems.
'Today, as I look at our satellite -- tested, finished and ready to ship -- represents 1,642 days of grit and belief.'
'If we want to pivot meaningfully from a services-driven economy to a technology and manufacturing-led one.'
From the launch of the 'Startup India' initiative in 2016, to the abolition of angel tax and easing of reverse flipping norms, the startup ecosystem is evolving.
Investors and startup executives are calling for extending the period for an entity to be recognised as a startup from 10 to 15 years for deep-tech companies.
Notably, four portfolio companies-- Agnikul, ePlane, CynLr, and GalaxEye -- of deep-tech investor Speciale Invest made it to the list.
The government on Saturday announced a host of measures such as setting up of a new Fund of Funds Scheme (FFS) with Rs 10,000 crore corpus; and extension of period of incorporation by five years with a view to promote growth of budding entrepreneurs.
'Headcount expansion is more likely in revenue-linked and product-critical teams than in broad based hiring.'
Prime Minister Narendra Modi inaugurated the Seva Teerth complex, which will house the Prime Minister's Office (PMO), the National Security Council Secretariat, and the Cabinet Secretariat, marking a shift towards modernizing India's administrative governance.
In the hottest sector of AI, where most global VC funding is going currently, the country's record has not been anything to write home about.
'The startup ecosystem, the government, and the owners of large pools of Indian capital need to actively support the creation of these local champions, not pull down the teams that are trying hard to get there.'
Investment proposals for around Rs 1.88 trillion through 35 major agreements, spread across deep tech, green energy, and aerospace, were the hallmark moment of the first day of the two-day "Telangana Rising Global Summit", which started on Monday.
A Hyderabad-based deep-tech startup, Simpliforge Creations, has built the world's first on-site 3D-printed bunker in Leh for military use with the help of the Indian Institute of Technology Hyderabad. The project, called "Prabal," is a significant advancement in construction technology, allowing for the rapid deployment of military infrastructure in remote and challenging environments.
'What we need is the cultural encouragement to take risks, to fail occasionally, and to keep questioning.'
Deep-tech now forms over half of VC portfolios in India as firms like Cornerstone, Unicorn India Ventures and All in Capital back startups combining research with scalable models
'Despite being a software powerhouse, we're not producing proportionate original IP, frameworks, or global tech products originating in India.'
The three-day India Mobile Congress (IMC) will showcase the widening convergence of telecom with new domains, such as semiconductors and deep tech, P Ramakrishna, the forum's chief executive officer, said on Tuesday. With more than 250 global and domestic exhibitors, the seventh edition is expected to draw more than 100,000 visitors this year, he said. There will also be over 5,000 CXO-level delegates and more than 350 speakers.
'...hesitate to support the risk-taking it requires.'
'The scrapping of import duty would help Indian companies compete in international markets, thus paving the way for India becoming a space manufacturing hub for the world.'
Nandan Nilekani, co-founder and chairman of Infosys and the founding chairman of UIDAI, has donated Rs 315 crore to the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Bombay.
Who else will take on the might of Microsoft, Google, and Amazon if not the Adanis, Ambanis, Birlas, or Tatas?, asks R Jagannathan.
Indian startups received about $6.5 billion in funding in the April-June 2021 quarter, while 11 of them entered the coveted unicorn club, a report by Nasscom-PGA Labs said. During the second quarter, 160 funding deals were closed -- up 2 per cent from the January-March period. "Q2 2021 has been impeccable for the start-up growth story. From being the most funded quarter, it has also added the most number of unicorns. "Standing tall during the pandemic second wave headwinds, Indian start-up ecosystem has shown a strong resilience in this quarter," the report said.
India and the US have signed an agreement to promote innovation through increasing cooperation among startups, address regulatory hurdles and share best practices on fundraising by entrepreneurs, an official statement said on Wednesday. The memorandum of understanding (MoU) on enhancing innovation ecosystems through an innovation handshake under the framework of India-US Commercial Dialogue was signed on November 14 in San Francisco. Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal is in San Francisco.
In a double-dose bid to boost growth and employment prospects, the Union Cabinet on Tuesday approved a Rs 2.07 trillion outlay for a research development and innovation (RDI) Scheme to fund private sector innovations, and an employment-linked incentive (ELI) to create over 35 million new jobs over the next two years.
Nearly a dozen firms have shown interest in building the foundation model and LLMs, while others have proposed sector-specific SLMs.
India's Venture Capital (VC) ecosystem exhibited robust growth in 2024, with funding surging 43 per cent year-on-year to $13.7 billion, according to a report. This recovery was fuelled by a 45 per cent rise in deal activity, with 1,270 transactions recorded, reinforcing India's position as the second largest market for venture capital and growth funding in the Asia-Pacific region, the report by Bain & Company and IVCA said.
Simplifying investment policies at the micro level and introducing a time-bound framework will be critical for India's growth targets, notes Krishna Ella.
The Indian startup ecosystem has lauded the inclusion of startups in the New Delhi Leaders' Declaration for the first time ever in the history of G20. Industry stakeholders say that the move will lead to easier access to capital, reduce regulatory hurdles, and may revive funding activity. The Declaration, through the Startup20 initiative, recognised startups as "natural engines of growth" and key to socio-economic transformation by driving innovation and creating employment.
'If you align your ambition with India's rise, the peak of your careers will unfold alongside the peak of India's power.'
Funding winter and corporate governance woes separated the men from the boys in the country's startup space in 2023 that saw funds into the segment tapering to just around $8 billion. All said, investors are hopeful of strong growth of the maturing startup ecosystem in the new year. Edtech and health tech segments that grew exponentially during the pandemic plunged into an abyss of financial uncertainties, with several firms shuttering their business, and valuation of prominent players like BYJU'S and PharmEasy plummeting 85-90 per cent.
A 15 per cent corporate tax rate for services companies in SEZs, setting up a fund for deep-tech startups and establishing clusters to demonstrate design-to-manufacturing capabilities of tech firms were some of the key demands made by the IT sector at the pre-Budget consultation on Monday. The participants shared their views and suggestions regarding Big Data, incentives for encouraging setting up of data centres, fiscal incentives for data localisation, incentives for pushing digital penetration in rural areas, and corporate guarantee to startups for competing with other nations.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi has lauded the Union Budget as a "people's budget" that fulfills the dreams of every Indian and said that it is a "force-multiplier" that will boost consumption, investment and growth. He highlighted a host of measures for different sectors, including welfare initiatives for gig workers, tax relief for the middle class, and support for the manufacturing sector.
Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Thursday announced a Rs 11.11 lakh crore spending on infrastructure and vowed to continue reforms as she resisted resorting to populist measures in Modi government's last Budget before general elections, instead choosing to stay on the path of cutting deficit while bolstering measures for focus groups.
Skylark Drones, a leading drone platform company that counts Tata Steel, Ultratech Cement, Softbank Energy among its customers has secured $3 million in a pre-series A funding round. It would use the funding to strengthen its product offerings and fuel international expansion.
India's consumer digital economy which was pegged at $85-90 billion in calendar year 2020, is expected to become a $800 billion market by 2030, according to reports released by consulting firm RedSeer at its flagship event Ground Zero 5.0. The digital economy includes 60 per cent of travel, 40 per cent non-grocery retail, 30 per cent of education, 25 per cent of food and beverages services and 6 per cent of pharma/grocery going through digital channels by calendar year 2030. Online retail is set to become the third-largest market by scale by CY30 with an annual gross merchandise value (GMV) of $350 billion in CY30, said RedSeer.
'If one can write 100-150 lines of good code in a day, they will always be in demand,' advises Jitendra Singh, chief technology officer, TalentSprint, an edtech platform.
'Even if you are aping the West, if you customise the idea for the Indian market, localise it based on the Indian ethos, it will succeed.'
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