Karnataka leads Centre's electronics fund as 90 of 128 startups get funding

Of 128 startups backed under the Electronics Development Fund, 90 are based in Karnataka, accounting for nearly two-thirds of total investments

Karnataka accounted for more than 70 per cent of the companies backed under the Centre's Electronics Development Fund (EDF), with firms from the state attracting nearly two-thirds of the investments made through the scheme's venture capital network.

 

Data shared by the electronics and information technology ministry in a written reply to the Lok Sabha on Wednesday showed that 90 of the 128 companies funded under the EDF are based in the state.

 

Of the 90 Karnataka-based companies backed under the fund, 89 are located in Bengaluru—56 in electronics manufacturing and 33 in IT—while one is based in Belagavi. Together, they attracted ₹854.5 crore, or about 64 per cent of the investments made by the fund's eight daughter funds, highlighting Bengaluru's dominance in India's electronics and deep-tech startup ecosystem.

 

The remaining supported companies are spread across a handful of technology hubs, including Hyderabad, Delhi, Chennai, Mumbai, Pune, Gurugram, Noida, Jaipur, Faridabad and Kolkata.

 

EDF as “fund of funds”

 

EDF was set up by the Centre as a "fund of funds" to address the shortage of early-stage capital for startups working in electronics, nanoelectronics and information technology.

 

Instead of investing directly in companies, the government invests in professionally managed venture capital funds, which in turn finance promising technology startups. The objective is to promote indigenous product development, strengthen intellectual property creation and reduce India's dependence on imported technologies.

 

As of February 28, 2026, the Centre had invested ₹257.77 crore in eight daughter funds. These funds have together invested ₹1,335.77 crore in 128 startups and companies, creating more than 22,700 jobs while supporting the creation or acquisition of over 300 intellectual properties, according to the government.

 

The figures come at a time when the government is expanding its electronics manufacturing push beyond mobile phone assembly into components, semiconductors and advanced electronics through schemes such as the Electronics Components Manufacturing Scheme (ECMS), which aims to deepen domestic value addition and strengthen India's position in global electronics supply chains.