StatsGuru: AI companies seek footing in India, need funding boost

Individuals and companies from over 30 countries will participate at the five-day India Artificial Intelligence (AI) Impact Summit 2026 beginning Monday. Of the 32,600 AI companies globally, India accounts for 5.7 per cent. Between 2016 and 2025, nearly 60-70 per cent of Indian AI firms have remained dependent on seed-stage funding, indicating the sector is still largely at an early stage of growth.

 

The number of AI companies founded in India increased from 67 in 2016 to 197 in 2025. However, their share among all companies founded in the country remained relatively modest, rising from 0.4 per cent to 5 per cent during this period. (Chart 1). 

 

India’s share of global funding raised by AI companies increased from 0.8 per cent in 2016 to 5.2 per cent in 2025 (Chart 2). 

 

India has the fourth-largest share of AI companies globally, behind the United States, China, and the United Kingdom (Chart 3). 

 

The geographical distribution of AI companies in India is highly skewed in favour of Bengaluru (Chart 4). 

 

The share of net debt in the total revenue of top AI companies declined from FY20 to FY25, indicating higher cash holdings (Chart 5). 

 

Productivity across AI firms has been volatile. (Chart 6).