Startups

TILT Capital launches ₹250 crore fund to back next-generation startups

The/Nudge Foundation's investment platform will provide ₹2 crore to ₹16 crore in patient capital to seed-to-Series A ventures serving India's Next Billion across livelihoods and climate resilience

Homegrown direct-to-consumer companies raise $6 billion in five years

India's homegrown D2C startups raised nearly $6 billion across 2,000 equity funding rounds between 2021 and 2026 YTD, but funding has slowed sharply this year

Goyal proposes India-Japan 'Shark Tank' to boost investment, business ties

Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal on Wednesday proposed an India-Japan startup pitching series, on the lines of the popular 'Shark Tank' format, to connect young startups from the two countries with investors and potential business partners. Addressing a roundtable on startups, Goyal said such pitching sessions could be organised virtually, leveraging digital connectivity, to facilitate greater interaction between Indian and Japanese startups. "India and Japan can develop a pitching series, something like the Shark Tank initiative, that can help young startups pitch," Goyal said. He said Indian startups could pitch their ideas to Japanese investors, while Japanese startups could seek partners and business opportunities in India. "In this world of global connectivity through Zoom calls and the internet, I think we can have more and more pitching sessions where Indian startups pitch for Japanese investments and Japanese startups pitch for partners in India," he said. Goyal

AI boom's high salaries stifling Indian chip-design startups: TDK Ventures

Soaring AI-driven salaries and stock options are discouraging Indian chip-design talent from taking the risk of building deep-tech startups, TDK Ventures says

AI-led startups face takeoff hiccups as overreliance poses challenges

AI is helping Indian founders build prototypes faster, but scaling these startups is proving harder as technology costs, bugs and weak product understanding emerge

IDFC First Bank, IIMCIP launch ₹2 crore startup incubation initiative

IDFC First Bank has partnered with the IIM Calcutta Innovation Park (IIMCIP) to launch a pan-India programme aimed at nurturing enterprises working on sustainable business solutions, officials said on Monday. The 'IGNITE' programme will provide total financial and operational support of Rs 2 crore, including a direct startup grant corpus of Rs 1.36 crore, they said. It aims to help early-stage ventures strengthen their business models, expand market reach, and deliver measurable environmental and social outcomes, according to an official statement. Under the programme, 16 startups from across the country will be selected through a competitive evaluation process, it said. The focus areas include green manufacturing, waste recycling and upcycling, cleantech, renewable energy, water management, environmental technologies, and the sustainable use of indigenous resources. The selected startups will undergo a structured incubation journey comprising business diagnostics, expert mentorin

PM Narendra Modi meets founders, CEOs of 20 homegrown space-tech startups

The Prime Minister said private participation had strengthened India's space ambitions and urged startups to explore applications in agriculture, environment and education

Over 85% of India's deeptech funding raised in past six years: IVCA

More than 85 per cent of India's $11.4 billion deeptech funding since 2015 was raised in the past six years, as the sector moved from early-stage proof points to commercial validation

IIM-B incubator tops $7 billion in startup value as it turns to AI

NSRCEL plans specialised sector centers and AI tools to expand its entrepreneur network toward one million

In an age of social media, founder-led brands are the new business model

Interestingly, founder-led brands follow a very different marketing formula

PhysicsWallah Q1FY27 net loss narrows to Rs 88 crore, revenue rises 24%

PhysicsWallah's revenue from operations rose 24.4 per cent year-on-year to Rs 1,053.95 crore, while the edtech firm reported positive Ebitda of Rs 52 crore

Bengaluru startup bets on cancer-sniffing dogs and AI for early detection

Dognosis is repurposing the canine sense of smell, traditionally used to detect drugs or explosives, for low-cost health screening and aiming to make early detection accessible to far more people

Startup tech deployment should move beyond major cities: FM Sitharaman

The finance minister said government support should go beyond funding, with technologies having relevant public applications deployed quickly in districts and public facilities

Krafton India plans to diversify investments into AI startups, VC funds

The BGMI maker has invested close to $250 million in India over the past four to five years and plans to continue investing roughly $50-60 million in companies and funds.

D2C startups turn to qcom platforms for festive launches

D2C startups across food, beverages, fashion and electronics are using quick commerce as a launch and discovery channel, with festive-season demand driving new products and wider assortments

Accel bets $550 million on India's next wave of founders for AI era

Venture capital firm behind Flipkart and Swiggy closes ninth India fund as part of a record $3.5 billion global raise, betting AI lets homegrown startups build for the world from day one

VC firm Piper Serica marks first close of Rs 800 crore Bharat Tech fund

The venture capital firm has secured Rs 300 crore in commitments and plans to back 21-22 engineering-led fintech and deep-tech companies at the Series A and select Series B stages

Deeptech startup Yaanendriya raises ₹15 crore from Piper Serica

Deep-tech startup Yaanendriya raises ₹15 crore from Piper Serica to accelerate R&D, expand navigation technologies and scale indigenous sensors for defence and aerospace

Aditya Vuchi's new startup to build community hubs for gig workers in India

The venture will begin with a Hyderabad centre offering rest areas, affordable food, EV charging, healthcare and other essential services for verified gig workers

Modest venture capital funding for high-tech startups; 2026 shows hope

VC funding in India's chip and space startups is picking up in 2026 as the government's Semicon 2.0 push boosts investor confidence