Page 6 - Startups

Startup Mahakumbh: 'India's rural, agri-tech startups lagging behind'

Industry experts said that to boost startups in the agri-tech space, there is a need for collaboration between different players in the ecosystem

Why Indian startups are stuck in delivery while China races ahead in deep tech

India's startups excel in food delivery and e-commerce, but lag behind China's in deep tech, AI, and EVs. As global rivals scale up, India faces key innovation hurdles

Easy to criticise startups: Zepto CEO highlights impact after Goyal's jibe

Commerce Minister Piyush Goyal's scathing remarks on Indian startup ecosystem and its innovation priorities have drawn sharp reaction from the industry, with Zepto CEO Aadit Palicha putting up a strong defence citing the company's contribution to jobs, FDI and terming it a "miracle in Indian innovation". Underlining the role played by consumer internet companies in pushing technology-led innovation, Palicha - one of the most recognised faces in the startup circles, and the co-founder of quick commerce company Zepto - argued that 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". "It is easy to criticise consumer internet startups in India, especially when you compare them to the deep technical excellence being built in US/China. Using our example, the reality is this: there are almost 1.5 Lakh real people who are earning ...

Shift focus from grocery delivery to high-tech sectors: Goyal to startups

Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal on Thursday asked the Indian startup community to shift their focus from grocery delivery and ice cream making to to high tech sector like semiconductor, machine learning, robotics, and artificial intelligence. He also said there is a need for more Indian investors into the startup ecosystem. "Are we going to be happy being delivery boys and girls... Is that the destiny of India... this is not startup, this is entrepreneurship... What other side is doing -- robotics, machine learning, 3D manufacturing and next generation factories factories," he said here at the Startup Mahakumbh. The minister said the new startups should focus on preparing the nation for the future. "Do we have to make ice cream or chips?" he asked. He also underscored the evolving role of startups in driving India's economic and technological growth. He assured that the government will handhold and support those who face challenges in their startup journey, encouragin

3000 startups to participate in Startup Mahakumbh 2025: DPIIT joint secy

The second edition of 'Startup Mahakumbh' is set to take place at Bharat Mandapam from April 3-5

Panasonic expands startup partnerships to adopt new tech in its products

Panasonic aims to co-create scalable solutions, integrating startup innovations into its product line-up to lead the next wave of intelligent living, according to the company chief innovation officer

Gruhas leads Rs 12.5 crore investment in content commerce startup LehLah

LehLah operates as a creator-driven platform that allows influencers to monetise their content through curated product recommendations

Ather Energy to Zepto: More than 20 startups prepare for IPOs in 2025

Companies increasingly prefer to make India their base, driven by strong liquidity, a booming digital economy and global investor interest in the country

India's VC funding surges 40% in early 2025, defying global slowdown

Deal volume also increased 11 per cent during the same period, underscoring growing investor confidence in the country's innovation-driven startup ecosystem

AMPIN Energy Transition secures $50 mn fund from Siemens Financial Services

Homegrown AMPIN Energy Transition (AMPIN) on Wednesday said it has secured USD 50 million (over Rs 428 crore) funding from Siemens AG's financing arm Siemens Financial Services. The funds will fuel the company's growth in both Commercial & Industrial (C&I), utility-scale renewable energy projects as well as its energy transition value chain business, AMPIN said in a statement. This marks AMPIN's third major investment transaction this financial year, bringing the total equity capital raised to USD 270 million this year. "This equity investment from Siemens reaffirms AMPIN's unique business model powering energy transition. It is now the only energy transition company in India to attract leading investors from Europe, North America and Asia," Pinaki Bhattacharyya, Founder, MD, and CEO of AMPIN Energy Transition, said. Headquartered in New Delhi, AMPIN Energy Transition is India's leading renewable energy transition company with a total portfolio of 5 GW spread across 22 states .

STPI-supported 134 startups raise Rs 286 crore fund from investors

State-run STPI-supported 134 startups have raised Rs 286 crore in funding from investors, a top official of the organisation said. While speaking at an event, Software Technology Parks of India (STPI) Director General Arvind Kumar said the organisation, formed under the Next Generation Incubation Scheme (NGIS) of the Ministry of Electronics and IT, has given early-stage seed capital of Rs 30.87 crore to 136 startups and financially incentivised 359 others through a stipend amount of Rs 3.57 crore. "Amongst these supported startups, 134 have also been able to raise external funding from an investor community comprising angels and venture capitalists of about Rs 286 crore, which is not only a validation of their business but also the testament of the progress made by these startups," Kumar said during the STPI Sangam event on Friday. "I am proud to share that 44 per cent of STPI's startup portfolio consists of women entrepreneurs, many of whom come from Tier-2 and Tier-3 cities. We ar

Turbostart invests $1 mn in Lighthouse PropTech's $2.5 mn funding round

The Dabur Family Office and several other high net-worth individual (HNI) family offices joined the round, valuing the company at $13.5 million

Everhope Oncology secured $10 million seed funding for expansion

This is the largest healthcare seed round in the last 24 months

Nikhil Kamath's Gruhas, Brigade launch Rs 300 cr realty-focused fund

Both partners have contributed about 15% each to the overall Rs 200 crore Sebi-registered Category II AIF, which includes a Rs 100 crore green-shoe option

Narayana Murthy warns against AI hype in India, urges startups to aim big

Says innovation & job creation will vanish poverty, not freebies

Nandan Nilekani's 4 tips for India's economy to hit $8 trn mark by 2035

Outlining key factors for India's economic expansion, Nilekani spoke about the necessary "Big Unlocks" required to accelerate the country's growth rate from 6 per cent to 8 per cent

Women-led technology startups struggle to overcome funding winter

Women VCs, including Jahagirdar and Chaturvedi, believe that more women investors can make the fundraising process less intimidating for women founders

Women entrepreneurs face uphill task in startup world amid funding winter

Even as the entrepreneurial ecosystem continues to grow, the number of startups with at least one woman founder has been on the decline since at least 2020

Fintech dominates India's startup funding this year, shows Tracxn data

In terms of deal volume, consumer startups saw the highest number of funding rounds (92), ahead of high-tech (70) and retail (61)

Indian startups raise $1.65 bn in February, median valuation at $83.2 mn

Indian startups raised a total of USD 1.65 billion (about Rs 14,418 crore) in funding at a median valuation of USD 83.2 million in February 2025, according to data from Traxcn. This brings the total funding in FY25 (April-February) to USD 25.4 billion, spread across 2,200 rounds, the data showed. The February figure marks a 19.5 per cent uptick from USD 1.38 billion in total funding in January 2025. On a year-on-year basis, the total amount of fundraise was down from USD 2.06 billion secured in February 2024. Entrepreneurs in the country's startup capital, Bengaluru, secured funding worth USD 353 million, with a median round size of USD 2 million. Those in Mumbai grabbed total funding of USD 102 million but with a higher median round size of USD 5 million. Fintech firm Oxyzo led the February funding pack, having raised USD 1 billion in conventional debt. It was followed by online B2B platform udaan, which closed a Series G equity funding round of USD 75 million, led by M&G ...