Indian startups can look forward to an ‘India techade’

The economy, in particular, has undergone a deep qualitative and quantitative transformation. From one dominated by a few ‘groups,’ it is a rapidly expanding one that is seeing a broad spectrum of value-adders, ranging from legacy industry to startups and micro-entrepreneurs. India’s digital economy is a shining example of this rapid growth. It was estimated to be about 4-5% of our GDP in 2014, is over 11% of GDP today and is expected to touch 20% of GDP by 2026. It is growing at 2.5 times GDP and startups are a big part of it.

In 2012, I presented a report in Parliament that divulged around 98% of the Indian banking system’s net worth was lent to only nine business families in India, a concentration of capital that crowded out opportunities for young Indians and burdened the sector with non-performing assets. A hostile environment for aspiring entrepreneurs has been transformed. Today, we can proudly say that startups have made India one of the world’s most vibrant innovation ecosystems.

Indian startups in the direct-to-consumer (D2C), consumer internet, digital public infrastructure (DPI) and SaaS space have attracted record investments and seen 111 unicorns emerge. Young Indians are profoundly redrawing our business landscape. As a minister, I have had the privilege to travel around the country and see confident young Indians showcasing their ideas. The diversity and expanse of innovation underway is consistent with Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s words that in the coming decades, an ‘India techade’ will be shaped by young Indians everywhere. As a veteran techie who has over 30 years in tech under my belt, I can say that this is the most exciting time ever for India’s tech and innovation ecosystem. This success has been a consequence of the Prime Minister’s confidence in the youth of India, their capabilities and will to succeed, and his policies that have enabled them. From a tech consumer and back-office supplier, India has been repositioned as a producer of tech that is aspiring to shape its future.

Next-wave Digital India: If the last nine years have been exciting, it has only been the tip of an iceberg. The seeds of innovation planted by the PM in 2015 are ready to grow into the next wave. From his visionary production-linked incentive scheme for electronics to semiconductor policies, our eco-system was being primed for opportunities in emerging areas like electronics systems, semiconductors, artificial intelligence (AI) and quantum computing. This will be a significant step in transforming our tech sector from IT services built on talent cost arbitrage to consumer internet and D2C businesses that rely on rapid net expansion and scale, along with intellectual property (IP), to reach the next stage of value addition.

SemiconIndia Future Design: This initiative is catalysing startups that are designing next-gen semiconductor chips. Digitalization and semiconductorization go together, as mission-optimized chips come in. Our ambition is to encourage chip design startups to help power the techade ahead.

Digital India RISC-V (DIR-V): Announced in 2022, this will help us build IP and devices around the global RISC-V open-source ISA architecture. Our aim is to make India one of the most vibrant RISC-V ecosystems, focused on chips that serve a range of applications. Signs of early success are already visible as DIR-V startups are beginning to attract private investment.

India Semiconductor Research Centre (ISRC): This new institution in partnership with global and Indian tech companies will spearhead cutting-edge semicon research in: (a) Advance process, (b) Compound semiconductor, (c) System packaging and (d) chip design. The ISRC will be established in line with global R&D centres like IMEC, ITRI, CEA-LETI and Albany Nanotech, and will drive India’s overall semiconductor strategic roadmap.

Digital India Future LABs: These will enable electronics and digital product design as another field for startups. It will be a platform and program aimed at next-gen innovation in: a) automotive; b) industrial/IOT; c) compute; d) telecom and wireless; and e) strategic electronics. Anchored by the Centre for Development of Advanced Computing (C-DAC), this initiative will enhance domestic capabilities and offer opportunities for startups.

Make way for next-wave startups: Recognizing AI as a kinetic enabler in our digital economy, our government is working out a comprehensive IndiaAI programme—from supporting startups in AI to R&D and developing globally competitive talent—in consonance with the PM’s vision of ‘Make AI in India’ and ‘Make AI Work for India.’

Startups also have opportunities in the DPI space, globally, with India anchoring the G20’s global DPI repository.

Prime Minister Modi has laid out his vision and goals for India’s future as a developed country, a “viksit Bharat," by 2047, and as one of the world’s largest economies before that. Technologies like electronics, semiconductors, AI, Web3.0 and quantum computing are individually and together going to deeply transform our lives. I am confident that in every area of tech and innovation, there will be Indian startups succeeding at a scorching pace. As we celebrate National Startup Day and the achievements of Indian startups thus far, we also look to the future of startups: the next wave of startups that are going to shape and build the India Techade and Viksit Bharat in the most exciting phase of Independent India’s history.