India’s deeptech startups have outgrown their underdog status, and the sector now stands ready to compete on a worldwide stage. Yet panelists at YourStory’s TechSparks summit warned that domestic ambition alone will not carry these ventures far enough.
Founders from robotics, precision manufacturing, and semiconductors took the stage alongside a policy think tank executive. Their consensus: conditions have improved, but real growth demands global reach. Shivani Muthanna, Senior Director of Strategic Content and Video at YourStory, moderated the discussion.
Kaushik Mudda, who leads precision manufacturing company Ethereal Machines, put it plainly. “We have most things in place that enable us to compete globally,” he said.
Shweta Rajpal Kohli, President and CEO of Startup Policy Forum, credited government capital and policy moves for giving deeptech a legitimate foothold. She described the current moment as India’s opportunity to accelerate the sector.
Hareesh Chandrasekar, co-founder and CEO of Agnit Semiconductors, noted that building across the entire ecosystem will take time. His company is India’s first vertically integrated gallium nitride semiconductor product startup.
Challenges persist, however. Gokul N A, founder of robotics startup CynLr, said the ecosystem supporting his field remains largely absent. He also flagged a shortage of mid-management talent. India, he argued, still produces engineers oriented toward services rather than deep technical product work.
Capital remains another sticking point. Seed funding has improved, Gokul acknowledged, but patient capital remains scarce. Mudda observed that raising up to $5 million poses little difficulty, while the $10 million to $15 million range stays stubbornly out of reach. Kohli countered that the government’s Rs 1 lakh crore Research, Development and Innovation Fund helps address the gap.
The panelists agreed on one thing: domestic demand alone cannot sustain deeptech. Kohli called government procurement a massive boost, though she admitted the process gets complicated. Chandrasekar added that while startups want the government as their first customer, it cannot be their only one. Gokul insisted these technologies need a global market to survive.
Kohli closed with a challenge: India has the talent and scale, but teams must move much faster.
