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Source: The post is based on the article “Government to launch the Digital India Innovation Fund for Catalyzing deep tech start-ups: Union Minister” published in PIB on 30th December 2022
What is the News?
The Minister of State for Electronics & Information Technology has said that the Government of India is planning to launch a Digital India Innovation Fund that will support Deeptech Startups.
What is Deeptech?
Deeptech refers to a revolutionary approach that can be applied commercially upon discovering a scientific or engineering breakthrough.
This technology could disrupt existing industries and solve some of the world’s biggest and most complex problems.
Typically, DeepTech innovators or investors view the world from below perspectives: 1) Technology (e.g., quantum computing), 2) An industry (e.g., manufacturing technology), 3) Problem (e.g., cure skin cancer), 4) A major challenge (e.g., energy efficiency/climate change).
About India’s Deeptech ecosystem
India’s deep-tech ecosystem has grown 53% in the last decade and is now at par with that in developed economies like the US, China, Israel, and Europe.
From drone delivery and cold chain management to climate action and clean energy, deep-tech start-ups are making their presence felt across sectors.
Bengaluru accounts for 25-30% of India’s deep-tech start-ups, followed by Delhi-NCR (15-20%) and Mumbai (10-12%). Overall, the share of deep-tech start-ups in India’s overall entrepreneurial ecosystem stands at 12% now.
However, despite impressive growth, deep-tech start-ups continue to grapple with challenges, including the dearth of good talent, access to seed capital and go-to-market opportunities, missing research guidance, high costs of customer acquisition and more.
