Pune Inc: Deep-tech startup, funding, visibility in focus as startup conclave begins in Mumbai

More than 28,000 startups have closed down since 2023, an increase of 12 times, from 2,300 shutdowns between 2019 and 2022, as per data intelligence platform Tracxn. The ecosystem has turned sluggish; many companies complain of funding challenges and fewer unicorns than in earlier years.

In April, Commerce Minister Piyush Goyal said Indian startups were creating “food delivery apps, fancy ice cream and cookies, instant grocery delivery, betting and fantasy sport apps” while China was focusing on “Electric vehicles and battery tech, semiconductors and AI, robotics and automation, global logistics and trade and deep tech and infrastructure”.

Dr V Premnath, founding director of Venture Centre, says that while India needs to have more deep-tech startups, all kinds of startups are important. “Anytime, any startup raises investments in money, it is money going into certain entrepreneurial and, sometimes, innovation activities. It might be of a business process innovation nature, not necessarily of technology innovation, but it is still a good thing. Overall, it has a diffusional effect on the larger ecosystem regarding entrepreneurship and so on,” says Premnath.

The CSIR Startup Conclave 2025 is a showcase of deep-tech startups, many of whom are associated with Venture Centre, a CSIR lab or institutions such as IIT Bombay. “Minister Piyush Goyal was keen to have exposure for some of these startups, especially in an ecosystem such as Mumbai, which has a lot of investors and where government entities can also provide support,” says Premnath.

He adds that science and technology-based enterprises in India are innovating on products that “touch people’s lives and offer options for society that are not otherwise available”.

“It is necessary to push a lot more deep tech enterprises to promote these technologies and reach the market in sectors, ranging from health and rehabilitation to energy, environment and agriculture,” he says.

He believes multiple actions are needed to create more tech startups and take them to a point where they are investment-ready and investors see them as viable candidates. “The government has a role in funding, through options such as the Biotechnology Industry Research Assistance Council (BIRAC), but these help create the pipeline. Beyond that, the ecosystem also has to sweeten the deal for investing in deep tech enterprises. In some economies, the government sometimes participates in investing, as in a fund of funds,” says Premnath.

He adds that incubators like Venture Centre are trying to reduce the risks for first-generation entrepreneurs and improve their chances of getting to the market. “Most deep-tech enterprises are started by first-generation entrepreneurs. These are typically knowledge workers who have been trained in the sciences and engineering, and neither have deep pockets nor the business networks. So, one needs to give them the opportunity to build, and the initial money from the government helps to build a pipeline,” says Premnath.

The conclave will have a Shark Tank-like event in which 14 startups will pitch to a panel of investors. “We are also bringing in investors and a few funders, like Maharashtra State Innovation Society, so that they create opportunities for some of these startups. Apart from the visibility, the conclave provides startups, including walk-ins, with mentoring sessions on topics such as planning their business, fundraising and negotiating regulatory matters, including regulatory pathways that become a risk for certain businesses in certain sectors, like health and food,” he says.

Another section in the conclave will arm deep-tech startup founders with the skills to understand intellectual property (IP) and technology issues.

“One has to make sure that the IP is protected and that they have the freedom to operate, i.e. they do not infringe other people’s IP,” says Premnath.