Nasscom says the Deeptech startup base in the country will grow at a compound annual growth rate of 40-45% by 2021. There has also been a jump in deep–tech startup funding as investor interest in niche products and platforms has increased significantly, with 14% of total startup investments going to deep–tech ventures by 2020. This is an increase of 11% over 2019. Up to 87% of these investments were in AI and ML startups.
Covid-19 has increased the interest of venture capital firms and funding agencies in deep–tech start-ups. The pandemic accelerated digitization and the transition to online in the country. With the rapid digital acceleration and transition to SaaS-based solutions, tech start-ups have had more opportunities to take advantage of this chance. Deep Tech Solutions are used by 19% of tech start-ups to expand product diversity for market expansion.
In recent years, investment firms have been at the forefront of identifying and funding startups that specialize in Drones & Robotics, Agritech, CyberSecurity, and API-led companies. Accio Robotics, Datasutram and Vitra.ai are some of the leading startups in this field. Tech experts predict that India is likely to emerge as the next deep tech hub. The importance and need for deep tech solutions lies in its ability to lay the foundation for future industries in a growing market like India. Venture capital investments in R&D-intensive startups will enable the growth of the Indian Deep Tech Ecosystem and help bring more sustainable solutions to market.
In its annual report on the Indian technology start-up ecosystem, NASSCOM says investor interest in deep tech startups has increased. About 14% of total investment in 2020 went to such startups. Of these, 87% were invested in AI / ML. Therefore, it can be said that the future of Deep Tech is bright. It is sure to enable the Indian startup ecosystem to emerge as a global leader in the Deep Tech space.