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Startup20 Shikhar Summit : A major win for global entrepreneurship

These continuations of Startup20 with the Brazil presidency were a true success for the group and a milestone in the advancement of the startup ecosystem worldwide…reports Asian Lite News

The Startup20 Shikhar Summit, which was put on by the Startup20 Engagement Group for the India G20 Presidency, came to a successful conclusion on Tuesday in Gurugram, the NITI Aayog said in an official release. This two-day summit served as a platform for fostering innovations, collaborations, knowledge sharing, and strategic alliances within the global startup ecosystem.

During the closing ceremony, the Chair of Startup20, Chintan Vaishnav, officially handed over the torch to Brazil, as the country has G20 presidency for the next year and has committed to continue the Startup20 initiative in 2024. These continuations of Startup20 with the Brazil presidency were a true success for the group and a milestone in the advancement of the startup ecosystem worldwide.

According to the official press release of the NITI Aayog, Saudi Arabia, represented by Prince Fahad Bin Mansoor, became the first nation to endorse and support Startup20’s proposal to allocate an ambitious $1 trillion annually into the startup ecosystem by 2023, underscoring the significance of the initiative. He made this announcement during his address at the Gurugram Shikhar Summit, recognizing the potential of startups in making startups a true force for the global good.

In his address, Chintan hailed this announcement as a momentous occasion at the Startup20 Gurugram Shikhar Summit, underscoring Saudi Arabia’s steadfast dedication to fostering global innovation and entrepreneurship. He asserted, “By pledging support for the USD1 trillion funding milestone, Saudi Arabia sets a precedent for other nations to follow, demonstrating their commitment to driving a disruptive innovation ecosystem and propelling the economic growth, according to the official press release.

He also underscored the importance of specific action points outlined in the Policy Communique while releasing it officially. The key action points in Policy Communique include the creation and adoption of a defined framework for startups, creating a networked institution to support startups and ecosystem stakeholders across G20, increasing and diversifying access to capital, easing market regulations for startups, and prioritizing the inclusion of underrepresented communities within the startup ecosystem as well as the scaling up startups of global interest. “These measures aim to foster a conducive environment that empowers startups to innovate, grow, and address global challenges effectively,” the press release said.

The Startup20 Gurugram Shikhar Summit serves as a critical platform for the startup ecosystem, ecosystem builders, industry experts, Government, policymakers, and thought leaders to collaborate and shape the trajectory of startups on a global scale, the release added.
The Policy Communique sets the direction for G20 countries to scout promising startups intensively, fund them collaboratively, mentor them contextually and scale them globally. (ANI)

ALSO READ-Startup20: India passes torch to Brazil as Summit concludes

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Startup20: India passes torch to Brazil as Summit concludes

Saudi Arabia became the first nation to endorse and support Startup20’s proposal to allocate an ambitious $1 trillion annually into the startup ecosystem by 2023…reports Asian Lite News

The Startup20 Shikhar Summit, which was put on by the Startup20 Engagement Group for the India G20 Presidency, came to a successful conclusion on Tuesday in Gurugram, the NITI Aayog said in an official release.

This two-day summit served as a platform for fostering innovations, collaborations, knowledge sharing, and strategic alliances within the global startup ecosystem. During the closing ceremony, the Chair of Startup20, Chintan Vaishnav, officially handed over the torch to Brazil, as the country has G20 presidency for the next year and has committed to continue the Startup20 initiative in 2024. These continuations of Startup20 with the Brazil presidency were a true success for the group and a milestone in the advancement of the startup ecosystem worldwide.

According to the official press release of the NITI Aayog, Saudi Arabia, represented by Prince Fahad Bin Mansoor, became the first nation to endorse and support Startup20’s proposal to allocate an ambitious $1 trillion annually into the startup ecosystem by 2023, underscoring the significance of the initiative.

He made this announcement during his address at the Gurugram Shikhar Summit, recognizing the potential of startups in making startups a true force for the global good.

In his address, Chintan hailed this announcement as a momentous occasion at the Startup20 Gurugram Shikhar Summit, underscoring Saudi Arabia’s steadfast dedication to fostering global innovation and entrepreneurship.

He asserted, “By pledging support for the USD1 trillion funding milestone, Saudi Arabia sets a precedent for other nations to follow, demonstrating their commitment to driving a disruptive innovation ecosystem and propelling the economic growth, according to the official press release.

He also underscored the importance of specific action points outlined in the Policy Communique while releasing it officially. The key action points in Policy Communique include the creation and adoption of a defined framework for startups, creating a networked institution to support startups and ecosystem stakeholders across G20, increasing and diversifying access to capital, easing market regulations for startups, and prioritizing the inclusion of underrepresented communities within the startup ecosystem as well as the scaling up startups of global interest.

“These measures aim to foster a conducive environment that empowers startups to innovate, grow, and address global challenges effectively,” the press release said.

The Startup20 Gurugram Shikhar Summit serves as a critical platform for the startup ecosystem, ecosystem builders, industry experts, Government, policymakers, and thought leaders to collaborate and shape the trajectory of startups on a global scale, the release added.

The Policy Communique sets the direction for G20 countries to scout promising startups intensively, fund them collaboratively, mentor them contextually and scale them globally. (ANI)

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Varanium Capital to promote 100 startups

Varanium Capital manages nearly $1 billion of assets across the asset classes including structured debt, portfolio management services (PMS), and venture capital fund….reports Asian Lite News

Global asset management firm Varanium Capital on Tuesday announced the first close of its maiden venture debt fund worth Rs 250 crore.

The fund would provide financing to 100 early and growth-stage startups in India through a mix of revenue-based financing and traditional venture debt.

Varanium Capital manages nearly $1 billion of assets across the asset classes including structured debt, portfolio management services (PMS), and venture capital fund.

“Venture debt fund will provide financial backing to start-ups in sectors such as D2C (Direct-to-consumer), SaaS (Software as a Service), B2B commerce and fintech who require to scale their operations,” said TS Anantakrishnan, Founder, Varanium Capital.

The venture debt fund will be managed by Nawal Bachhuka, who comes with rich experience in underwriting and risk management spanning supply chain financing, MSME, and digital lending. 

The fund has been able to attract top-tier domestic and global limited partners (LPs) and has secured an anchor investor and has received commitments from family offices, ultra-high-net-worth individuals, and seasoned entrepreneurs including former CEOs and CXOs of banks.

Varanium Capital also has a fintech-focused venture equity fund and has invested in 12 start-ups including Easebuzz, Riskcovry, Finvu and Homeville, etc. 

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Good Capital to back AI startups

Good Capital said it is deploying the fund with target cheques of up to $1.5 million over the next 4 years….reports Asian Lite News

Seed-stage, India-focused VC firm Good Capital on Friday announced a new $50 million fund to back founders who are leveraging AI for distribution, personalisation or business operations.

Good Capital said it is deploying the fund with target cheques of up to $1.5 million over the next 4 years.

The VC firm has been an early investor in unicorns such as Meesho and LEAD School.

“Integrating AI is now table stakes for any startup. Much like the platform shift to mobile in the past, the success of tech businesses will depend on how they leverage AI”, said Good Capital co-general partner Arjun Malhotra.

“This isn’t an AI-focused fund as much as a recognition of a land-grab moment, where startups leveraging AI in intelligent ways will have the right-to-win,” he added.

The company made investments in firms such as OrangeHealth which raised Series A funding from General Catalyst and Accel Partners, SimSim which was acquired by Google, and SolarSquare which raised a $13mn Series A funding led by Lowercarbon and Elevation Capital.

“We invest with deep conviction by being lead investors for every investment we make”, said Good Capital co-GP Rohan Malhotra.

Shreya Mishra, CEO and co-founder of SolarSquare, said that Good Capital has been instrumental in its growth “by first leading our Seed round and then introducing us to Lowercarbon Capital who led our Series A round.”

Vidit Aatrey, CEO and co-founder of Meesho, added that the VC fund worked with them “through several iterations of what eventually became Meesho’s business model and played a role in guiding us and helping us with challenges.”

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Microsoft, Accenture to support 13 Indian startups

Microsoft, Accenture to empower 13 Indian social impact startups.

The programme will also support the startups with testing and validating proofs-of-concept…reports Asian Lite News

Microsoft and Accenture on Wednesday announced the third cohort of the Project Amplify programme, which will support 13 Indian startups with solutions focusing on clean tech, circularity, regenerative agriculture, education and skilling.

The programme will also support the startups with testing and validating proofs-of-concept, reimagining the impact of their solutions through design thinking sessions, access to the latest technologies and guidance from experts at Microsoft and Accenture.

“Through our continued collaboration with Microsoft, we are applying our joint expertise to support social impact startups and help bring their solutions to our enterprise clients across the globe, scaling their impact,” Sanjay Podder, managing director and Technology Sustainability Innovation lead at Accenture, said in a statement.

Moreover, the programme will offer startups access to Microsoft technologies, including up to $1,50,000 in Azure credits, M365 and D365, Visual Studio and GitHub Enterprise access, enterprise-grade Azure engineering support, networking opportunities with other global social entrepreneurs and an array of go-to-market resources.

“In collaboration with Accenture and as part of our Entrepreneurship for Positive Impact Initiative, we are humbled to support bold innovators in India, driving systemic change through their sustainable businesses,” Jean-Philippe Courtois, Executive Vice President and President, National Transformation Partnerships, Microsoft, said in a statement.

Launched in 2020, previous cohorts of the programme focused on addressing issues in food safety, livelihood, education, sustainability, and skilling.

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LG teams up with Canadian startup for AI chips

LG Electronics.(photo:pixabay.com)

The collaboration is expected to boost “AI-enhanced features and high-performance computing in LG’s future premium TVs…reports Asian Lite News

LG Electronics and Canadian AI computing startup Tenstorrent said on Wednesday they are working together to develop next-generation chips that could potentially power the South Korean tech company’s smart consumer appliances and automotive products.

Tenstorrent, founded in 2016, builds computers for artificial intelligence (AI). CEO Jim Keller is a microprocessor engineer, best known for his work at AMD and Apple, reports Yonhap news agency.

The collaboration is expected to boost “AI-enhanced features and high-performance computing in LG’s future premium TVs, high-performance automotive chips and other smart products,” the Toronto-based tech company said.

“This collaboration is just the beginning. Tenstorrent’s market leading AI and RISC-V CPU technologies will strengthen SoC competitiveness of LG’s future products, while our longtime proven video codec technology will help Tenstorrent take control of data center high-performance processor markets,” said Byoung-hoon Kim, CTO of LG.

“Chiplets will be tested through this collaboration to see whether they can become a technology platform of collaboration. Tenstorrent and LG will share technology road maps and keep extending the scope of collaboration,” Kim added.

LG has stepped up its efforts to diversify its business portfolio in recent years, aggressively advancing into the electric vehicle (EV) component business, robotics and EV charging services, among others.

Its shares hit a 52-week high to close at 124,900 won on Tuesday over the rosy growth prospects for its future businesses.

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India becomes third largest startup ecosystem in the world

Govt goes bullish on startups with ESOP holiday, tax relief.

Despite funding slowdown, India continues to be the third largest tech startup ecosystem globally, with over 1,300 active tech startups added last year, taking the total tally of active tech startups to 25,000-27,000…reports Nishant Arora

As the ongoing funding winter and hiring slowdown continue to haunt the tech world, India saw a never-seen-before spurt in the number of startups being created across the spectrum in the last nine years that no other country witnessed.

Within a couple of years, India became the third largest startup ecosystem in the world, only behind the US and China.

The Indian startup ecosystem has been an unstoppable freight train. The tracks are firmly laid through corporate participation in the form of investments, acquisitions, and open innovation programmes, and government support, the momentum being fuelled by founders and funders alike, according to a latest report by Nasscom in collaboration with Zinnov, a management consulting firm.

Minister of State for Science and Technology, Jitendra Singh, said last month that the number of startups in the country has grown 300 times in the past nine years.

Addressing the National Innovation Awards event at the Rashtrapati Bhavan in Delhi, Singh said that India was home to just 350 startups before 2014, which has grown to more than 90,000 now.

Despite funding slowdown, India continues to be the third largest tech startup ecosystem globally, with over 1,300 active tech startups added last year, taking the total tally of active tech startups to 25,000-27,000.

India also added 23 unicorns in 2022 — the second highest figures in the world.

“Despite the current downturns, opportunities abound for innovative companies that are leveraging emerging technologies to create actionable impact while prioritising business fundamentals over growth,” according to Debjani Ghosh, President, Nasscom.

In August last year, India had crossed the 100-mark for unicorns.

In his monthly radio address eMann Ki Baat’ celebrating the feat, Prime Minister Narendra Modi had said that “the number of unicorns in the country has reached the figure of 100 and you surely know that a unicorn is a startup worth at least seven-and-a-half-thousand crore rupees. The total valuation of these unicorns is more than $330 billion, i.e., more than 25 lakh crore rupees.”

“Certainly, this is a matter of pride for every Indian. You will also be surprised to know that out of our total unicorns, 44 came up last year. Not only that, 14 more unicorns were formed in three-four months this year,” he had mentioned.

The Prime Minister had emphasised that today India’s startup ecosystem is not limited to just big cities, as entrepreneurs are emerging from smaller cities and towns as well, which shows that in India, the one who has an innovative idea can create wealth.

What’s more, 18 per cent startups have at least one woman founder or co-founder and at least 36 unicorns and potential unicorns in the country have at least one woman founder or a co-founder.

In order to boost more women representation in the startup ecosystem, the government has also announced a monthly allowance for startups with women as founder/co-founder of Rs 20,000 per month for a period of one year.

Union Minister of State for Electronics and IT, Rajeev Chandrasekhar, said last week that there is an urgent need to enhance cooperation between corporates, government, academia, and startups so that the talent pool in the country can further innovate and build solutions to solve real-life problems.

During his address at the CII Startups Summit, the minister emphasised on empowering startups via corporate and government collaboration.

“These are great times to increase the ties between corporates, government, academia and startups to help grow the innovation capabilities of our country and the innovation ecosystem capabilities in our country,” Chandrasekhar told the gathering.

He said that in the past nine years, the country has come a long way in empowering startups.

“These are exciting times for young entrepreneurs in India, as they have so many opportunities around them,” the minister added.

Chandrasekhar also said that the upcoming Digital India Act (DIA) will be an enabler for startup innovations in the country.

“Prime Minister Narendra Modi is very clear that anything the government does should not cause difficulties for innovation in the startup space,” he emphasised.

According to the Nasscom-Zinnov report, while the concern around dipping funding is understandable, a deeper analysis of market behaviour and investment trends shows that the startup ecosystem is not only equipped to survive the slowdown, but also continue with a renewed focus on investors and customers in 2023.

Given the strong fundamentals of the consumer demographic, third generation of entrepreneurs and a strong tech talent pool, the Indian startup ecosystem is poised to weather this storm.

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Kerala Startup Mission on top of world

Kerala Startup Mission

KSUM received major accolades in the last five years, adding to the momentum of its incubation activities that accelerated the growth of nascent firms…reports Asian Lite News

Kerala Startup Mission (KSUM), the nodal agency of the Kerala government for entrepreneurship development and incubation activities in the state, has been ranked as the world’s top public business incubator.

The ranking has been announced by the UBI Global World Benchmark Study 2021-2022 of Business Incubators and Accelerators, marking a major endorsement of its role in turning Kerala into a vibrant startup hub.

For arriving at this recognition, UBI Global assessed 1,895 organisations.

UBI Global is a Sweden-based innovation intelligence company and community founded in 2013 in Stockholm. The award was handed over at a function in Belgium .

“KSUM’s incubation programmes demonstrated exceptional value for client startups, value for the local ecosystem, and overall attractiveness as a programme. Following a rigorous data-driven approach, we assessed and benchmarked incubation organisations across the world,” said Head of Research at UBI Global, Joshuah Sowah.

The World Benchmark Study is conducted to identify the best programmes from around the world and share the best practices for building a robust startup ecosystem.

KSUM received major accolades in the last five years, adding to the momentum of its incubation activities that accelerated the growth of nascent firms.

In 2018, 2019 and 2021, the state was ranked as the top performer in the state startup rankings by Startup India, which comes under the Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT).

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Most Indians prefer big corporates jobs over startups

job.(photo:https://pixabay.com/)

Only 27 per cent of employees would still consider switching to startups for career growth….reports Asian Lite News

Given the prevailing economic uncertainties and the recent challenges faced by the startup ecosystem, 7 out of 10 (73 per cent) job seekers are now preferring large corporations over startups in India, a new report showed on Tuesday.

According to leading jobs and professional networking platform apna.co, job seekers are now preferring stable and established companies to work with and grow within the organisation instead of startups.

Only 27 per cent of employees would still consider switching to startups for career growth.

“India’s job market is evolving rapidly with changing preferences of job seekers who are now more inclined towards stable and established companies for better career growth prospects,” said Nirmit Parikh, Founder & CEO, apna.co.

The report included over 10,000 job seekers and 1,000 HR recruiters.

While employers are preferring a skills-first approach, the report mentioned that job seekers prioritise career growth opportunities, along with salary over location and commute, work-life balance and culture of the company, when searching for a job.

About 73 per cent of Indians consider career growth as the primary factor in their job search, even surpassing the importance of work-life balance and flexible working hours.

Around 9 out of 10 employers have recognised the importance of skilled professionals as a major criterion for hiring, however, only 6 out of 10 employers have implemented upskilling programmes in their organisations.

Moreover, the report said that employers are now looking for candidates with technical skills, especially for roles in the field of artificial intelligence, data science, and digital marketing.

Nearly 65 per cent of professionals consider requisite skills to be as crucial as a degree from a reputed institute to succeed in a job interview.

According to the report, women appear to place greater emphasis on relevant skills, with 77 per cent of female respondents indicating its importance as compared to 51 per cent of males.

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Good news for startups amid funding winter

Govt goes bullish on startups with ESOP holiday, tax relief.

The investors are still willing to place big bets on promising startups despite the overall decline in deal activity…reports Asian Lite News

As global VC deals took a major hit in the first quarter of this year, investors are still willing to place big bets on promising startups despite the overall decline in deal activity, a new report showed on Wednesday.

A total of 4,143 VC funding deals with disclosed funding value were announced globally in Q1 2023, which is a decline of 42.1 per cent compared to the 7,158 announced deals during Q1 2022, according to GlobalData.

The number of low-value VC deals (investment less than or equal to $10 million) announced globally witnessed a decline of 36.9 per cent from 4,685 in Q1 2022 to 2,954 in Q1 2023.

Meanwhile, the number of VC deals valued more than $100 million decreased by a massive 75.1 per cent from 321 in Q1 2022 to 80 in Q1 2023.

“Although the number of big-ticket deals is not too high, their comeback during the quarter despite the challenging market conditions is a reason to cheer for promising startups,” said Aurojyoti Bose, lead analyst at GlobalData.

The impact in Q1 was more prominent for high-value transactions. This indicates a potential shift in the VC landscape, as investors become more cautious and selective with their investments, revealed GlobalData, a leading data and analytics company.

“High-value transactions were impacted as VC investors remained cautious for committing big investments over the prevailing geopolitical conditions, macroeconomic challenges and recession fears,” said Bose.

Despite the decline, low value deals continued to dominate the VC funding landscape by registering the highest number of VC deals announced in this range globally during Q1 2023.

The share of low value deals as a percentage of the total VC deals volume with disclosed funding value stood at 71.3 per cent in Q1.

Meanwhile, VC deals valued at more than $1 billion, which were non-existent in Q1 2022, made a comeback in Q1 2023. The quarter saw the announcement of two VC deals valued at more than $1 billion, said the report.

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