Jitin Prasada: India is Building the Foundation to Lead the World in Tech, Manufacturing

With over 2 lakh DPIIT [Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade]-recognised start-ups and more than 110 unicorns, the spirit of entrepreneurship has reached every corner of the country. Nearly half of our new ventures now bloom in Tier-II and -III cities.

Now, the focus is moving from just ‘numbers’ to ‘depth’. The next decade of leadership will come from start-ups building deep technologies and strong intellectual property in areas like AI [artificial intelligence], semiconductors, cybersecurity, electronics, climate tech and biotech.

To make this happen, MeitY is putting its full weight behind programmes like TIDE 2.0 [Technology Incubation and Development of Entrepreneurs], which has already supported 1,706 start-ups and Digital India GENESIS [Gen-Next Support for Innovative Start-ups], which is building capacity in smaller towns through 65 incubation centres and 513 entrepreneurs-in-residence, with funding ranging from ₹10 lakh–1cr.

Programmes like Digital India and the India Semiconductor Mission have quietly changed the game for our hardware and deep-tech start-ups. With Make in India, backed by PLI [production-linked incentive] schemes and EMC [Electronic Manufacturing Cluster] 2.0, start-ups are now moving into real production.

To sustain this growth outside the metros, we have SAMRIDH [Start-up Accelerator of MeitY for Product Innovation, Development and Growth], which has already supported 241 start-ups with capital and market access, and regional pipelines are being strengthened through GENESIS, TIDE 2.0 and NGIS [Next Generation Incubation Scheme].

It is getting much more practical for hardware teams now. Start-ups can now access a huge pool of 38,000 GPUs [graphics processing units] at the National Data Centre [in Delhi].

We have already provided around ₹1,085cr in subsidies to help over 270 start-ups manage these high costs. Plus, 10 big semiconductor projects have already been approved, and we have already seen 24 applications cleared for financial support to develop chips for sectors like automotive and communications.

By using regulatory sandboxes and talking to everyone involved, we test new ideas in AI, Web3 and EVs [electric vehicles] in the real world before making formal laws. This, combined with better data governance and ethical AI principles, gives our start-ups the confidence to build for the global market.

We are giving founders a clear path now. The government brought out the India AI Governance Guidelines to provide a solid framework. The notification of the DPDP Rules in late 2025 has also become a real ‘North Star’ for regulatory clarity. We have even set up the IndiaAI Safety Institute using a hub-and-spoke model to manage risks while keeping the pace of innovation high.

Start-ups don’t have to build huge factories right away; they can focus on specialised parts and design. Through PLI schemes and EMC 2.0, start-ups can now partner with big manufacturers and use common-facility centres. We have also reformed public procurement. Platforms like GeM [government e-marketplace] and start-up-friendly rules mean that a small company can now easily land its first big contract with the government or a PSU.

To help start-ups fit in better, we are structuring PLI schemes so they can act as technology suppliers or contract manufacturers for larger organisations.

We are also providing better testing and certification support so that meeting standards does not become a burden for smaller teams, allowing them to focus on niche manufacturing where their agility is a major advantage.

MeitY’s programmes like GENESIS, TIDE 2.0, NGIS and SAMRIDH are designed for exactly this, especially in Tier-II and -III cities. By linking money with mentoring and market access, we are making sure a great idea can grow into a strong company, no matter which town the founder is from. We are also using a balanced funding style with 40% grants and 60% equity to make sure start-ups have long-term support.

For those looking to grow internationally, the IndiaAI Start-ups Global programme is helping 10 start-ups enter the European market by partnering with [start-up incubators] Station F and HEC Paris.

Everyone knows about Aadhaar and UPI but we are now moving to the next level. We are building full ecosystems for health, education, credit and logistics that are open and easy to use, with AI-enabled features, multilingual access and robust consent frameworks. To ensure we have the right talent, we are proposing the NIELIT [National Institute of Electronics and Information Technology] Digital University to teach advanced digital skills.

The next big thing here is AIKosh, which already offers over 7,000 datasets and 264 models for start-ups to build on. UIDAI [Unique Identification authority of India] is also creating a framework for offline verification seeking entities so that businesses can verify identities without needing to store biometric data. There is even a UIDAI Sandbox now where start-ups can test their Aadhaar-based ideas in a safe environment.

India will not just be chasing scale, we will be a net exporter of innovation. One can see the confidence in sectors like semiconductors and AI. Under the ₹76,000cr semiconductor mission, we have approved five major units with over ₹1.5 lakh cr in investments from the Tata group, Micron and others, while also supporting 100-plus chip design start-ups through the DLI scheme.

Regarding AI leadership India is now 3rd globally in AI preparedness and 2nd in talent, with 95% of our AI value coming from actual enterprise use cases rather than just hype.  

We are evolving from being market-led to becoming a global hub for technology ownership.