National Startup Day 2025: As startup India turns 9, top voices share blueprint for future growth – SME News

India’s entrepreneurial landscape has transformed over the past decade or more, and National Startup Day serves as a powerful reminder of this milestone. Over the past decade, startups in India have gone beyond being just disruptors; they’ve become cornerstones of economic growth, innovation, and global recognition. From leveraging deep tech to solving grassroots problems, Indian startups are bridging gaps across industries and geographies.  

India’s thriving startup ecosystem owes much to its robust support infrastructure, including government initiatives like Startup India and state-level policies, as well as the growing pool of talent and digital connectivity. With a youthful population and an increasing appetite for technology-driven solutions, Indian startups are not only solving domestic challenges but also addressing global problems. 

On this occasion, here’s a closer look at the voices who have been part of this change—startup founders, investors, and ecosystem builders—sharing their reflections on what makes India a thriving hub for innovation and what the future path looks like:

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Saurabh Srivastava, Co-founder, Indian Angel Network & Former Chairman, Nasscom 

Path to Viksit Bharat

The launch of Startup India nine years ago marked a pivotal moment, reviving our inherent spirit of enterprise. With initiatives like the government e-marketplace portal, reduced compliance burdens, and thriving domestic venture capital ecosystems, India has laid the foundation for a vibrant startup culture. Sectors like space, defence, agritech, artificial intelligence, and renewable energy are now teeming with opportunities, fuelling solutions for global markets and local challenges alike. 
 
The creation of digital public infrastructure such as UID, UPI, and the open network for digital commerce has positioned India as a global leader in fostering innovation at scale. Today, entrepreneurship is aspirational, celebrated in the media, and embraced by the brightest minds of our nation, paving the way for the government’s Viksit Bharat vision by 2047.

Kuppulakshmi Krishnamoorthy, Global Head of Zoho, Startups 

Bottlenecks

It is important to ensure that startups are equipped with the tools and skills required to build sustained business resilience. Digital adoption is still one of the biggest hurdles for many early-stage businesses, whether it is the high costs, lack of expertise, or the complexities of integration.   

Additionally, to gain a competitive edge startups need to invest in building robust customer experience (CX), driven by empathy. This enables them to not only retain existing customers, but attract new ones, and ultimately build long-term brand loyalty. 

Rajat Tandon, President, IVCA 

Focus on collaboration

Startup India has been instrumental in shaping a thriving entrepreneurial ecosystem, empowering startups to innovate and scale globally. As we celebrate this milestone, it’s vital to focus on fostering collaboration, building a robust support system, and unlocking new opportunities for startups to continue driving innovation and economic growth. Congratulation to the Startup India team. 

Rahul Nainwal, CEO, Runway Incubator and Director, School of Business, UPES  

Need for more incubators

As of October 2024, India boasted only about 1,100 active incubators. What we must realise is that incubated startups are two and a half times more likely to secure funding than their non-incubated counterparts and churn out higher revenues. With only 0.8 incubators per million people in India—compared to 8–10 in countries like the U.S. and China—there is an urgent need to establish more incubators to support the growing economy by giving a boost to the startup ecosystem. 

This is where university incubators come in. They bridge academic expertise with entrepreneurial support, promoting innovation in deep tech like AI and ML, and other technologies needed to navigate into the future of business. 

Ankit Kedia, Founder and Lead Investor, Capital-A  

Rise of entrepreneurship in small cities

Once considered niche or high-risk, sectors like hardware, manufacturing, and climate tech are now driving innovation in the Indian startup landscape. This evolution goes beyond funding ideas—it’s about empowering visionaries tackling challenges that matter on a global scale. Policies like the National Deep Tech Policy and PLI schemes have been pivotal, instilling confidence in startups to dream big and aim higher.  

What stands out most is the surge of entrepreneurial energy from Tier 2 and Tier 3 cities, reflecting a truly democratized spirit of innovation. National Startup Day is a call to action—a reminder to keep pushing boundaries and establish India as the global hub for innovation and excellence.

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