- Sixth annual symposium highlights entrepreneur-led deep-tech growth and policy focus
Indian Institute of Technology Madras’ (IIT Madras) Gopalakrishnan-Deshpande Centre for Innovation and Entrepreneurship (GDC) organised its sixth Annual GDC Symposium, themed ‘Democratising Innovation and Entrepreneurship in India’. Organised on Saturday, the symposium brought national focus on the role of the entrepreneur as the central driver of India’s deep-tech and innovation-led growth. More importantly, the symposium debated how to increase the focus of policymaking, mentorship and funding on “building capable entrepreneurs” as a missing piece of the scaling innovation puzzle in India.
The symposium highlighted a critical gap in the ecosystem — the sustained development of an entrepreneurial mindset and skills. Speakers emphasised that while technology, funding and infrastructure are essential, long-term entrepreneurial success depends on mentoring, nurturing and capability-building of individuals, particularly in deep-tech ventures with long gestation periods.
During his keynote address, Lakshmi Narayanan, co-founder and former vice chairman, Cognizant Technology Solutions, said, “Scientists and researchers can be entrepreneurial in more ways than one. Besides launching startups to bring their innovations to market, scientists can also be equally impactful by solving difficult technological challenges within the framework of large corporations or government projects. Such successful outcomes are also entrepreneurial successes, which GDC and IIT Madras should encourage.”
Shivkumar Kalyanaraman, CEO, Anusandhan National Research Foundation (ANRF), delivered the second keynote address via videoconferencing and explained the programmes and initiatives of ANRF for catalysing research and translation into impact. ANRF has operationalised a number of programmes in the current financial year, including multiple ANRF MAHA mission-mode programmes across sectors such as electric mobility, 2D materials, AI for science and engineering, medtech and critical raw materials.
ANRF has also rolled out Pair and PM Professorship programmes for uplifting research in emerging institutions, ATRI translational programmes and fundamental research programmes including ANRF ARG, PM ECRG, NPDF, Ramanujan Fellowship, JC Bose Grants, National Science Chair and convergence centres at the intersection of humanities, social sciences and science and technology. The Rs 1 lakh crore RDI patient capital fund is also being operationalised, housed within ANRF with the Department of Science and Technology as the anchor ministry.
The symposium explored whether India is investing sufficiently — and in the right areas — to train and prepare entrepreneurs aligned with the national vision of Viksit Bharat 2047. Discussions underscored that cultivating business acumen, resilience and decision-making is vital to translating cutting-edge research into market-ready solutions.
Speaking on the occasion, V Kamakoti, Director, IIT Madras, said, “Democratisation of education and entrepreneurship is happening in a big way at IIT Madras. The online BS programme has enabled nearly 50,000 students, many from financially weaker families, to access quality education. IIT Madras is also enabling startups and entrepreneurs from across India to learn from its labs, incubators, faculty and GDC programmes.”
A panel discussion on ‘How Policy in India is Enabling Democratisation of Innovation and Entrepreneurship’, chaired by Kris Gopalakrishnan, chairman, Axilor Ventures, featured Lakshmi Narayanan, Shashank Shah, director (senior specialist – education), NITI Aayog; and Adithya Jain, co-founder and CEO, Tvasta Technologies. Shah referred to NITI Aayog’s ongoing study, with GDC IIT Madras as the knowledge partner, covering over 100 incubators across 18 States. The study will provide policy inputs to advance incubation ecosystems in higher education institutions to support India’s goal of becoming a global startup capital.
On the sidelines of the symposium, around 15 deep-tech startups from across India showcased their innovations, offering policymakers, investors and mentors direct insight into the aspirations and challenges of India’s next generation of founders.
