The stage is set, and in a short while from now we will be listening to industry leaders, innovators, policymakers, founders, and thought leaders as they take a long hard look at the startup ecosystem of India with the ‘funding winter’ in hindsight.
Are you attending the ET Soonicorns Summit 2024 in Bengaluru today? There is still time to register and attend this revamped and repurposed event, and it will be worth the rush.
To register: Click Here
This is the third, and first-ever ticketed edition of the summit and has been themed, ‘From Resurgence to Resilience’ with a core messaging or call for startups to ‘Recalibrate. Rebound. Reinvent’—aimed at outlining the future of the Indian startup ecosystem.
On an action-packed day, the summit will host some goal-driven and forward-looking discussions designed to identify gaps in the ecosystem, bid adieu to practices that did not yield the desired results, and adopt a future-oriented approach to stay ahead of AI-led disruptions.
Discover the stories of your interest
Here is an overview of what is on agenda for the summit today. The keynote address and report launch
BV Naidu, Chairman, Karnataka Digital Economy Mission (KDEM) will deliver the keynote address titled, ‘From Resilience to Resurgence with Sustainable Business Models’.
He will share his insights into the role of KDEM in bridging the knowledge gap between the Indian startup ecosystem and the government of Karnataka. The chairman will also talk about the initiatives of Karnataka government towards nurturing the startup ecosystem in and “beyond” Bengaluru.
The chairman is also scheduled to unveil the ET 50 Future Unicorns of Karnataka report, in collaboration with Tracxn, a Bengaluru-based data intelligence firm, which dives deep into the landscape of soonicorns, showcasing Karnataka’s most promising startups.
Quick-commerce buzz
Quick commerce has altered India’s retail and last-mile delivery landscape post-pandemic, and the sector is slated to show exponential growth going forward. The potential can be gauged from the fact that between 2022 and 2023 the quick commerce sector in India grew by a mammoth 70% to $2.3 billion.
Obviously, investments too are growing in the sector and it is expected to touch the $5.5 billion mark by 2025. At the Soonicorns Summit 2024, we will have Hari Menon, Co-Founder of BigBasket—a Bengaluru-headquartered online grocery store, currently owned by Tata Digital–in conversation with Digbijay Mishra, Deputy Editor, ET Tech.
Menon will speak about:
- The exponential growth of quick commerce
- The way forward for the sector
- The ascend of BigBasket as a major player
- Big Basket’s playbook for manoeuvring the competition
Beyond hope and uncertainty
The Venture Capital (VC) ecosystem has shown exemplary resilience through a prolonged furnding winter, which manifested through a squeeze on the volume as well as the number of the VC deals in the past few years.
The funding plummeted by a substantial 65%–from $27.5 billion in 2022 to just $9.6 billion in 2023–per a 2024 report by Bain and Company in collaboration with the Indian Venture Capital Association (IVCA).
The turnaround is palpable, however, and a funding spring looks imminent with the VC funding, in H1 of the current year growing by a sizeable 45% from the H2 of 2o23.
The panel titled, ‘Surge in Investor Interest: Vision and Outlook of the Indian VC Ecosystem Beyond Hype and Uncertainty,’ at the summit will explore the way forward, strewn with optimism as well as caution.
The speakers include:
- Prayank Swaroop, Partner at Accel
- Amit Somani, Managing Partner, Prime Ventures
- Anand Datta, Partner, Nexus Venture Partners
- Ritesh Banglani, Partner, Stellaris Venture Partners
- Kanika Mayar, Partner, Vertex Ventures
- Vinod Nair, Co-Founder, Enzen Group and Mirai Ventures
This is your chance to learn from the best in the business about resilience, recalibration, and forward-looking strategies to navigate the funding landscape in difficult circumstances as well as through the ease that looks imminent.
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Homecoming heroes
Reverse flipping or homecoming is a phenomenon where startups originally incorporated at offshore locations are now relocating to India. The trend has witnessed a remarkable uptick with favourable government policies in India, and other factors that are in stride with the interests of the business owners.
At the Soonicorns summit we have Abhishek Dubey, Partner at Trilegal – M&A, Venture Capital & Private Equity, and Ramakant Sharma, Founder and COO, Livspace. The two of them, equipped with their legal acumen and hands-on experience of the subject, will take us through the intricacies of ‘homecoming’ and answer any pertinent questions.
English-speaking machines?
Artificial Intelligence (AI) and machine learning is driving the next wave of innovation, while getting innovated upon almost in real time. Will there be a time when AI and machine integration will reach a level where we can speak English to machines? Will there be a time when coding language will be obsolete and the machines will follow simple English commands to produce results?
All this and more in this Fireside chat with Mayank Kumar, Co-founder and MD of Upgrad, titled, ‘The Future of Learning: Will Future Developers Speak English to Machines?’
This is the future! Stay ahead of time with some deep, intriguing insights into AI and machine learning from the best in the business.
Breaking barriers
A report, Women India Startup Ecosystem, by WISER establishes that women-led startups have shown an 18% spike in the last half a decade. However, when it comes to funding, they have received a meagre 5% of the $10 billion raised by startups last year. This is a spiral down from 9% of the $25 billion raised in the year 2022.
Where does this disparity stem from? Is there a way forward to bridge this gender gap? Do investors need to repose more trust in women founders and their startups than they have been, traditionally?
At the Soonicorns summit, we have curated a panel titled, ‘Women in the Indian Startup Ecosystem: Breaking barriers and bridging the gender funding gap,’ wherein some women stalwarts from the ecosystem will put forth key insights and talk about the way forward.
The speakers include:
- Jo Aggarwal, Founder & CEO, Wysa
- Shanti Mohan, Founder, LetsVenture & trica
- Shally Modi, Co-founder, Pratilipi
- Minu Margeret, Founder, BlissClub
- Rashmi Daga, Founder, FreshMenu
Striking a balance
India presently ranks third in digital payments, across the world, with an impressive 87% Fintech adoption rate, all thanks to the Digital India initiative and a rapidly growing smartphone penetration across the rural-urban divide.
New frontiers keep emerging, be it payments, credit, credit cards, Buy Now Pay Later, or others—and amid the ever-expanding demand the concerns about consumer protection are also growing.
In this panel, we will learn the nuances of fintech, treading the tightrope between innovation and regulation, and the way forward in this all important sector, topping the charts in valuation as well as in funding.
The discussion will be held under the panel, ‘Fintech: How to strike a balance between the regulatory lens and growth?’ with some industry stalwarts on the podium.
The speakers include:
- Akash Sinha, Co-founder and CEO, Cashfree Payments
- Hardika Shah, Founder & CEO, Kinara Capital
- Anand Prabhudesai, Co-Founder, Turtlemint
- Mridul Gupta, Founding Partner, CoinDCX
Learning from the mistakes
We make mistakes, and learn from them to soar further and to make amends. This one story of learning from the mistakes, of oneself and of others, stands out.
Author and entrepreneur, Kim Hvidkjaer, became a millionaire at 29 and then lost it all. His story of resurrection, and studying thousands of startups to identify the mistakes—How to F*ck Up Your Startup: The Science Behind Why 90% of Companies Fail—and How You Can Avoid It—has become a Wall Street Journal best-seller.
The Soonicorns summit is pleased to have a pre-recorded session, ‘How not to be the 90% of Startups: Kim Hvidkjaer Shares Critical Mistakes to Avoid,’ with the entrepreneur-author. Register and learn how to avoid the common mistakes the startup founders commit.
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The models of GenAI growth and countering deep fakes
Artificial Intelligence (AI), when integrated with business, provides colossal opportunities for startups to grow, and take their entities beyond the traditional markers of success.
The AI landscape, however, comes with crucial responsibilities as well vis-à-vis policies, perspectives, deep fakes, inauthentic content, and the all-important ethical aspect.
We are all set to take a deep dive into the subject with a TED-talk, and a panel discussion—dissecting all the important questions and paving the way forward towards a safer AI and deep-tech integration with businesses.
First up, we will have Sangeeta Bavi, Executive Director – Digital Natives, at Microsoft India, speak about, ‘Empowering India’s Deep Tech & AI Landscape: Policies, Perspectives, and India-First Models for GenAI Growth,’ in her TED-talk.
Following this the round-table conversation titled, ‘Countering Deep Fakes, Inauthentic Content: Responding to the Ethical AI Imperative Through India’s AI Policy and Global Regulations’ will be held among speakers, including:
- Siddharth Bhardwaj, Co-founder and CTO at Beatoven.ai
- Umakant Soni, Chairman AI foundry & Co-founder ARTPARK
- Sachin Malhan, Co-Founder, Agami
- Vinay Rai, Executive Vice President Engineering, Netradyne
Cracking the fundraising code
Startup founders, the early-stage ones in particular, often have the odds of uncertainty and myths stacked against them when it comes to fundraising. Every single one of them wishes, or has wished, someone to do a little hand-holding and guide them through this most important aspect of the startup ecosystem.
For the first time in India, that hand-holding is going to happen. We, at the Soonicrons Summit, will tell you how to raise money—the single most important aspect of entrepreneurship in India.
This is unprecedented and we have the best of the minds to dissect the subject threadbare for founders, investors, and everyone who needs and wants to learn the nuances of fundraising.
Sanjay Khan Nagra, Khaitan & Co; Amit Ramani, CMD, Awfis Space Solutions and Neeraj Tyagi, Co-founder & CEO, We Founder Circle and Partner, Avinya VC will clear the myths and the uncertainties for you in the panel titled, ‘Step-wise: Conquering the Startup Ladder from Series A to Pre-IPO.’
What are you waiting for? Register now
Survival of the fittest
Jitendra Chouksey, Founder, FITTR calls himself an “accidental entrepreneur” and a “regular guy into fitness and stuff”. At the ET Soonicorns Summit 2024, Chouksey will talk, in a Fireside Chat, about ‘Survival of the Fittest: Jitendra Chouksey’s Secrets of Navigating Fit-tech and Building a Strong Business Core’.
Learn some of the ‘fittest’ strategies in navigating the startup landscape with success from this author of the best-selling book Lose Fat, Get Fittr.
Aman’s love, to India
Aman Gupta, Co-founder and CMO, boAt, has masterfully crafted a household product-centric brand of wearables and audio devices in a market that is services-driven.
Wouldn’t it be intriguing to learn how he orchestrated the feat, single handedly and has sustained in the market with an out and out product-driven success. What is his formula?
Let us learn from the man himself! We have a Fireside Chat titled, ‘To India with Love: Aman Gupta on Orchestrating boAt’s Product-driven Success,’ with him. Expect him to come up with some profound insights and actionable strategies you can replicate for your own startups.
India’s SaaS ambitions
India’s global share of the Software-as-a-Service products has been stagnant at a meagre 6% since 2022. Reason being that a macroeconomic correction at the global level has forced many large enterprises in India to cut down on their SaaS spending.
Having said that, the way forward looks bright for the Indian SaaS industry—riding high on a pool of skilled tech workforce, favourable government policies, customised services, prioritising security, and a global recognition.
The global share is expected to rise by a promising 2% in the next four years—taking the market size of SaaS products in the country to $37 billion, from the present $12 billion. By 2030, this figure is expected to swell to $50 billion.
At the Soonicorns Summit we have Mitesh Shah, Co-founder, Inflection Point Ventures; Lalit Bhise, CEO & Founder of Bizom; Yamini Bhat, Co-founder & CEO, Vymo; and Tarun Joshi, Founder & CEO of IGP.com to share their valuable insights on ‘Expanding the Indian SaaS Footprint at Home and Abroad: Scaling Strategies to Achieve the $37B Target.’
A step towards zero-emission
India’s ambition to achieve net-zero emissions by 2070, as outlined at COP26, is a noteworthy commitment in wake of global warming and the challenges that lie ahead.
Sustainability is the way forward, and it comes in the form of space-tech, climate-tech, clean energy, and a gradual shift towards Electric Vehicles (EVs).
Join our expert panellists as they tap into the sunrise sector of electric vehicles (EVs), and the emerging realms of climate and clean-tech, to determine how these are positioned to drive India’s growth in the foreseeable future.
The speakers dissecting the topic, ‘Building for Tomorrow: Insights from Changemakers in India’s Space Tech, Climate Tech, Clean Energy, and EV Sectors,’ include:
- Srinath Ravichandran, Co-Founder & CEO at AgniKul
- Sriram Kannan Founder & CEO at Routematic
- Madhur Jain, Co-Founder & CEO, Varaha
- Kajal Shah, Co-Founder & CEO, Dreamfly Innovations
- Akshay Shekhar, Co-Founder and CEO, Kazam
And that is not it! We have a ‘startup showcase’ presentation lined up by Mukul Rustagi, CEO & Co-Founder, Classplus, as well.
Do not miss this chance to learn everything about the ever-evolving startup landscape of India, and get exclusive access to actionable insights into playbooks of success by the who’s who of the industry.
ET Soonicorns Summit is powered by Phoenix Kessaku. Upskilling Partner: UpGrad Enterprise; Insurance Partner: PolicyBazaar for Business; Banking Partner: Bank of India. Gifting Partners: IGP.com; The Mind and Company, Plum, Clay Capital.
To learn more about the ET Soonicorns Summit, visit the website
To register now, click here