ET Startup Awards: Satyan Gajwani sees startups embrace deep tech
At the ET Startup Awards 2026, Satyan Gajwani highlighted how India's startup world is moving beyond fintech and e-commerce into deep tech areas like AI, robotics, and chip-making.
He credits this leap to strong government support and investors willing to play the long game.
He shared that the shift from fintech and commerce to deep technology is a huge step forward for Indian startups.
India tops 250,000 startups, 2.5 million jobs
Thanks to new policies, India now has over 250,000 recognized startups creating nearly 2.5 million jobs.
Gajwani pointed out that while closing the AI gap will take deep research, serious compute, entrepreneurial vision, and patient capital, India's growing ecosystem, and initiatives like the ₹10,000 crore Fund of Funds, make him optimistic about global impact.
He also celebrated Skyroot Aerospace's Vikram-1 rocket launch as a milestone for private space innovation in India: But if a startup can put a rocket into orbit from Sriharikota, I have no doubt this ecosystem can build AI that the world will want to use.