IIT Madras launches ₹1,000cr Unicorn Frontier Fund, 1st close ₹450cr
IIT Madras just rolled out the ₹1,000 crore Unicorn Frontier Fund, which has achieved a first close at ₹450 crore, aimed at giving deep-tech startups a real boost.
The announcement happened in Bengaluru with Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman present, and the fund has already backed companies like Hathor and Quanstra with about ₹55 crore.
Fund targets space defense semiconductors healthtech
The focus is on next-generation sectors: think space, defense, semiconductors, and health tech.
Startups need to have proven products (beyond TRL 4) to get support, with hopes of seeing steady state deep tech IPOs coming out of this Fund by 2030 or 2032.
A lot of the funding comes from IIT Madras alumni in India and abroad, clients of the Research Park ecosystem itself, and some of the banking financial institutions and family offices; as Natarajan Malupillai from IIT Madras Research Park put it, alumni involvement is making a real difference for India's startup scene.