The Tamil Nadu government is making significant move in strengthening startup ecosystem in the state. The initiative, StartupTN, is backed by a funding of ₹80 crore and even partnerships with more than 200 venture capital firms.
TANFUND platform is in the forefront of the initiative. It aims to attract more venture capitalists to invest in local startups. StartupTN Managing Director and CEO Sivarajah Ramanathan highlighted the mission that is to create a dynamic startup ecosystem in the state and fuels innovation as well as economic growth. He was addressing the participants at the Tamil Nadu Startup Summit 2024.
StartupTN has introduced a credit course for engineering students and it named as the ‘Naan Mudhalvan’ initiative. The initiative has also launched the Campus Startup Circle model in collaboration with the Entrepreneurship Development and Innovation Institute (EDII).
The Tamil Nadu government is simultaneously also focusing on innovation in the technology sector. It established iTNT Hub (Tamil Nadu Technology Hub) with an investment of ₹54.76 crore that aims to guide, develop and support startups.
iTNT Hub CEO Vanitha Venugopal said that the focus is on global collaborations and to bring world-class solutions through research and development. The state is trying to connect the startups with global accelerators, investors and markets through its International Pavilion Programme.
Impact of such recent efforts is evident in the rapid growth of startup ecosystem in the state. Tamil Nadu now houses more than 120 incubators and around 5,000 startups in Chennai alone. Its startup ecosystem is valued at USD 28 billion and learned been growing at 23%. All these reflect the broader trend of India’s expanding startup sector.
