The Karnataka government is investing Rs 600 crore in Deep Tech and AI, and along with leading venture capital firms to create a joint fund of over Rs 1,000 crore to support start-ups in these sectors in the state, IT Minister Priyank Kharge said.
“We are concentrating heavily on DeepTech and AI. For the first time, we are having the Future Makers Conclave, where we have tied up with private venture capitalists, and together we are disbursing close to around Rs 1,100 crore on a single platform on November 20 to DeepTech startups,” the Minister said at Bengaluru Tech Summit.
Kharge added that the initiative aims to develop a Deep Tech pipeline supporting entrepreneurs working on technologies such as AI, ML, quantum computing, advanced manufacturing, robotics, and sustainability-driven innovation. “Our blueprint is ready, and we are serious about being global players in the technology landscape,” he said.
Segment-wise grant
According to an official statement by the state government, the Rs 600 crore investment in Deep Tech includes Rs 150 crore for the Deep Tech Elevate Fund, with a special focus on AI and frontier technologies, Rs 80 crore under the Elevate Beyond Bengaluru Fund to promote start-ups in Mysuru, Mangaluru, Hubballi-Dharwad and Kalaburagi; Rs 75 crore through the KITVEN Fund for equity-based investments in Deep Tech and AI start-ups, with funding between Rs 50 lakh and Rs 2 crore.
The fund also includes Rs 48 crore for new incubators and accelerators at IIT Dharwad, IIIT Dharwad and Kalaburagi, and Rs 110 crore for business incubators in higher education institutions, nurturing early innovation and entrepreneurship across 11 institutions already cleared by the Cabinet.
The government also plans to establish six globally benchmarked “Centres of Excellence” across state clusters with a budget outlay of Rs 90 crore to drive R&D, talent development and industry–academia collaboration in sectors like software, biotech, deftronics, semiconductors, quantum, AI/ML, robotics, blockchain and space tech. In addition, Rs 25 crore will be provided to set up innovation labs in schools across the state, the statement added.