Avaana Capital’s latest deeptech initiative is aimed at providing lab-to-market support for very early-stage, research-led deep tech ventures. Founding Partner, Anjali Bansal, in an interaction with Financial Express, says that investors are backing ventures that require patient capital. Excerpts:
Q1: How is the third deep-tech challenge different from earlier editions?
The third edition focuses on frontier technologies that build strategic capability across sectors like energy and mobility, supply chains, advanced materials, space, biotech, manufacturing, AI, and automation. The introduction of a new research track, Emerging Pioneers, is our response to a structural challenge we see in the ecosystem: the absence of lab-to-market support for very early-stage, research-led deep tech ventures.
Q2: Is there an effort to drive commercialisation?
While students and professors at academic institutions are creating extraordinary IP, much of it never reaches commercialisation due to lack of early access to industry, capital, and market feedback. The Emerging Pioneers track aims to address this gap by connecting high-potential pre-incorporation deep tech innovators to ecosystem networks, commercial validation pathways, and expert mentorship that helps them take the first real steps toward scale.
Q3: Would you say there is real innovation happening in the deeptech space?
Absolutely. Startups are building energy storage systems, grid intelligence solutions and new energy chemistries to meet rising power demand; developing next-gen EV powertrains and battery technologies that drive efficient electrification across mobility and industrial systems; commercialising engineered biomolecules and new-age materials that leapfrog legacy alternatives in performance and cost; and developing AI, quantum computing, robotics, automation and precision engineering solutions that transform manufacturing and supply chains. These are category-defining technologies with the potential to reshape foundational sectors and establish India as a global innovation hub.
Q4: How much progress have we made after a decade of the Start-Up India mission?
We have made immense progress – India is home to the third-largest startup ecosystem in the world, with over 2 lakh DPIIT-recognised startups, and entrepreneurship has become a core pillar of the country’s growth strategy. The past decade saw India unlock innovation through digital public infrastructure and service-led models in sectors like financial services, logistics, and e-commerce. The coming decade will be defined by research-led, IP-driven innovation that anchors India’s technology leadership and innovation-led growth.
Q5: Is there adequate capital flowing into Indian deep tech startups ?
Deep tech ventures typically demand longer timelines and more iterative development cycles, requiring capital that is both patient and deeply informed. It is encouraging to see that India’s capital architecture is evolving to meet this need. Specialised VCs like Avaana Capital bring not just funding, but also the technical depth, business-building support and strategic ecosystem partnerships required to build transformative, large-scale businesses.
Q6: Could you give us a couple of examples of successful deeptechs?
A growing cohort of emerging players are also rapidly gaining traction in frontier sectors—Enlite’s AI-native building automation platform is transforming infrastructure autonomy at scale; Dreamfly is supplying high-performance, purpose-built battery systems for emerging aerial use cases; Wastelink is transforming FMCG food waste into resilient animal feed. Companies like Dharaksha, BacAlt and GreenGrahi are using industrial biomanufacturing processes to create new materials with the potential to drive efficiency across multiple industries by replacing legacy alternatives.
Q7: How much of $135 mn climate and sustainability fund has been invested?
We have been actively deploying capital from our current fund, and today have 18 pioneering deep tech companies in our portfolio. The quality of innovation we are seeing across energy, mobility, supply chains, manufacturing, automation, robotics, AI, quantum computing, biotech, and new materials give us strong conviction in the opportunity ahead. We intend to remain deeply engaged with these sectors in future cycles as well. ENDS