As the scope of funding options for startups is broadening as new financing sources are gaining more importance, we are also witnessing a significant evolution in the traditional sources. VC Funds are for instance increasingly focused on specific technology sectors – notably AI, Deep Tech, Bio-Tech – while corporate VCs are looking more and more at strategic value creation in their collaboration with startups, instead of looking only at financial returns. At the same time, new forms of funding are gaining ground such as blended ones combining different sources of funding, or cross-border crowdfunding with the emergence of global platforms.

• What does this diversification and evolution of funding sources mean for startup founders looking at forms of financing that will best support their development while protecting their long-term interest?
• While some investors are now relying on Data or/and AI to decide on which startups to support, what are the limits of this approach?
• Given wider funding options for startup founders, how is the role of investors evolving beyond being a capital provider?

Addressing infrastructure challenges to sustain Data Centers’ expansion

India is planning to devote $200 billion investments to expand the country’s data center capacity and related compute infrastructure, as it is now among the fastest-growing digital infrastructure markets. However, The challenge is not only of a financial nature. Such a rapid expansion cannot be sustained without major infrastructure developments in power generation capacity, and grid upgrades, expansion of cooling and water resources management, new regulatory frameworks, and the creation of the necessary skilled workforce.

As we transition towards a new global balance of forces and the tremendous potential of frontier technologies keeps expanding, geopolitics and technology innovation are getting ever more intertwined. Technology is increasingly weaponized in the economic and geopolitical domains. Crucial strategic interests are at stake in the battle for digital sovereignty for several countries, including India, whose prosperity, security and standing in the world will rest on their ability to develop a technology capability that will shelter them to a maximum possible extent from technology dependency or coercion.

• What are the implications of the fragmentation of the global technology landscape?
• How to look at digital sovereignty beyond the national ability to control and govern its digital infrastructure, data, and technologies?
• What techno-economic alliances will help strengthen the position of India as a rising technology power?
• What initiatives to secure a place at the tables where rules on the governance of frontier technologies are being discussed?

• The picture: where does India stand today in fintech?
• How can fintech startups scale across borders while navigating vastly different regulatory and licensing regimes?
• What models of cross-border venture funding and partnerships would help fintech innovators reach underserved markets?
• How might AI, blockchain, and embedded finance reshape cross-border financial ecosystems over the next few years?
• Leveraging the potential of digital public goods in the fintech sector as global marketable exports

Corporate perspectives on accelerating the development of India’s semiconductors sector

India’s government has set strategic goals for the development of the semiconductor sector aiming to position the country as an alternative hub in global semiconductor supply chains. Ten projects have already been approved under the auspices of India Semiconductor Mission with a total investment of about US$ 19 billion. The private sector is , from its part, putting the emphasis on specific initiatives – many of them complementary to the government’s approach – to accelerate the development of the semiconductor sector.

• What are some of the priority approaches advocated by the private sector?
• How could they complement the government projects and initiatives?

Moving from startup to corporation status represents one of the most challenging moments in the company’s life. This implies a change of mindset, the blending of the entrepreneurial driven with corporate governance discipline and operational rigor, a permanent attention to financial markets expectations, the acquisition of some key financial knowledge, etc.

• What are the biggest cultural and/or operational shifts startups face after going public?
• How to manage post-IPO development effectively?
• What lessons do companies typically learn within their first year post-IPO?

• The picture: where does India stand today in defense?
• What models of international defense R&D collaboration have proved to be effective without compromising nation security imperatives?
• Which dual-use technologies applications (AI, robotics, cybersecurity) present the most realistic opportunities for cross-border innovation in the defense sector?
• How is the “Make in India” policy being translated into actions when it comes to the defense sector?

Keynote speech

• The picture: where does India stand today in biotech and Healthtech?
• What role can cross-ecosystems collaboration play in accelerating India’s biotechnology growth over the next decade?
• What regulatory changes would make international biotech collaboration with India smoother and faster?
• What would make foreign universities and research institutes collaborate more effectively with Indian labs in frontier biotechnology areas?
• How can India leverage cross-ecosystems collaborations to expand its bio-manufacturing capacity?

With the world’s top three shipbuilding players – China, Japan and Korea – fully booked until the end of 2028, India is now trying to seize the opportunity to emerge as a top shipbuilding destination. This new strategic goal is also driven by the ambition to be recognized as a major maritime power by 2027, defense imperatives and the need to sustain the country’s increasing global trade. The government has set-up plans for developing eight mega shipbuilding and repair clusters. An eight billion dollars investment scheme has been adopted to run over the next five years.

• What assets can India mobilize to overcome the competition of the established giants?
• What can be done to bridge the technology gap with China, Japan and Korea?
• What action to scale up infrastructure faster?
• What role can international Joint-Ventures play for accelerating India’s shipbuilding development?

As it entered the AI race later than the US and China, India is facing the challenge of catching up and asserting its position in a critical strategic domain dominated by two powers able to mobilize bigger financial and skills resources. The country’s AI drive has been accelerating, with the country’s total investment on AI above the US$ 20 billion mark, and with the India AI Mission created in May 2024 focused on developing sovereign AI capabilities. There are, however, significant challenges to be addressed for bridging the gap with respect to foundational AI models, to cutting-edge research, to Data Centers capacity, to public and private funding, compared to where the US and China now stand. In this position of still asymmetric competition in which it finds itself, what next actions from academia, private sector and government will allow India to join the AI global leadership league in the coming years?

• How to leverage optimally the open digital innovation model to accelerate India’s AI catching-up momentum?
• What actions to maximize the impact for AI development and innovation of some of India’s specific assets?
• What partnerships between Academia, Industry and startups to develop a strong research-to-product dynamics?
• What targeted collaboration schemes with foreign partners (business, academic or institutional ones) should India prioritize at this stage of AI development?

What key features should/would characterize India’ positioning in the world by 2030?