In India, 314 startups were founded in the first half of 2026, compared with 3,222 in 2025 (January-December), according to data from Tracxn, which tracks startups in the tech sector. Tracxn tracks the founding year of startups in the tech space, ...
New Delhi: A calibrated funding environment coupled with a cautious investor approach appears to be affecting the appetite of aspiring entrepreneurs, as fewer startups are being founded this year than last.
In India, 314 startups were founded in the first half of 2026, compared with 3,222 in 2025 (January-December), according to data from Tracxn, which tracks startups in the tech sector. Tracxn tracks the founding year of startups in the tech space, not the specific dates of their founding. While breakup for the first half of 2025 isn't available for a like-for-like comparison, the data still indicate a significant slowdown this year. This "should be viewed within the context of a more measured funding and operating environment rather than as a sign of weakening entrepreneurial ambition", said Tracxn co-founder Neha Singh.
According to Tracxn, the bulk of funding in 2026 has gone to tech startups in the enterprise applications ($2.0 billion) and enterprise infrastructure ($1.6 billion) spaces. In environment tech, which attracted $1.6 billion in 2025, it slipped to $921 million. Overall, equity funding levels in tech startups have remained broadly stable, with over $6 billion raised in the first six months of both 2025 and 2026.
Investors are focusing more on startups with clear business models in domains such as artificial intelligence, deeptech, manufacturing, climate tech, enterprise SaaS, fintech and consumer tech.
"Investors today are prioritising startups with differentiated technology, strong execution, clear paths to profitability and the ability to scale globally," said Vikram Gupta, founder and managing partner at IvyCap Ventures. "While early-stage innovation remains active, high-quality Series A and Series B companies with proven product-market fit and capital-efficient growth are attracting the strongest investor interest," Gupta said.
According to Nishit Garg, partner, Asia Investment Team at RTP Global, the seed stage is in a better shape now than a couple of years ago. "The bigger problem is that companies are maturing from an early stage (Series A and B) and beyond-that has gone slower," said Garg.
