ETSA 2026: A secret circle, cosmic sparks and the night tech elite got goosebumps

An intimate and candid closed-door interaction with commerce and industry minister Piyush Goyal was a surprise even to the winners of the 12th Economic Times Startup Awards. Then again, ETSA is where unexpected delight happens by design.

It started as an impromptu circle around the minister just after the ceremony. Someone proposed shifting to the winners’ room next door, and soon everyone was huddled around the table.

There the crème de la crème of India’s startups sat in rapt attention, taking in every word from a visibly buoyed minister.


The conversation ranged from trade shenanigans in the US to the importance of yoga, and from India’s private sector firing rockets successfully at first attempt to why it is imperative to pump more capital into the startup ecosystem.

The minister underlined the need for more open conversations to bridge the spirit of Bengaluru and the intent of Delhi. “You tell us what you need,” he emphasised.

To nurture and nourish the next wave, he challenged the founders to pay it forward by reinvesting profits into emerging startups, while urging family offices to put their heft and capital behind domestic entrepreneurs.

The startup crowd in the room was over the moon with the impromptu interaction. Pallavi Mohadikar, cofounder and CEO of Palmonas, one of this year’s ETSA winners, said that the interaction felt like a breath of fresh air.

She shared her key takeaway from the interaction. “Things are simple; you don’t need to complicate them. You just need to sort them out in your head,” she said.

“When Piyush Goyal was speaking about taking India to the world, it felt like somebody understood what we’re trying to do. We’re trying to build a global brand from India. It was one of those moments when you get goosebumps and feel you’re on the right track.”

This was also the evening when the chatter went high on deeptech. The ETSA journey, in its 12th edition, is also reflective of the gradual shift in India’s startup focus, from consumer tech to space, semiconductor, robotics and AI.

Even so, Paras Chopra, cofounder of Wingify, made a key point about the paucity of AI startups: “That’s the biggest missing piece I feel.”

Progress on that, he added, should come from the entrepreneurs.