Space for all: 'Startups going for IPO will absorb smaller startups' Accel Partners

With over 64 companies holding their Initial Public Offering (IPO) in 2024, venture capitalists are betting big on the growing Indian ecosystem. Karnataka’s Vision Group chair and cofounder of Accel Partners India, Prashanth Prakash, said that while there is a need for unicorns and soonicorns, there is also an equal opportunity for small startups that are leading the intellectual property (IP)-driven growth for deep tech.

"There was a time when, if you were not a large enough startup, you had no value. But I think that is changing. Startups going IPO today will buy smaller companies to expand their scope. It’s not bad anymore to build small," Prakash said while speaking at Ramaiah Institute of Technology during the Ramaiah Evoluate Incubator's startup awards on Thursday.

He added that India is moving beyond a focus on consumer startups and easy opportunities to deep technology, manufacturing, and engineering-led ventures. "By 2025, we could see another 30 to 40 companies from India going public, reflecting the maturing of our startup ecosystem," the Co-founder of Accel claimed, adding that India stands to gain from the China Plus One strategy.

"In the last year, if we’ve invested in 20 startups, about eight or nine of them have some deep manufacturing element. Who would have thought our ecosystem would come full circle—from being software-driven to integrating manufacturing, software, and AI?"

Advising young entrepreneurs on building the right way, Prakash said the future isn’t just about software; it’s about marrying AI with hardware, like robotics, to build innovative solutions. "Don’t just look for co-founders who are great at software; partner with those who are deep scientists or skilled engineers. This is the way forward for resilient startups."