ET Soonicorns Summit 2023: Key themes tracking the new growth frontiers for the Indian startup-tech economy
During the first quarter of 2023, no new unicorns emerged, unlike the same period in the previous year when 14 startups reached the $1 billion valuation milestone. In fact, a recent report highlighted a significant drop in new additions to India’s unicorn club during 2023, signalling a slowdown in the country’s startup ecosystem.
According to the ASK Private Wealth Hurun Indian Future Unicorn Index 2023, India introduced only three new unicorns, compared to 24 in the previous year. This decline is seen as reflective of the overall “slowdown in India’s startup ecosystem,” especially amidst the ongoing investor reluctance referred to as the “funding winter.” The above statistics gives a sense of how the challenging macroeconomic environment has affected Indian unicorns, resulting in layoffs and cost-cutting measures, with some experiencing valuation markdowns including Byju’s and Ola.
In Q1 2023, Indian startups secured $2.8 billion, reflecting a substantial 75% decrease compared to Q1 2022, according to a Tracxn report. This indicates that the Indian startup landscape is fraught with persisting funding challenges.
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