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IIT Madras, IIT Madras Research Park and Unicorn India Ventures have completed the first close of their IITM Unicorn Frontier Fund-I at ₹450 crore. The fund aims to build a corpus of ₹1,000 crore, including a ₹400 crore green shoe option. The fund achieved its first close within around three months of receiving approval from SEBI.
The fund is targeting its final close by December 2026. Its objective is to provide long-term capital support to deep-tech startups that require more time and investment to develop new technologies, conduct testing and reach commercial scale. The fund is working towards building a portfolio of around 25 companies.
IIT Madras’ Research and Innovation Ecosystem to Support Startups
The fund has so far deployed around ₹55 crore across four deep-tech startups. These include Chennai-based space-tech company Hathor, Delhi-based quantum-tech company Quanstra, battery technology company Triolt Energy and Carbelim, which is developing microalgae-based carbon capture and air-purification technology. The investment amount for individual companies has been in the range of around ₹10 crore to ₹20 crore.
Hathor is developing semi-cryogenic and cryogenic rocket engines for small and medium satellite launch vehicles. Quanstra is working on single-photon detection systems and quantum instrumentation. Meanwhile, Triolt Energy is developing high-performance lithium-ion battery cells for drones and fast-charging electric mobility applications.
Professor V. Kamakoti, Director, IIT Madras, said that the institute has built an ecosystem that has helped several deep-tech companies progress from early-stage research to higher levels of technology readiness. According to him, the fund with Unicorn India will provide these companies with patient capital as well as strategic growth support.
Six Focus Areas for the Fund, Connecting Technology Education with Startups
The fund will focus its investments on six major areas. These include defence technology, space technology, semiconductors, manufacturing technology and robotics, AI infrastructure and generative AI, and health technology. Before committing capital, companies will also be assessed on their global export potential, strategic import substitution and technological self-reliance capabilities.
Natarajan Malupillai, Group Chief Executive Officer, IIT Madras Research Park, said that India has the scientific and engineering talent required to develop world-class technologies. According to him, the fund will bring long-term capital into the IIT Madras innovation ecosystem and help scale research-driven companies.
New Deep-Tech Entrepreneurship Opportunities for Students and Researchers
The incubation ecosystem at IIT Madras Research Park incubated 104 deep-tech startups in 2024. Against this backdrop, the new fund is focused on strengthening the connection between research, prototyping, intellectual property and startup commercialisation. This is expected to create more opportunities for students, researchers and early-stage founders to take technologies from the lab to the market.
According to Bhaskar Majumdar, Managing Partner, Unicorn India Ventures, the partnership with IIT Madras aims to provide early-stage founders with capital and strategic support to build globally competitive companies from India. The fund’s future focus will remain on scaling IP-led and engineering-heavy deep-tech companies.
