Karnataka Allocates Around INR 571 Cr to Support Startups Over Five Years

Karnataka has announced a new startup policy for 2025-2030 that sets a target of creating 25,000 startups over the next five years with at least 10,000 expected to come from regions outside Bengaluru.

According to a government statement, the state has allocated INR 570.675 crore for the policy. The framework focuses on improving access to funding, expanding incubation infrastructure, enabling market access and easing regulatory processes for early-stage companies.

A key objective of the policy is to decentralise startup growth beyond the state capital. It prioritises sectors such as artificial intelligence, blockchain, quantum computing, biotechnology, and sustainability-linked technologies. The policy outlines seven focus areas, including funding and grants, incubation and infrastructure, mentoring and skill development, market access and expansion, international collaboration, inclusion and sustainability and regulatory facilitation.

As part of the rollout, the government launched an INR 75-crore Beyond Bengaluru Cluster Seed Fund aimed at supporting startups in non-metro regions. Of this, INR 20 crore will be contributed by the state, while the remaining amount is expected to be raised from institutional and private sources. In its initial phase, the fund will focus on the Mysuru, Mangaluru, and Hubballi-Dharwad clusters.

The fund will make equity and equity-linked investments of up to INR 50 lakh per startup, subject to regulatory limits. It will target startups operating in information technology, electronics and semiconductor manufacturing, biotechnology, and the AVGC sector.

Karnataka also announced ELEVATE NxT, an INR 150-crore deeptech grant programme under the Local Economy Accelerator Program. The initiative will provide milestone-based funding of up to INR 1 crore per startup to ventures across India working in areas such as AI, robotics, biotech, quantum technologies and green energy.

The announcements were made at an event recognising 146 startups selected under the ELEVATE 2025 programme. These startups will receive total committed grants of INR 38.85 crore. The government said 43 percent of the selected startups were women-led, and a similar share were based outside Bengaluru.

According to official records, since its launch in 2017, the ELEVATE programme has disbursed INR 287.85 crore in grants to 1,230 startups across the state.