- Report assesses the growth and impact of India’s existing unicorn and startup ecosystem (Unicorn 1.0) and provides a vision for its future (Unicorn 2.0).
- Impact of Unicorn 1.0 (2010-23):
- Economy: Contribution of 10-15% to GDP growth with 100+ unicorns (3rd highest globally) and 1 lakh startups.
- Increased inclusivity and sustainability: 20-25% of new employment creation, 50 million plus fintech powered MSMEs, and 40th rank in global innovation index.
- Democratizing consumption: Greater affordability with 30-40% lower cost of education and healthcare, and improved e-commerce reach.
- Unicorn 2.0 (2024-35) has the potential to substantially transform India’s society and economy with additional contribution of $1 trillion to GDP and wide-scale democratization of digital services by 2030.
- Shifts that will define Unicorn 2.0 will include 15-25 globally leading startups, 25+ innovation led companies, near zero instances of corporate governance lapses and broad-basing of investor ecosystem etc.
- Recommendations for Unicorn 2.0:
- Capital: Participation of retail investors, and public sector institutions in funding.
- Re-wired Governance: Defined guidelines and corporate governance framework for startups.
- Regulation: Supportive tax environment.
- Innovation: Encouraging startups to invest in academic research and monetize resulting IP.
- Talent: Development of a deeper talent pool through apprenticeship-based certification/courses.