Startup Policy Forum Launches DeepVerse To Back India’s Deep Tech

Startup Policy Forum Launches DeepVerse To Back India’s Deep Tech

New platform brings investors, founders, policymakers, and technology companies together to address regulation, capital, talent, and global expansion

India’s deep-tech startups are getting a new policy platform as the Startup Policy Forum on Tuesday launched DeepVerse, bringing investors, founders, government, academia and technology companies together to address the ecosystem’s biggest constraints. The initiative comes as companies in areas such as semiconductors, quantum technology, spacetech and defence face longer development cycles and complex regulatory and capital requirements.

A Policy Platform For Deep Tech

DeepVerse will work across 10 deep-tech focus areas, with its agenda covering policy dialogue, research and ecosystem initiatives. The platform will bring together stakeholders to work on issues including regulation, access to capital, talent and global expansion, according to the Startup Policy Forum.

The initiative has an 18-member advisory board comprising investors, founders, policymakers, academics and technology executives. The board includes Prashanth Prakash, partner at Accel India; Anjali Bansal, founding partner at Avaana Capital; Pankaj Mitra, partner at Bessemer Venture Partners; Hemant Mohapatra, partner at Lightspeed; and Vishesh Rajaram, managing partner at Speciale Invest.

Founders represented on the board include Naman Pushp, founder and chief executive officer of Airbound; Tarun Mehta, co-founder and CEO of Ather Energy; Pawan Chandana, co-founder and CEO of Skyroot Aerospace; and Anirudh Sharma, founder and CEO of Digantara.

Government, academia and technology representation includes MeitY Startup Hub CEO Panneerselvam Madanagopal, Office of the Principal Scientific Adviser chief policy adviser B. Chagun Basha, Dayananda Sagar University pro-chancellor D. Premachandra Sagar and Intel India director of ecosystem and industry Aditi Nanda.

The platform’s focus areas include spacetech, defence technology, electric vehicles, advanced manufacturing and robotics, cleantech and energy, biotech, quantum technology, semiconductors and drones, with the wider programme covering 10 subsectors.

Focus On Long-Gestation Companies

Deep-tech companies typically require longer development and commercialisation cycles than many conventional startups, making predictable policy frameworks a key concern for founders and investors.

DeepVerse will have three tiers of participation, Deep Core, Deep Circle and Patrons. Members will contribute industry inputs to policy consultations and ecosystem initiatives, giving the platform a structure through which companies can feed sector-specific concerns into policy discussions.

The platform builds on SPF’s #100DesiDeepTechs initiative, which was launched in 2025 in partnership with MeitY Startup Hub, Startup India under the Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade, and IIT Madras.

The earlier initiative sought to identify and support 100 Indian deep-tech ventures while bringing founders into discussions with policymakers, investors, industry representatives and research institutions. SPF subsequently held DeepTech Baatcheet sessions in Delhi and Bengaluru covering regulation, capital, talent and global expansion.

DeepVerse is intended to provide a permanent platform for such startups to engage with policymakers and other ecosystem stakeholders. SPF itself represents more than 75 new-age technology companies with a combined valuation of over USD 100 billion, according to the organisation.